206 BOOK OF A HUNDRED BEARS 



when the snow is deep. Late in the fall the elk 

 begin to come down from the high hills for their 

 winter quarters in the valley, and I am told that 

 the lower hills are covered with them. There 

 were antelope about the hotel, when we were 

 there, that followed us around begging sugar. 



All about the hotel are craters of extinct springs, 

 where the water once boiled and bubbled, closed, 

 I suppose, by the calcareous deposit. These 

 springs are constantly committing suicide in that 

 way. But the water and the fires are there some- 

 where below. They must find an outlet, and 

 new ones are formed. There are no geysers 

 here. They are just, technically, "thermal 

 springs." I prefer the ordinary designation of 

 ''hot springs." I know what that means without 

 going to the dictionary. 



To those who prefer the remote, the lonely, 

 places, the real communion with nature, I rec- 

 ommend the farther parts of the Park. 



If you wish civilization and hot springs mixed, 

 you will prefer Mammoth. You can dress for 

 dinner there without being stared at. 



