vii THE LAMMERGEIER 193 



off which he had doubtless hunted the izards. I was 

 very glad to see the men safe. Shortly after I had left 

 the couloir another avalanche had fallen with terrific 

 force, and after joining the men, while we were talking, 

 another. Went eastward a bit to see if we could make 

 anything of the solitaires, and where the precipices end 

 caught sight of a female izard lying in a hole about 200 

 yards off. I could only see her shoulders and would 

 not risk the shot, hoping that she might get up to graze 

 and come closer. Heavy mist came on and hid her 

 from us, and when it cleared she was not to be seen. 

 The wind had changed. We attempted to follow her, 

 but the fresh snow on the steep slope above the most 

 ugly-looking hole, some 400 feet deep and a pic, made 

 us think prudence preferable to valour. I had some 

 bother getting down the cheminte with my thumb. 

 Reached home tired and disgusted. 



Friday, %th April 1881. A dirty morning. Mists 

 which soon turned into rain. Beat the " rocks," I going 

 to the old post above the " old bouquetin's cornice," and 

 Arthur to the post above. Just before we separated, 

 we found the old tracks of a bear in the snow in the 

 couloir behind my post. Had not been long at my 

 post when I saw our old friend of two years ago, the 

 lammergeier, floating along the sides of the " rocks," 

 examining the ground carefully below him, in hopes 

 doubtless of a chance at an izard like that he got 

 when he killed the one on Turbon, whose head I have 

 at home. I had just commenced my lunch after having 

 been about two hours and a half at my post when 

 Antoine appeared above me with Vincent. The latter 

 had come to say that the dogs had run a male bouquetin 

 on to a ledge on the high precipice of Aronebo, near 

 the Cotatoire pass. Poor Vincent estaba muy escansado, 

 so I gave him a pull at my wine. As soon as Arthur 



