At St. Mary's 



usual exercise, and so, when we were finally 

 warned to "tread keerful" as we were ap- 

 proaching the lick, we were nearly as fresh 

 as when we started out. For the next 

 quarter of a mile we were fully occupied 

 in attempting to tread " keerful/' our hob- 

 nailed shoes and the slippery rocks com- 

 bating us at every step. 



For some time we had been skirting 

 the mountain above the timber-line for 

 better walking. Now the guide led us 

 just inside the wood for concealment; and 

 soon rounding a projecting crag, and as- 

 cending a wooden spur running down the 

 mountain-side, we found ourselves peering 

 through the trees into a large, shallow 

 basin, treeless and rocky, and several hun- 

 dred yards across. Here and there in this 

 open could be discovered white patches 

 of earthy shale, and these were the sheep- 

 licks which we were seeking. They were 

 merely spots where salts exuded to the sur- 

 face from beneath, or were washed down 

 by seepage from above ; but our guide had 

 informed us that when one once found a 

 lick he had a sure thing, as the game of 

 the surrounding country constantly visited 

 the place to satisfy their natural taste for the 

 salts found there. 



Cautiously we parted the boughs and 

 282 



