76 WILD SPORTS IN THE FAR WEST. 



passed the night, starting on the following morning 

 across a twelve-mile prairie. 



A cutting north-wester blew from the great lakes, 

 so that my quickest pace hardly sufficed to keep me 

 warm. After passing through a small wood, and sur- 

 mounting a hill, I came to another little town, called 

 Salem. On the 21st of December I had another 

 prairie, twenty-two miles wide, before me : though 

 still very cold, it was good walking over the hard 

 frozen ground. In the evening I arrived at a farm- 

 house, where I passed the night. Just as I came to 

 the house, the farmer was leading his horse by the 

 bridle into the sitting-room, Avhich I should have taken 

 for the stable, had I not seen smoke issuing from the 

 chimney. Full of curiosity, I followed my host into 

 his httle dwelling, and here the riddle was explained. 

 He had been hauhng wood, and he had fastened his 

 horse to a log about eight feet long, to draw it into 

 the house ; then he rolled it to tlie fire-place, which 

 took up nearly one whole side of the little block-house, 

 and as he could not conveniently turn the horse on 

 account of tables, chairs, ancl beds, he had made an 

 opening on the side opposite the door, in order to lead 

 him out again. I had shot several prairie birds in 

 the course of the day, and they afforded us a delicate 

 supper. They are very numerous in these wide plains, 

 and I have seen flocks of from 600 to 700 of them. 

 They are about the size of our domestic fowls, but with 

 a longer neck, and have a tail like a partridge ; their 

 color is an ashy gray. I shot only one gray prairie 

 wolf; they are much smaller than the black wolves, 

 and very shy. 



