Watched By Wild Animals 



CHAPTER I 



THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN GOAT 



A A flock of wild goats wound in and out 

 among the crevasses and crossed the 

 slender ice bridges of a glacier on Mount 

 Rainier they appeared for all the world like a 

 party of skillful mountain climbers. 



Not until I had studied them for a few seconds 

 through my field glasses did I realize that they 

 were goats. There were twenty-seven of them, 

 nannies, billies, and kids, strung out in a crooked 

 line, single file. Once safely across this glacier 

 they lingered to look round. The kids played, 

 the old goats had friendly bouts, and one or two 

 couples scratched each other. After a dday of 

 more than an hour they set off round the 

 mountain and I followed. 



While crossing another ice slope they were 

 suddenly subjected to a severe bombardment. 

 A number of large rock fragments crashed down 

 the steep slope, bounding, hurtling, and ripping 



