Expedition to John Day River 203 



it for science. Professor Cope says that he cut 

 niches and climbed to the top of the spire. My re- 

 membrance, however, is that he threw a rope around 

 the spire and let it settle down to where he thought 

 the rock would be strong enough to support his 

 weight. He then climbed up hand over hand to the 

 loop, stood erect, picked up the skull, and without 

 putting any pressure on the rock, got back to his 

 rope and down to safety below. He then secured 

 the rope by jerking off the top of the pinnacle. 



It matters little how he got the skull, but I am 

 ready to testify that it was the bravest undertaking 

 I ever saw accomplished in the John Day beds ; and 

 as long as science lasts, this noble specimen of one 

 of the largest tigers that ever lived should be asso- 

 ciated with the name of Leander Davis. I am glad 

 that the great dike across the Cove is named after 

 him also. 



What is it that urges a man to risk his life in 

 these precipitous fossil beds ? I can answer only for 

 myself, but with me there were two motives, the 

 desire to add to human knowledge, which has been 

 the great motive of my life, and the hunting instinct, 

 which is deeply planted in my heart. Not the desire 

 to destroy life, but to see it. The man whose love 

 for wild animals is most deeply developed is not he 

 who ruthlessly takes their lives, but he who follows 

 them with the camera, studies them with loving 



