212 BIG GAME SHOOTING IN ALASKA chap. 



manage with our united efforts. We had no machine for 

 weighing the animal, and 1 have not much opinion of 

 estimated weights. I remarked at the time that the weight 

 was probably about 1500 lbs., and judging by later experi- 

 ments made by my friend H anbury this estimate was not 

 far off the mark. I sent Ivan back to camp to get help to 

 finish the skinning and pack home the head, etc. 



On return to camp 1 found Glyn very disgusted at not 

 having seen a moose ; but he had shot at, and severely 

 wounded, a black bear which had got away into some thick 

 alders, where he and Little had been unable to follow it. 

 They had left it, deciding to return with the natives and track 

 it next day. Of course, as always seems to be the case, it 

 rained hard during the night, and next morning, when Pitka 

 went with Glyn to try to follow the trail, all the blood-marks 

 had been washed away and they found nothing. 



The date of my killing this first moose was September 11, 

 and for nine days afterwards I did not fire a shot, nor did 

 we see a sizable bull during the whole time. 



I questioned Pitka closely as to his opinion why we did 

 not see more big bulls. He gave an explanation which I 

 think was correct, saying that the big bulls did not get their 

 horns out of velvet so soon as the smaller ones ; and it was 

 obvious, from the fact of my beast of September 1 1 still 

 having velvet on the horns, that many of the larger animals 

 were sulking in the dense thickets, where they would remain 

 until their horns were clean. Furthermore, he said that 

 owing to the late spring and summer the moose were very 

 backward in getting their horns clean. In ordinary seasons 

 on the Kenai Peninsula the bulls begin to run round looking 

 for the cows, and then fighting with each other, from about 

 the middle of September. That is the best time to pick 



