ON THE SHEEP RANGES 39 



snow which filled the bed of the stream for a long dis- 

 tance below the crest, were two large dark animals. My 

 glasses showed them to be caribou; one very dark with 

 striking horns, the other lighter, with horns more spike- 

 like. The wind was blowing from me to them, and 

 immediately I began to circle up the mountain side for 

 the purpose of approaching with a favorable wind. The 

 stalk was made slowly to a point above them and then 

 directly down toward them, always in plain sight. They 

 kept quietly feeding, keeping their heads close to the 

 ground, without once raising them to look about in the 

 manner of a deer, sheep, or moose. The sun was brightly 

 shining and mosquitoes were so numerous that my head- 

 net could not be removed. With more than necessary 

 caution I advanced to within three hundred yards and 

 took a sitting position, elbows on knees. Singling out 

 the darker, larger-horned animal, I fired, and distinctly 

 heard the bullet strike him. The ball struck his hind 

 quarters, breaking one leg, passing through the stomach 

 and out on the other side. As the animal had kept walk- 

 ing and changing positions, this was the only good 

 exposure presented for a shot. The other at once began 

 trotting uphill, and I am somewhat ashamed to confess 

 that I fired at it twice, and then, having cooled down, 

 did not shoot again, but deliberately allowed it to go, 

 thinking that I had missed. It soon stopped and looked 

 back, then trotted ahead, pausing several times to uri- 

 nate or look back, until it disappeared over the mountain 

 range. The other was staggering, and in a moment 

 dropped, rolled down the slope, and landed in the bed 



