i6o HUNTING CAMPS. 



most fortunate that we did take this precaution, for in a 

 very few minutes Peder turned upon me a face literally 

 white with excitement. " Bi-i-g bo-o-ol," he whispered 

 with a drawl of prodigious meaning on both words. I peered 

 over his shoulder, and there, sure enough, at a distance of 

 not more than two hundred yards below us, I at last saw the 

 heavy dark head, bulged nose, and large palmated antlers 

 of a truly big bull. The rest of his body was hidden by the 

 thick green of a bush, as were also, I discovered later, a 

 cow and two calves, the companions of the bull. 



While Peder remained behind with Bismarck I cautiously 

 stalked the elk, my heart thumping against my ribs, for 

 one may go many seasons to Norway and not meet with 

 such horns as it seemed to me this bull carried. The wind 

 was exactly right, my way lay across moss, and altogether 

 it appeared that fortune, who seldom does things by halves, 

 was indeed in a generous mood. About a hundred and 

 twenty yards away I settled for my shot, and just before 

 I took it, looking back I was aware of Peder's face, paler 

 than ever, peeping above a rock ; his hands I did not see, 

 but well I knew how they were occupied and that Bismarck 

 would not give tongue till the critical moment was over. 



I paused a moment to steady myself before drawing 

 the trigger, and could see the transient gleams of sunshine 

 upon the white birch trunks springing from their bed of 

 green moss and the bronze and gold of wild raspberry 

 leaves that shone in the duller background. All I could 

 define to shoot at was the head and neck, and, not wishing 

 to smash the skull, I chose the neck. At the shot the elk 

 bounded to his feet and was lost to view. I heard a tremen- 

 dous crashing in the forest and caught sight of the cow and 

 the half -grown calves swinging along in full flight. 



A moment's pause and then the bull blundered from 

 shadow to shadow He was struck in the neck, and not 

 knowing where the shot came from he ran towards me, 



