92 SHORT STALKS 



ill two or three hours. After we had walked a mile or 

 two we saw a l)ull staring at us a hundred yards away. 

 The snow was falling thickly, so that he could not make 

 us out plainly, and while we made a careful inspection 

 through the glass — for we now determined to be chary 

 of shooting at anything that did not carry a good head — 

 he continued at gaze. As he appeared to come up to the 

 required standard I fired, but, owing to the dim light, hit 

 him too high, and missed him altooether the second barrel. 

 He went oft' — alas ! badly wounded — into the thick wood, 

 where the snow did not lie, and Ave vainly tried to trace 

 him. I have no justification to ofter for firing this shot, 

 for we had meat enough at the moment, but I suppose 

 there are few AVestern sportsmen who have not been 

 similarly tempted by a fine head, and Englishmen are 

 not the worst oft^enders. While I continued the search I 

 sent Gerald down to Buffalo Fork, where 1 made sure he 

 would encounter the pack-train, for the purpose of stopping- 

 it. We agreed that he should hold a due northerly 

 line by the compass, so that if 1 followed in the same 

 course I should strike the river at the same spot. At 

 length I had to abandon the search, and went down 

 the steep slope, compass in hand. Arrived at the Ijottom 

 I could neither see nor hear any signs of Gerald or the 

 men. In vain I shouted. The whole valley, except for 

 the swirl of the stream, seemed as silent as a mountain 

 top. I waded the river and crossed the valley, which was 

 here wide and sw\ampy. It was cut up by numerous stag- 

 nant lagoons, and covered with a dense growth of willow, 

 l)ut game trails, of which there were plenty, afibrded a clue 

 to the labyrinth, and in due time I got across. Here I 



