HUNTING IN CATTLE COUNTRY 173 



at a long distance a band of antelope lying for their noon 

 rest in a slight hollow. A careful stalk brought me up 

 within fifty yards of them. I was crawling flat on my 

 face, for the crest of the hillock sloped so gently that 

 this was the only way to get near them. At last, peering 

 through the grass, I saw the head of a doe. In a mo- 

 ment she saw me and jumped to her feet, and up stood 

 the whole band, including the buck. I immediately tried 

 to draw a bead on the latter, and to my horror found that, 

 lying flat as I was, and leaning on my elbows, I could not 

 bring the rifle above the tall shaking grass, and was ut- 

 terly unable to get a sight. In another second away tore 

 all the antelope. I jumped to my feet, took a snap shot 

 at the buck as he raced round a low-cut bank and missed, 

 and then walked drearily home, chewing the cud of my 

 ill-luck. Yet again in more than one instance, after mak- 

 ing a good stalk upon a band seen at some distance, I 

 found it contained only does and fawns, and would not 

 shoot at them. 



Three times, however, the stalk was successful. 

 Twice I was out alone; the other time my foreman was 

 with me, and held my horse while I manoeuvred hither 

 and thither, and finally succeeded in getting into range. 

 In both the first instances I got a standing shot, but on 

 this last occasion, when my foreman was with me, two of 

 the watchful does which were in the band saw me before 

 I could get a shot at the old buck. I was creeping up 

 a low washout, and, by ducking hastily down again and 

 running back and up a side coulee, I managed to get 

 within long range of the band as they cantered off, not 



