105 



which were protected by neighboring hills from 

 the deep drifts of snow. Here they passed the 

 winter, on short commons, it is true (they graze, 

 not browsing like deer), but without danger of 

 perishing in the snow-drifts. On the other hand, 

 if the skin hunters discovered such a wintering 

 place, they were able to butcher practically the 

 entire band, if they so desired, as the prongbucks 

 were always most reluctant to leave such a chosen 

 ground. 



Normally the prongbuck avoids both broken 

 ground and timber. It is a queer animal, with 

 keen senses, but with streaks of utter folly in its 

 character. Time and again I have known bands 

 rush right by me, when I happened to surprise 

 them feeding near timber or hills, and got between 

 them and the open plains. The animals could 

 have escaped without the least difficulty if they 

 had been willing to go into the broken country, 

 or through even a few rods of trees and brush ; 

 and yet they preferred to rush madly by me at 

 close range, in order to get out to their favorite 

 haunts. But nowadays there are certain localities 

 where the prongbucks spend a large part of their 

 time in the timber or in rough, hilly country, feeding 

 and bringing up their young in such localities. 



Typically, however, the prongbuck is pre- 

 eminently a beast of the great open plains, eat- 

 ing their harsh, dry pasturage, and trusting to its 



