220 
west end of it was a place of their resort, 
but a tramp far out that way did not reward 
us with a view of one. Still we were not 
wholly denied a sight of them, for while at 
the camp of the Lion Mountain Mine, a 
white goat lay in sight two hours, basking 
in the sunlight less than a mile away, 
affording, with our field-glasses, a delightful 
view of the beauty. And again, Kirk- 
patrick and Ione day alone came across one 
opposite us on the mountain side not more 
than soo yards distant, the goat making 
its way leisurely along the ledges and then 
over them out of sight. ‘Rather a bloodless 
trip,’”? some one may oberve. Aye, but the 
hunter’s fire ill becomes the bosom of the 
sportsman in midsummer, while in the 
Canadian Selkirks. 
One of the most delightful trophies of 
our day on Knox Mountain was the col- 
lection of Arctic botany. The botanist of 
the party secured no less than forty dis- 
tinct species. Five of these were heather, 
their bloom ranging from lightest pink to 
deep, blood-like crimson. The blossoming 
is much different from that of Scotland; 
here, instead of being so minute as to appear 
feathery, it is composed of graceful little 
cups, something like that of the blueberry. 
Our bunks in the miners’ cabins were made 
soft and fragrant with the heather. Another 
flower of surpassing beauty was a species of 
the phlox, not tall and graceful like that of 
the lowlands, but blooming in a mass 
spread out on the surface of the ground 
like an inverted saucer, making a solid mat 
of bright, deep pink bloom. Brilliant dwarf 
buttercups adhered to the unmistakable 
yellow of that family, while agiant anemone, 
the blossom as large as a silver dollar, on a 
stalk a foot high,was to be found even at 
that height, though in greater profusion 
lower down. The masses of blossoms and 
the bright colors were a continuous charm 
in all our tramping. It was an incident 
yielding especial pleasure that the botanist 
that day picked some of the flowers with 
one hand on the snow. 
To be among Arctic surroundings, flowers, 
birds, animals, insects, and to enjoy them 
RECREATION 
on a warm August day, were well worth 
the climb we had made. The days among 
the summits besides this one, over track- 
less crests, across the glaciers, and again . 
often knee-deep in flowers of the richest 
profusion, breathing the inspiring air, seeing 
visions of Alpine grandeur, all seemed to 
put new blood and endurance into a couple 
of tired teachers. 
But even among the grandeur of the 
mighty Selkirks time will not wait for man. 
We must leave the spot of such enchant- 
ment. The descent was of a different 
nature from the ascent. A short snowfield, 
so steep we could not climb in going up, 
offered us a chance to go down. Kirk- 
patrick and little Robert, well used to 
glissading snowfields, steadied themselves 
with their long canes and shot like arrows 
down the two or three hundred feet. Would 
the women try that same way? The guide’s 
wife, first to test routes and ways, essayed 
the standing glissade, missed her footing 
and slid bodily to the bottom, to be caught 
by her husband. Mrs. Knox did not at- 
tempt the standing glissade, but at once 
resorted to the procumbent one, arriving, 
as did Mrs. Kirkpatrick, at the bottom of 
the slide, a mingled mass of clothing and 
snow and joyful shouts. As the sun sank 
behind the western summits and snowy 
peaks we were glad to crawl into the cabins, 
to be refreshed with hot beef tea, that in- 
dispensable adjunct of mountain-climbing. 
We deemed the honor bestowed upon us 
by our friend Kirkpatrick worthy of 
peculiar recognition, so on getting back to 
the States we sent two flags, that of 
United States and of Canada, to be put 
upon a stout flagstaff on the mountain top. 
The next season a delegation on the Fourth 
of July from the camp of the miners climbed 
to the summit and put up the flags. They 
could be seen from Circle City, Ferguson 
and from many other points, and their real 
significance was that of a close bond of 
friendship between the visitors from the land 
of Uncle Sam and the good folk and true who 
make the mighty Selkirks their perpetual 
home. 
a 
