TWO DIANAS IN ALASKA 233 



never be won over, but every man has his price, 

 Talleyrand said. I expect he included women. My 

 price was an Ovis dalli ram, and when Gummidge 

 brought me the propitiatory news, an hour or so later, 

 I forgot and forgave like a good Christian. 



The ram, he said, was a ram of rams, and the span 

 of its horns was wide as this spreading out his arms. 

 It lay asleep on a hillside. Following my guide I 

 crossed the narrow end of a shining snow-field on to 

 a shale slope, across a small ravine to another valley. 

 There, sure enough, as I could see by my glasses, lay 

 a very fine sheep indeed, motionless, and his head 

 looked topping. I commenced to climb above him, 

 and threw a bit of grass into the air to see the way of 

 the wind. The Fates were kind, and what air there 

 was blew in a favourable direction for me. The little 

 grey marmots scattered to right and left as I disturbed 

 them, in long shrill whistles giving warning of our 

 approach. Sentinels for the sheep these small rodents, 

 often signalling to the ewes the presence of a predatory 

 eagle bent on annexing a lamb for dinner. 



I crept on as silently as I could, but sometimes a 

 stone would rattle down the slopes. I waited for the 

 ram to rise and break away. I came within splendid 

 range. How well I'd stalked. How clever it was of 

 me ! What a really excellent plan I must have laid. 



I gained a still nearer vantage ground, but hated 

 the idea of murdering my quarry in his sleep, it was 

 not sporting. Let him have his chance. " Shout," 

 I said to my man, who was close up with me. He 

 yelled until the echoes rang, and all the distant white 



