MOUNTAIN GAME OF THE CAUCASUS 6i 



it is 'harder than slavery'; but, unfortunately, there was no 

 help for it, so there the hunters lay, the game almost within 

 range of them, and yet hopelessly inaccessible. As they lay 

 silently w^atching, the heat which exercise had generated in 

 their bodies slowly oozed away, the wind began to twist and 

 shift dangerously, so that at any moment they might expect to 

 have their presence betrayed, and down below the mist-wreaths 

 began to gather. All at once one of these detached itself from 

 the rest and came floating up to-wards the peaks. Nearer and 

 nearer it crept up the mountain-side, until, to Littledale's in- 

 expressible delight, it rested for one moment upon that odious 

 snow-patch. 



That was all that was wanted, and in a moment Littledale 

 and his companions had taken advantage of it, had flitted like 

 ghosts through the shifting veil before it had time to pass on, 

 and had thrown themselves, with a sigh of thankfulness, behind 

 a huge boulder on the other side of the snow-field. They were 

 only just in time, for as they gained their shelter the little mist 

 floated off" the snow, and the tilr, which were still above the 

 party, began to show unmistakable signs of uneasiness. 



From the boulder Littledale tried to worm himself still 

 nearer to his quarry, but as he did so, first one and then the 

 whole herd got slowly up, one big fellow standing, broadside on, 

 upon a little pinnacle above the rest. Putting up the 150 yards 

 sight, and taking the foresight very fine, as the shot was uphill, 

 Littledale pressed the trigger, and the great ram sprang from 

 the rock with a stagger which looked as if he had got his death- 

 wound. 



As the first beast left it, another big ram took his place 

 upon the rock, and as the left barrel rang out he too vanished 

 on the other side of the rock. 



Uncertain as to the result of his shots, Littledale hurried 

 to the spot, to find one tClr in extremis and the other gone. 



However, the hunter, following at his leisure, pointed out 

 the second beast, dead, within ten or fifteen yards of the first. 

 The fact that Mr. Littledale (no novice, mind you) overlooked 



