382 BIG GAME OF NORTH AMERICA. 



into a feeling of security, and I crawled to within about 

 fifty yards of them. The majority of them had gone to 

 feeding. Several of the lambs — gay, sprightly little creat- 

 ures-^were skipping and gamboling merrily about, just as 

 you have seen domestic lambs play in a i)asture-field. 



Some of the older animals were engaged in the more 

 serious occupation of love-making. Two lusty old rams 

 became involved in a quarrel over a demure-looking ewe, 

 whom both seemed anxious to captivate. As one of them 

 moved toward her, the other, which was a few feet in the 

 i^ar, made a vicious rush at him, and striking him on the 

 port quarter, sent him spinning and reeling a distance of 

 twenty feet or more. This was the signal for open hostili- 

 ties. The jealous rivals squared away, faced each other, 

 and prepared for war. For a moment they stood sullenly 

 eying each other, their manes erect and their eyes flashing 

 fire. Then, as if at a given signal, they lowered their 

 heads and charged each other with all the force and fury 

 of mailed knights in the lists. Their massive horns came 

 together with a shock that seemed sufficient to grind them 

 to splinters, and to dislocate the necks of the angry beasts; 

 but they simply reeled, staggered, shook their heads, and 

 then slowly backed off, until thirty or forty feet apart, for 

 another encounter. Both now seemed more savage and 

 desj)erate than before. They snorted, groaned, and pawed 

 the ground in their rage. By this time most of the herd 

 had gathered about to watch the battle. They formed 

 almost a perfect ring around the contestants, and seemed as 

 deeply interested in the fight as are the toughs who gather 

 to watch a human slugging-match. 



Again the burly foes went at each other with the speed 

 of race-horses, and met with the same terriflc shock as 

 before. The sound of their clashing horns could have been 

 heard a mile. The animals were evenly matched in size, 

 and the contest was bitterly waged. Each round consisted 

 of a single assault, and as the belligerents became heated 

 and blown, the waits between the acts were prolonged , each 

 requiring time to recuperate for the next onset. Both were 



