rinjtu by George Shiras, 3rd 



THESK SHEKP FED For hours without looking AllOUT, EXCEPT THE SENTINEL 



ABOVE, ON THE EEETfSEE PACE 486) 



The keen vision of these sheep is practically their sole reliance for detecting danger. 

 They always feed or rest on open ridges or hillsides devoid of bushes, from which they can 

 have an unhampered view in every direction. They also possess unusual power of inference, 

 detecting danger from the actions of other sheep, however distant the latter may be. 



away, it was a good illustration of their 

 acuteness of sight and their quickness in 

 realizing the character of the danger. Not 

 knowing how these sheep could escape in 

 the direction they were going, I called to 

 Tom for advice. He yelled that they 

 were now headed for an ice-bridge across 

 the canyon (which I did not know of), 

 and, after crossing this, he thought they 

 would swing around our way again for 

 the purpose of ascending the mountain 

 slope just behind, and that if I hurried 

 there would be a chance for a picture. 



But after exercising all the energy at 

 my command the sheep won, and I could 

 see them 200 yards below quartering up 

 the mountain. In a few minutes they 

 reached a ledge of rock within a hundred 

 feet of the crest of the great black cliff 

 opposite the site of our former camp. 



This was our last view of the white 

 mountain sheep until two days later, when 



^ve entered the pass of the low divide 

 above Skilak Lake. 



Our visit had made the sheep consider- 

 ably wilder, and the flocks which for- 

 merly rested each night on the lower 

 benches now whitened the ledges of many 

 a high cliff : but no red had dyed the 

 white and woolly sides and no flock no- 

 ticed an absent one within its ranks. 



The ne.xt morning we left for Skilak 

 Lake, camping a half mile this side of 

 the low divide and giving the men a 

 chance to make a second trip to the cabin 

 that day. 



OUR LAST VIEW OE THE WHITE SHEEP 



At an early hour the next morning the 

 little tent was taken down and cached 

 with other articles, to be called for the 

 following day, and then with heavy 

 packs we began trudging along the slight 

 rise to the low divide, through which 



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