A LOST MOOSE 73 



was plenty of grass for the horses. They were 

 picketed and a lunch was prepared, a small 

 fire having been kindled for boiling the mate 

 (the South American herb that we were using 

 instead of tea). In due time we sat down to 

 a refreshing lunch. The men who smoked lit 

 their pipes and were just settling themselves 

 for a little rest, when some one exclaimed: 

 "Look, oh look, did you ever see such a 

 sight?" Away up on top of the mountain that 

 we had ascended but a little while before, was 

 the biggest bull moose that I had ever seen 

 He was running as fast as he could go, and in 

 a minute or so had reached the divide and 

 dropped down out of sight on the other side. 

 There was some quick mounting of steeds and 

 ofif we went at full gallop after the moose. 

 He was too quick for us; when we scaled the 

 summit he was not to be seen, but his tracks 

 were very plain and showed that he had been 

 calmly feeding alone on some lily pads grow- 

 ing in a tiny bit of a lake, located in another 

 little depression like the dried-up pond near 

 which we had lunched. He had scented us, 

 although from where he had rushed out of the 

 water the distance was a good mile from us. 

 and the wind was not directly in his favor 

 either, but it must have made a sort of angle as 



