CHAPTER IX 



AN INTERESTING TRAIL 



"I ne'er was a coward, nor slave will I kneel 

 While my guns carry shot, or my belt bears a steel." 



WITH the desire to secure a bear, a 

 journey was undertaken that for nov- 

 elty and continued interest during its whole 

 length warrants more than a passing comment. 

 The route taken carried us upward by a 

 gradual incline until we saw ahead of us a 

 long undulating mountain, stretching a mile 

 or so in length, with a sharp razor-like peak 

 on top. The sides of this mountain were ex- 

 ceedingly steep, and seemed to be nothing but 

 an aggregation of small stones of varying 

 sizes and shapes, most of them having sharp 

 points. If a man were to slip over the peak, 

 the stones would then start on a downward 

 movement, carrying their human passenger 

 with a constantly accelerating swiftness so 

 that by the time the base was reached, there 

 would be little if any life left in the unfor- 

 tunate victim. 



