ON THE PRAIRIE 167 



a small band of cow elk disappearing into 

 the woods on its other edge. I was riding 

 a restive horse, and when I tried to jump 

 off to shoot, it reared and turned round, 

 before I could get my left foot out of UK 

 stirrup ; when I at last got free I could get a 

 glimpse of but one elk, vanishing behind 

 a dead trunk, and my hasty shot missed. 

 I was a good deal annoyed at this, my 

 opening experience with mountain game, 

 ng that it was an omen of misfortune; 

 but it did not prove so, for during the rest 

 of my two weeks' stay, I with one excep- 

 tion got every animal I fired at. 



A beautiful, clear mountain brook ran 

 through the bottom of the valley, and in an 

 open space by its side we pitched camp. We 

 were entirely out of fresh meat, and after 

 lunch all three of us separated to hunt, each 

 for his own hand. The teamster went up 

 stream, Merrifield went down, while I fol- 

 lowed the tracks of the band of cows and 

 calves that we had started in the morning; 

 their trail led along the wooded hill-crests 



