106 HUNTING SPORTS OF THE WEST. 



found herself deceived, she remained for a moment or 

 two in the same attitude, quite confounded. I did not 

 leave her much time for consideration ; my ball crashed 

 through her brain, and she fell dead on her supposed 

 prey without a moan. I killed the two young ones easily 

 enough." 



He had hardly finished the anecdote, when the dogs 

 began to bark, and, by-and-by, we jumped up to see 

 what was the matter. It was a neighbor named Coil- 

 mar, from the other side of the hill. I toojjf the saddle 

 off his horse, and laid it under one of tli beds, tied up 

 the horse to a young tree, shoved a roughiy-hewn trough 

 before him, which I filled with maize, and his eager 

 munching proved how well he was satisfied with all the 

 proceedings. Collmar had come over tin* hill to invite 

 us to assist in erecting a new house. He had collected 

 all the logs on the spot, and now, according to American 

 custom, was calling on his neighbors to come and assist 

 in raising them. S. was his nearest neighbor but one, 

 and lived nine miles distant ; the next dwelt eight miles 

 further. 



I promised to come at all events, but it was against 

 Slowtrap's habit to promise anything two days in ad- 

 vance. Besides, his wife and his youngest child were 

 both unwell. We shortened the evening with stories and 

 anecdotes. Collmar was off with the dawn, to prepare 

 for the following day. I took my rifle and lounged into 

 the forest with Bearsgrease, to look for a turkey. He 

 drove a gang into the trees, at less than half a mile 

 from the house ; but the wood was so thick and over- 

 grown, that before I could come up to see which treeer 



