The Aftermath of a Club Outing. 169 



attempting it, always inclusive of one or more profes- 

 sional guides. Of course in our organization there are 

 men just as expert as professionals, but there are not 

 m.any of them. The Sierra Club has been most fortunate 

 in its immunity from accident, but no steep snow or ice 

 work is attempted without a certain risk unless people 

 are roped together and climbers of experience take part. 

 A single false step or failure of nerve, for however brief 

 a moment, without this precaution might well cost a 

 man his life. The trouble is that in the Sierra there 

 is so little dangerous snow that one will not take the 

 trouble to prepare the proper precautions or to use them 

 when occasion arises. He is not tempted to do so, as 

 he naturally would be where the peril is more sustained. 

 He deliberately prefers to "take his chances," and this 

 in a way makes Sierra work more hazardous than moun- 

 taineering of a far more arduous type where strict pre- 

 cautions are observed. Moreover, it not infrequently 

 happens that individuals are tempted to undertake moun- 

 tain work who could not "try out" or qualify for such 

 in the opinion of a discriminating judge. 



The fun of mountaineering, or of other seemingly peril- 

 ous sports,' — for instance, of bear-hunting, — is to be so 

 sure of yourself and of your methods that a difficult task 

 is achieved with precision by the exercise of skill and with 

 the certainty that one can do it and come out unscathed. 

 The problem is not to achieve the end desired by "taking 

 chances." Pluck is a good thing, but the kind of pluck 

 that leads one to risk his Hfe for a trifle is pure folly. 

 This kind of taking of risk in the pursuit of sport 

 marks the tenderfoot; it is only the fool who with a 

 knowledge of the danger attempts a thing of this sort so 

 ill-equipped or so inexperienced as to imperil his life, 

 and an ignoramus is just as bad as a fool, when you come 

 to consider results. The game is not worth the candle, 

 and even if it were, that is not the proper way to play 

 it. Many attempt mountain-climbing who would not 

 think of looking a grizzly in the face, and the sport is 



