March 29, 1883.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



163 



are very law. and I have scon some of them whose backs 

 appeared us broad as thai of a lamb as they went hopping 

 npiiii- liilNidc. They frequent the high foot-hills, and I 

 never found them below the last hills, where the real plain 

 rommenced. When started from Iheiv form they hop off 

 vrrv awkw.'irdiv, as though one leg was in von bad shape:; 

 ami ii no! shot at, Ot but slightly startled. th"ey ViU stop 

 it'tt'r going-a lirtle*way and flit up. By keeping quiet and 

 following slowly il is often possible to follow thorn arouud 

 andito get near enough to shoot. TJioy-seera tn -skulk and 

 dodge, especially when among the low mountain cedars. 

 But-start them hy shooting at them, or scare them insomo 

 way. and then sec tlicni goJ Theii' ureal long eats W ill Hal 

 ten mil on their backs,, and nothinj: bul a streak of white 

 can be seen flyfng aJong the- ground— and such jumps! I 

 have starieil them down a hillside, where the snow lav so 

 that their tracks could be seen, and the distance they would 

 cover with one leap wa-s prodigious. For tear, however. 

 that some may say, "That's another Western yarn." 1 will 



not venture to name any I xaei distance 



The hares an- not very hard to kill, excepting in the 

 winter, when their eoat i- very I hick and then it will -lop 



-in>i in certain ways Bul I or two shots in the tight 



place will do the work, and I have killed them at quite lone: 

 Distances with No. •"> and No. (1 shot. They are good eating, 

 and when our fresh meal ran low! would lake my gun, 

 sally forth and bring in two or three, which bur "China 

 cook would stuff and roast, and sew,- hot, Charley h . the 



pai'l> Wl oarded the nan. would help himself ' LibOl ally 



and 'then remark: "Rabbit is pretty good chuck, if you 

 hear me." I used to think sometime thai the pien did not 

 agree with liim, especially when the price di table hoard was 

 $7.50 per week. They probably thought ii was too dear 

 eating. 



Poor Charley, he needed nn nn-v badly, and I for my pari 

 did not begrudge him what he could make. He had hem in 

 the army and came oul crippled with rheumatism, lie 

 spent a vear in lied ma! go) no with his body four inches 

 shorter than when be lav down. His shoulders were all 

 hunched up and his internal organs crowded together, [t 

 was with difficulty that lie could walk in the rarilied air of 

 'lie ciunp. and lie would have to stop and feat every f CW 

 feet when cUmMug She hill near bis bouse. We were onlj 

 about 7.000 feet up, too. Charley was unable to do any lend 

 w..rk and had drifted \\ ', a to Oregon, then hack to Utah 

 II. ic he started a little aore and boarding house. While the 

 camp lasted he did well, and would have "made his pile" if 

 the thing had not "petered." From Utah he went to Idaho. 

 and wae one of the few who ever mode -any monej on the 

 plater claims on Snake Kiver. He sold out there and wenl 

 10 the Wood River country, and this Winter Wrote that he 

 had "made his pile/ mid 'now was goingtoresl and lake 

 (•are of himself, The aexl mail brought the news of his 

 death. Thi.- is only one of many sad cases— the best years 

 ■ .I .. ne.n's life thrownawaj searching tor thai which he 

 never lives to enjoy. Charley was a good, whole-souled 

 fellow, and many b pleasant trip we have had together, He 

 would mount my pony with his shotgun while I would 

 tramp alongside, and off we would go for the "jacks" on the 

 plain. 



Although Charley wasneady a cripple, he was a good 

 shot with rifle, shotgun or pistol, especially with the latter 

 When he first struck camp he was possessed of a little ,38- 

 ealiher Smith A Wesson revolver, which in that country, as 

 anywhere in the West for that matter, i< laughed at as "no 

 good." Ho the hoys used to •devil'' < hailey about his 

 "pop.'" One day one of ihe boys had just purchased a line 

 black slouch bat of fho best quality, and extra huge 

 brimmed, costing about seven dollars." He was laughing 

 about Charley's pistol and said thai "he would just as soon 

 let him shoot at him twenty-five yards off." Charley said 

 that "he did not want to shoot at him, but he would'hct he 

 could hit his hut." So the fellow put up the hat, thinking 

 ;it the worst it would only he a hole the size of a pea if it 

 was hit, Charley took aim and fired away. The hat was 

 inspected, and ii wag found lhat by chance the hall had just 

 skimmed along the crown where il was creased, cutting a 

 -Ii' as if a knife had ripped it. The hat was completely 

 ruined. The laugh that followed can he imagined, and the 

 poor chap had to buy a new hat and "set cm up" for the 

 boys, while Charley afterward was allowed a little peace 

 about his "pop." 



The "jacks" that weused tohuntwere "jack rabbits"— that 

 is we so called them— whether they wore the gen nine "Texas 

 bare" {.Lepw ealteti») I am at a loss to state, still I think 

 from Baird's description that they are the same. They were 

 not as large as the mountain hare, nor so good eatmr, as 

 they lived principally on the while sage, and their 'flesh 

 tasted at times very strongly. There was a species of sage 

 which was known locully as "rabbit brush," which seemed 

 to be a favorite food; and wherever it was found there the 

 "jacks" would be in abundance. Near Keltou, Utah, on 

 the stage road into Idaho, there is a patch of this brush, and 

 here the ground seemed to be alive with rabbits. 1 had 

 heard wonderful stories of the number to be seen, but was 

 inclined to be skeptical. At last I visited the locality and I 

 saw more rabbits in one day than lever saw before in my 

 life. They would jump up from beneath your feet, in front". 

 to I'm right, to the left, and all around you, until il seemed 

 as if the whole plain ware nothing but jumping, hopping 

 rabbits. No doubt thai there are other sections of the West 

 where they are as plenty, but I never saw such a sight before 

 nor since. 



Ii was quite the thing to get up rabbit-shooting parties in 

 Ivellon and to go out anil kill a wagonload. It was no trick 

 to shoo' them there, but where they arc lesspleniv It is good 

 sport, for if a little excited the jack rabbit is anything but 

 slow. The coyote will pick them up, it is said, but I won t 

 vouch for it. 'I know thai nothing in Ihe shape of ft dog 

 thai I ever saw. excepting the greyhound, has any business 

 after them. Cue of the boys in camp had a. dog which was 

 evidently a cross of Several breeds, bul he was a great run- 

 ner for a cm-. This dog rejoiced in the name 01 (Quartz, 

 like .Mark Twain's "cat/' and was a great character. Quartz 

 would follow his master when he went to work, and if the. 

 workhappened to he near ihe surface, he would sit and 

 watch tin- men p.,; i„ !( blfi«t. When the fu-c was sel on 

 lire, he would retire with Ihe men and wait eagerly for the 

 shot to go off. As the first sound of theblaBt waaheard, 

 .way he would go right among the falling rocks and dirt, 

 and if Ihe shaft happened to be where the rooks would roll 

 down hill, he would atari aft.-i tin m and try to pi< k them 

 up. Many a narrow. escape did Quartz have from falling 

 rocks, hut he seemed to bear a charmed life and always jusT 

 escaped. He would sometime follow the wagontolown, 

 and on the way would tackle every "jack" that started along 

 Hi.- roadside. Soini tine- the "jack" would take i he road. 



and then we were treated to as pretty a sight Of a "stern 

 i ha- " as one wotdd care to see. Quartz would jii-l about 

 hold his own for tin- first hundred yard-, then in -pile of his 

 most strenuous efforts would begin to "gel loft " When the 



rabbit had increased his lead a little more, Quartz would 



comeback, wtlg hi- tail, and look at Us as Q saving, "Hidn'l 

 1 make him run; j.|,| wail "till next lime and then sec me 



cai.ii him.'' Then ho would troi along quietly until (he 

 next ''jack" got up. when the performance would be re- 

 pealed! Quaitz was ambitious, but ho never "go! there." 



Sometime when 1 did noi care tn ramble far with my 

 guU, I would go just back of my cabin inlo a deep gulch or 



cafii-i;. and walk slowly up through it, watching sharply for 



tin- little cotton-fail rabbi:, which inhabiled the cracks and 

 crevices in the rocks. These rabbits wen- evidently the 

 same specified as the gray rabbit (I., /./'■■ vyloatieus) by 

 Baird. and resemble tin- rabliii I used lo s|„„,t and trap ,-il 

 home in New Jersey when a boy. Thougli they average 

 smaller, they are better eating than the larger rabbits and 

 hare- of the mountains, probably because they feed on oilier 

 things beside sage. They inhabit rocky places, and though 

 1 have seen them on the plains, it was always near rock- ( ,r 

 among stones of some, kind. 



There wa- still another kind ol rabbit that 1 used to bag 

 occasionally Thiswas known Ipcallj as the 'Thrush rabbir," 



bill I cannot lind anything mentioned among the rabbits nj 

 the books I have examined thai compare- with it. I there- 

 fore think it i- noi a genuine rabbit. I always found them 

 in the larger sago brush, near Water, Thoy lived In bur- 

 row-. Hair was dark brown, ears short: general a] pearance 



tl I a small cotton-taii. excepting color and oart How 



eve.. I ii-cd tO SllOOl Ihein and I h-ii help ,-a I. tlicni. SO if they 



an not rabbits, they arc at least nol a poisonoue article, as l 

 live to tell the tale. 



\moii" i-ilni kinds of gi • ihai frequented the locality 



was the sage cock {mvmwrcxts tovpjtmtianzis). Thi- bird 

 during the fall and winter would come in quite large Mocks 

 and alight on Ihe bare bill-id,- wliere nothing bul fl very 

 small stunted, sa-c brush lh-cw. The leave, of thie plant, 

 however, seem io be Urn. hief fed ,.f >h.- gage hen. They 



are not a hard bird to approach, except in verj windy 



weather; still as a general f liiii". a person can not w'alk rieiil 

 on to them. Bv keepi'mr out of sight most, of the time,' so 

 as not to attract their attention, a person can get very i lose 

 loatlock. lhavestoodin my cabin door and heard the 

 whistling of the wings of a Mock as they (lew to some hill a 

 half mile or -oawav. Takina m\ nun.' which always hung 

 in my room ready for use, I would start For tie. hill. If the 

 birdsrwereOntOpof il I would -o up some gulch where I 

 could keep partially hidden: bul if they were on the side I 

 would go up the opposite side and circle round until 1 came 

 on to the rlock. This was generally easy work, as the hills 

 were all Steep and ran up to sharp cones. The birds would 

 seldom rise until I was within shooting distance. Once in 

 a while, however, 1 would "get left." and before 1 got in 

 sight would hear the roaring of their wings a- ihc\ went "il 

 for another hill. A Utile patience and a good deal of "leg- 

 work" would generally get ihe birds, however. After they 

 were secured they did not amount to much for the table, 

 especially if they were old and the winter nearly gone 

 Thee lasted too slromrlv of saare. But if young and killed 

 early in the fall thev are im! so bad Th.v will nol keep 

 very long, as I learned lo my cosl. 1 shipped iwo East to 

 have lliem mounted for a scieiuiiii society. It was winter 

 and I thought they would eo through all right, but they 

 arrived "too ripe' for use. 



I'p in the pine.-, some distance back of camp, one could 

 find, the blue grouse i '/w,v„ „Wv,».,). but they were apl 

 plenty. Over the range on the "Goose Greet" side the 

 country was more thickly timbered and not as barren; here 

 they were more plenty, I did not get over the range, there- 

 fore my acquaintance with this bird was limited— for I saw 

 very few of them on our side of the mountains 



About four miles from camp at the fool of the main range 

 was the head of a small stream called Rosebud (reek. In 

 the high grass and weeds near ihe wet ground was quite a 

 tesort of the sharp-tailed grouse U'nliuW-lf />?>r/*i,iitiUu*) or 

 as we called them, "pin-tailed gnm.se." These birds 1 never 

 found away from springs or streams, thai is at any distance. 

 They will lie in the grass quietly until kicked u,,. and al 

 time- a person will walk nearlv over them. Thev are not 

 hard to kill, and it is good sport shooting thcin. Their size 

 compares favorably with that of the partridge of Michigan, 

 though I do not think they will average as large. I used lo 

 go over to the creek after grouse, and while then! would 

 call on a character who lived in a cabin On ils banks. This 

 party was known as "Whiskv Kill." "Cock-eved Bill" and 

 "Preacher Bill." The first two names I could' account for. 

 for whisky was a "strong holt" with Bill, and one of his 

 cms was a little crooked; but the "Preacher" part 1 cannot 

 explain. This party wa- a little shorl man. Seemingly 

 shorter than he was. as his head sat rigid on his shoulder's 

 without any neck to speak of. He had bee, all over the 

 West; was a trapper, srage-driver, pony express rider, miner 

 and Idon't know what else. He would come to rampalter 

 flour and supplies, borrow all the books, papers, etc., he 

 could lind. shoulder his gunny sack and (ramp back to his 

 h.n.lv cabin, where he would siav all alone for days and 

 sometimes week-. H, was : , sm,{ reader. One winter 



when trapping in the Rooky Mountains, he ran out of 

 everything readable excepting an old Bible, which by some 

 strange change happened to be in the cabin. This he read 

 through twice. Bill was a good-natured fellow even when 

 drunk, and was the last man ever to pick a quarrel or have 

 any trouble with anyone: bul he was noi afraid of being 

 shot, as was proved by a rather laughable incident that oc- 

 curred in "town " 



< Ins day Bill borrowed a mule and w eut to town (a rail- 

 road station), and there, in due course became gloriously 

 drunk. When it became time for him to go home, he 

 sought the mule and was Irving lo mount the beast. Just 

 ihen a man who had a "grudge to pay off" shot at another 

 man twin-will, a revolver. Ihe balls singing very near Bill's 



ear. but he did not seem to notice the shooting. One of the 

 crowd helped him lo board his mule, and he sailed off, col- 

 ors flying, Whether if took a lone :ime f,.r an idea to work 



itself through his muddled brain, or whether the ride 



Sharpened his racullics.no one knows, bul the next day 

 Bill appeared in town. Mill "full," as he had taken a supply 

 of the "crature"' with him. and after In had put up his 

 mule, he hunted for the man who had done the shooting. 

 Rolling up to him in an unsteady way. lie began in his 

 peculiar nasal tone with, "Say, look'er Gassy. 1 wa,., i, T 



know wlininh--] yerwas shoo>-in° at. and v," Kftttl to be 

 keerful. If yer want to shoot at me. why al! right; ain't 

 any objections. But don't shoot towards 'i hat mule agin, 

 for you might hit the mule, and he ain't mine; so mind, 



don't do it. agin'." and off he went, satisfied that if there was 

 any more shooting the borrowed mule would be respected. 

 Of all ihe mean, conlemplible animal.-, that roam the 

 Western plain- and mountain's, the coyote (dawn lotnt/<<) is 

 tin mealiest. We i,a.| a fair supply near and around our 

 camp. Some quid;, "stilly" evening after all had retired 

 and wp • sleeping iho sleep of the hist." a sound would be 

 heard like the wai! ,,| a lost spirit, then anollicr like Ihe yell 

 of a maniac. Ihen a 8liepcSSioil of horrid --oiinds, until il 

 would sound a- if pandemonium had broken loose and all 

 the devils, great and small, were holding higll carnival over 

 the happy event. A person not acquainted with the charac 

 ter of the'be.-isis would imagine thai ,;' least fifty of them 

 were in camp, when Hire,-, or ai niosi four, would be the 

 extern .a' Ihe gang. It was not often thai w.e got a shoi at 

 Mi. Coyote, lb- would always 'bob up serenely" when we 

 did not have our guns handy." Charley had a few chickens 

 for a shorl time, i.ui coyhtes love chickens, and Charley's 



rlied young. Scrap- of meat and anything in the line'of 

 eatables were cleaned up nicely by these scavengers, and 

 maiiv .iih'-r thinjis w hich a person would nol imagine they 

 WOuld tOUCh would likewise he cobbled. 



On eh ar bright mornings, when the wagon would start 

 lor ■town." it would not l t o more than a half a mile from 

 (tamp, when away oil' lo the right or left would be heard a 

 yell, and in a moment another in reply from some other 



direilioii; and b\ the lime ihe w.'igou had gotten a mil" Dr 

 two away two or more coyotes would be following it fo pick 

 up lb. excrement dropped" by the hor-cs. We had 11 nood 



joke "ii mv brother while he was with us. One day he wenl 

 to "town,' with Charley after a load ol uipplies; and thev 

 did not -tan lo return lo camp until m-.-u-lv niehl. Il WaJ 

 dark before Unv wen home and 88 they had a load .1. was 

 walking to lighten the pull over a bad place. He fell behind 

 a little «av and presently looked behind him, There, rigid 



at his heels, were, as he supposed, tWO dogs. (hall, j had 



stopped to allow ,!. to caicb up. and as ih- latter reached 



the. wagon, be said; "Who-e doe- are the-.. ( r . : , . I < ■. 

 Charley glanced back and bursi out; "Doe-: bang il num. 

 those are coyotes." .1. climbed .m the wagon and rode tin 

 rest of Hie way. Not that he was afraid, but then the road- 

 were good. The wolves had been attracted by the -mell ol 

 meal, ~ and were following the scent. There was not the 

 slightest chance of •) '- being troubled by them, bul it made 

 him nervous to find (lie brutes at hi- heels. 



The principal way coyotes are bunted is with poison. 

 The offal of slaughter pens is doped with strychnine, and as 

 thoy always hang around such places; a good many are 

 captured, Another method is to take a good -tout stake. 

 bore holes in 11 and "Mil thorn, with laid and poison. Tin 

 wolves will lick out the lard little b.\ lillle, and liedownand 

 die. I have heard of instances where coyotes would band 

 together and attack: the larger animals, and even man. ami 

 1 -iippo- that these accorrnts arc true, al Least 1 have no 

 good reason todQubt them but 1 personally never saw njori 



than Hue four coyote i.o-itlni at mi. time, and lhe\ 



wine anything but bold. Duff- and coyotes will interbreed 

 ami -ome of the dogs that follow the Shoshone Int'iausaroUnd 

 can hardly be, distinguished from Coyotes. They area 

 hungry, sneaking, mean looking lot. 



There were a few foxes in the hill- near 'amp. but ii wa- 

 not often that wc caught sight of one; and 1 only succeeded 

 in netting a shot once, and then ihe distance was t'oogrcat 

 fur the fine .shot used. Thev were the prairie foxes I Pfape* 

 waft-mini*), and they are a beautiful animal. 



A description of the game of our camp would be incnn 

 plcte did 1 fail to mention the animal known as the mule. 

 Many may think a mule queer game, but I can assure them 

 there is much game in a mule: and though plenty of game 

 is made ol tin- Ic.-tive mule, there will always he room for 

 more. Ii i- a subject without limit, for ''yea. verily," uo 

 man can comprehend the vagaries of the mule's character, 

 especially of the Western mule's. I believe that the further 

 West, one travels the more mulish he finds the mule. Here 

 isa little incident lo illustrate this point : "Wc had hired a 

 man to haul some lumber, etc.. from the C, P. It. K. to 

 camp. His team consisted of six animals— three horses and 

 three mules. One of these mules, on the mowing after the 

 freighter had brought his last load, took it into her head 



-I,,- was a female. Hull may aeeounl for some of her whims) 

 that she did not want to go. The team was all in place; 

 the freighter, blacksnake in hand, stood holding the one 

 rein, and all was set, but to the cry of -Stand up!" there 

 was not the unanimous response that there should have 

 been, Pari of the team started, but ibis particular mule 



held back, and Ihe result Was a mixture of traces and a 



had tangle. The freighter patiently straightened things 

 oul and hit Moll a cut wilh his blacksnake. Then he 

 stepped back, and vclh-d this time directly at the obstinate 

 one. "Stand up. Moll." But -Moll shook In'r head as if lo say 

 "COUlda't think of it," and stood still. P.— the freighter— 

 then walked up. and with the butt of bis whip gave Moll a 

 fine training, bul it was of uo use, go she would noi. 1 



s I watching the prcceedimrs. wondering what would 



come next. p. unbuckled the harness (Moll meantime stand- 

 inglikea lamb and looking as innocent as a baby), and 

 gelling a large lash rope from the. wagon fastened it to 

 .Moll's neck; and after leading her quietly lo the rear of the. 

 In aw wagon, he lied ber head down as near the 

 wheel a.- he could. Then be took olf his coat and 

 vest, laid down his hal and threw bis braces back. 

 Walking to the woodpile he picked out a club about 

 five feet long and as ihick as a man's wrist; wilh 

 this In- beat that mule for fully five minutes, Then In- took 

 her back, and put her In the harness; and she— pulled — no, 

 -ir. not much: Out She came aeon, and OUCO more back lo 

 lie- wheel. Some more medicine. Tt> vary. the dOBe this time, 

 the butt of the heavv blacksnake was applied over her head: 

 thisseem.il io have sum,- ctTeci. a- -he began tO hang In I 

 head and shake ii. Putting the harness to her once more. 

 P. .upped back, put on the brake and veiled: "Stand up 

 Moll," and -In- dill, sianbm ml' will, wagon, team and ad, 



brakes set, too. P. stopped the team after driving and a 



little and came and put on his clothes. -There, aid he, 

 "thai mule has been aching for that for six months, and l 

 have, dreaded the job, now she is all right for -i>. months 

 more. Well, thought I. that bcata mc, as it did the mule. 



I'b. mule is tough. It lives on 'tuff that would kill a 

 horse. There was one old mule that hung around camp and 

 aclualivliv.il on the -crap.- from 'In liitchen, He would 

 stand in the lee of die building in a raging snow st,,rm and 



chew B ham I a- a dog; and in the spring lhat mule came 



out in good shape. Some may think that the yarn is as 

 iousrh as 'Ii" mule, bul i can assure them thai 1 myself -•'« 



the beast. 



One me,, s|,ai,ae I uhig. s| range al least to Die "tender 



fooi." is ihe language ol the Pacific coast. All west, of the 



