158 CAMP FIRE REMINISCENCES 
sible, so I paid little attention to them. In an hour 
or so, away to the right, a little string of goats ap- 
peared. They came to a precipice and crossed the 
face of it with as much ease as we could have 
come downstairs. There were six or seven adults 
and several kids and it soon became evident that 
they were coming to the lick from which I had 
seen the seven go the evening before. I had a 
splendid chance of watching them, although they | 
were far off. 
Dawson was now coming away from that neigh- 
bourhood with the skin he had gone for and when 
he reached me I pointed the game out. One was a 
nice billy. Sometimes he looked like a polar bear 
walking leisurely about, but when he got to the 
edge of a cliff, and sitting down like a dog, sur- 
veyed the country, I must say, he did not look like 
any other beast I had ever seen. The high 
shoulders and low head gave the animal a strange 
appearance. We decided that instead of going up 
to the floor of the basin, I should climb the shoulder 
on the right and try and get a nearer shot; at the 
same time it might give me a chance of seeing the 
animals rather close and watching their movements. 
Dawson decided to remain down below and to direct 
my movements by signals. Going far around to 
the right, I followed a dry creek bed which led to 
a washout. The side of this had to be climbed 
and between the top and the main basin there was 
a sort of hump upon which were a few stunted 
pines. This—which was not at all difficult to as- 
cend—ran up to the foot of a great precipice. By 
