"And ardent we pursue; our lah'ring steeds. 

 We press, "vce urge; till once the summit gain'd. 

 PainfulUj panting, there we breathe awhile; 

 Then like a foaming torrent, inuring down 

 Precipitant, we smoke along the vale." 



Somen'ile. 



VII 



COYOTE HUNTING ON THE PLAINS OF 

 COLORADO 



THE GRE.VT PLAINS AT SUNRISE — RANCH LIFE — THE ANTELOPE 

 CHASE — THE OLD CATTLEJIAN — A GOOD SHOT — THE RIDE OF 

 THE TENDERFOOT — ROPING A COYOTE. 



A RMED with raihvaj^ passes and an order from the Divi- 

 ■^*- sion Superintendent to stop the Union Pacific night ex- 

 press at Kit Carson, we (Mr. Petrie, ]Mr. Steepleton, the 

 writer, and six of JNIr. l*etrie's best coyote greyhounds) left 

 Denver, full of hope and running over with expectation. "I 

 shall not be satisfied," said Mr. Petrie, "if we come back with 

 less than six coyote pelts. For the last thirteen years I have 

 been promising an old friend and ranchman down there that 

 I Avould bring my hounds down, and give the coyotes on his 

 ranch a roimd trip up and a dance worth the money." 



"The thirteen years," said JNIr. Steepleton, "is not a very 

 good number to go on for luck, besides, to-morrow is the 13th of 

 December, and Kit Carson is 113 miles from Denver. Also, 

 we are starting on Friday. That's a pretty stiff combination 



