AMONGST THE WILD GOATS OF THE CASCADES. 289 



meat, which, though likewise slightly tough at first, 

 was now excellently tender. 



Grass shoes, brought from Japan, and universally 

 worn in that country by the natives, I had found ex- 

 ceedingly tenacious on difficult ground, while they 

 resembled closely the grass foot-gear of Kashmir, 

 which I had worn in that country not long before. 

 We were now camped at an elevation of about six 

 thousand feet above the sea, but it was not cold ; rain, 

 however, had set in steadily, and the men were sleep- 

 ing under the overhanging branches of a tree, wrapped 

 up in their blankets before the fire. In addition to 

 the small tent, I proceeded to stretch some large 

 sheets of stout Japanese oil-paper, attached by ropes 

 overhead, as a sort of extra shelter from the rain ; and 

 afterwards occupied the time by skinning the goat's 

 head and preparing the skull, keeping up a good fire, 

 and then cooking dinner over it. In the evening I 

 decided with George that it would be better to move 

 the camp and descend about a thousand feet before 

 night, in case the wind rose. This was accomplished 

 after we had spent much time in searching for some 

 level spot capable of accommodating the tent. Small 

 as the latter was, we found it necessary to excavate 

 the requisite portion of level ground out of the hill- 

 side, in a place which reminded me of the hut on the 

 Zermatt side of the Matterhorn. 



While the men had been engaged in bringing some 

 more of the goat's meat into camp, I had ascended to 

 a bare spot which commanded a comprehensive view 



u 



