THE BIG-HORN 213 



Mr. Stone gives us many other stories of the chase, 

 in which he describes the ditihcult places where the 

 animals are often found. Once he saw three rams 

 resting on a ledge not more than a foot in width on 

 the face of a perpendicular cliff fully five hundred feet 

 below the top. He ordered his Indians to throw 

 stones at them, knowing they would find some way to 

 reach the top. The first two to appear w^ere missed at 

 long range, but, running forward, Mr. Stone bagged 

 the third animal with the second shot fired at it, at one 

 hundred and fifty yards. But the ram rolled over the 

 face of the cliff down to a little bench some hundreds 

 of feet below, where Mr. Stone and his Indians were 

 compelled to leave it, finding it impossible to get down 

 where the animals came up. They had ropes and worked 

 hard for the ram, since they were badly in need of food, 

 and "that ram represented the only food in sight." 



The big-horn has smooth, short hair, more like that 

 of the deer or antelope than of domestic sheep. The 

 color of the ovis canadensis, the largest big-horn, is 

 grayish brown. The hair of other species differs 

 much in color, as we have observed. The big-horn is 

 a stout, muscular animal, about three and one-half feet 

 in height at the withers. The legs are trim, well formed, 

 and altogether it has a decidedly graceful appearance 

 when seen standing or bounding along over the rocky 

 heights. It is wonderfully sure-footed and travels 

 at full speed up and down narrow and precipitous 

 ledges where no man would dare follow it, bounds 

 lightly across deep chasms or rushing mountain- 

 streams, and is in every way as well equipped to take 

 good care of itself as any wild game animal in the land. 



