MY FIRST EXPERIENCE OX SX01VS//0ES. 



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inquest over. I had my guide pole, 

 and I had been told that one must 

 sit astride the pole to take the weight 

 off his skis. I proceeded to put these 

 instructions to the test. I began to 

 slow up, but I ran over a big boulder, 

 and when the guide pole slipped off, 

 it threw me out of balance and 

 started me on another course, while 

 the snowshoes kept straight ahead. 

 Of course we parted company. I 

 went rolling and sliding down 

 through the snow in every conceiv- 

 able position, lost my gun and hat, 

 and finally brought up in a small 

 clump of brush about ioo yards from 

 where I started to fall, but with no 

 bones broken and only one or 2 little 

 patches of hide gone from my face. 

 I straightened up as quickly as I 

 could, picked up my hat, and began 

 a search for my gun, which had fallen 

 quite a distance from the line of my 

 glide. I dug down in the snow and 

 soon brought it to light ; then started 

 on down toward the runway. It was 

 not so easy, as I had not hunted up 

 my skis, which had lodged in a clump 

 of small brush a quarter of a mile 

 away. I made fair time, however, 

 and on turning a point of brush I 

 came out in full view of about 20 

 mule deer. I determined to try a shot. 

 Selecting a large buck, I fired, and 

 had the satisfaction of seeing him fall. 

 I went on down, dressed him and 

 then hunted up my skis. Return- 

 ing to rav deer, I started around 

 the trail, dragging him. I soon met 

 my brother, who took hold with me, 

 and we went back to where he had 



left his 3. We hung them all in a 

 tree, out of reach of wolves, and went 

 to camp, well pleased with our morn- 

 ing's work. After dinner we brought 

 in our game on a toboggan. 



Next morning we skirted a small 

 lake, going East. I had the web 

 shoes and my brother wore the skis; 

 but I got into trouble again. As I 

 was crossing a ravine, I caught the 

 toe of one web under a willow which 

 had been bent over with the weight 

 of snow. I turned a flipflop, or tried 

 to, but my web hung on to the willow. 

 Unlike the skis, which are loose on 

 the feet, the web was tied hard and 

 fast ; so there I hung. After much 

 squirming and twisting, I managed to 

 get loose. Of course my gun was 

 lost again, and I had an hour's search 

 in the willows before I found it. 



That day we got 2 deer, and the 

 next day 2. My brother said that 

 would make him enough meat for the 

 winter. He liked to kill his meat just 

 after the first fall of snow, as it was 

 then in better condition than at a later 

 time. 



We made another toboggan and on 

 the 2 we took all our deer to the river, 

 loaded them in the boat and started 

 for home. Then our work com- 

 menced, for the ice, which had been 

 slush before, was in large cakes and 

 frequently bumped against us, taking 

 us back down the river at each bump ; 

 but by hard work w r e finally reached 

 home. 



I afterward became expert on both 

 skis and webs, but I never forgot 

 my first experience with them. 



'This is a world of sorrow," 



"A shadowy vale of woe," 

 And such frequent declarations 

 Are what help to make it so. 



— Washington Star. 



