ISO HUNTING CAMPS. 



and got in a shot as he plunged through the underbrush a 

 mere glimpse of black shadow. At the shot the bull turned 

 a complete somersault, clean head over heels like a gigantic 

 rabbit, and lay still upon the further side of a little patch 

 of trees. I ran round to get a clearer view, or rather a 

 view at all, for the elk was now entirely hidden. But no 

 sooner did I catch sight of him than with a grunt and a 

 crashing of sticks he pulled himself to his feet and began 

 to make off through the dense wood. 



Meantime my rifle had jammed with some pine-needles 

 which had clogged the action, but just as the cartridge was 

 released the bull turned and crossed my front some hun- 

 dred and twenty yards away, giving me a fair chance. 

 Owing to the excitement of the moment, as well as the fear 

 that the elk would vanish into the thick timber, I shot too 

 quickly and without making due allowance for the nature 

 of the ground, which fell away at a sharp angle ; thus, to 

 the best of my belief, the bullet passed over the elk without 

 touching him. Still I thought it possible that the elk 

 would not go far, and we followed his trail and discovered 

 some blood spoor. Bismarck was beside himself with ex- 

 citement, straining at his harness and yelping. After a 

 while we reached some harder ground and lost five min- 

 utes, for Bismarck took us off on the trail of one of the 

 startled cows. 



From this we came back and picked up the bull's trail 

 again. It led away downhill, then the elk had turned at a 

 sharp angle, and begun to ascend the mountain side once 

 more. Meanwhile the rain was slashing down upon us 

 from the sky and pouring in streams from the trees. It 

 was clear from the trail that as he neared the top of the 

 hill the elk had slowed down, unable to keep up the fierce 

 pace of the start. So, too, alas ! had we. Running up a 

 Norsk mountain-side through forest at top speed is a feat 

 beyond even the natives of the valley, and very far beyond 



