122 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[March 6, 1890. 



SLIDE ROCK FROM MANY MOUNTAINS. 



IV.— MEAT IN THE POT. 



IT had been a day quite without excitement and of only- 

 moderate work. After having been camped for 

 three"or four days at the Upper Lake, during which time 

 there had been much clambering over mountains with 

 very little satisfactory results, the general consensus of 

 the camp was that it would be well to move down to the 

 Inlet. This change of plan had been brought about by 

 the weather. The day before had opened bright and 

 fair and with a strong west wind, -which had promised 

 continued good weather. The barometer, however, was 

 falling, and Yo, whose faith in what the Small Chief 

 called his "medicine box" was unfailing, shook his head 

 ominously when he looked at it before breakfast that 

 day. The wind blew harder and harder, and presently 

 the sky became overcast and it began to rain hard. All 

 the morning long triangles of waves came flying up the 

 lake high in the air, and when they reached the Point of 

 Rocks, met with the strong west wind which threw 

 them into confusion and turned them back. They would 

 fly about in an uncertain way, anxiously calling' to each 

 other for a few minutes, and then getting together again, 

 would swing off to the southeast t>r east and disappear 

 over the crest of Divide Mountain. Down on the prairie 

 by the lake shore, grass bushes and trees were dank and 

 dripping with moisture, but 500 or 600ft. higher up on the 

 hillside, among the timber, the ground was interruptedly 

 patched with snow, and higher still, this white covering 

 was continuous until the bare wallrock was reached, 

 where no snow could lie. 



About two o'clock the wind suddenly ceased blowing 

 and it became calm. The high sea which was running 

 on the lake fell, and the rain ceased. Looking out of the 

 tent for weather indications, it was noticed that the dis- 

 tant hills about the Lower Lake were obscured by white 

 clouds which crept gradually nearer and nearer. 



"We are going to have a north wind boys and with it 

 some snow. Now the geese can get over the range," said 

 Jack, 



Slowly the storm approached, until at length the trees 

 about the lower end of the Upper Lake were hidden 

 from view, and there could be seen rolling over the sur- 

 face of the water a dense white cloud which blotted out 

 peak after peak, and point after point, gradually swal- 

 lowing up the landscape. As it grew nearer this cloud 

 seemed to move more swiftly, and presently it was upon 

 us. 



It came on so fast at the last that, almost before the 

 boys realized how near it was, the fierce blast struck us, 

 and at the same moment a deluge of rain, sleet and snow 

 covered and drenched everything which lay without the 

 tent. Struck by gust after gust of wind, the canvas 

 houses shuddered and flapped furiously, but a man had 

 jumped to each pole of the tent to hold it steady, while 

 another, half covered by a rubber coat, tightened the 

 ropes at each corner, and then at the sides, so that in a 

 few moments our dwelling was as firm as a rock. Mean- 

 while, however, a crash without announced that the 

 lodge had fallen. The door which faced the wind had 

 been left open, and the canvas having been carelessly 

 pinned down to the ground, a gust had lifted up and 

 overturned the structure. A dash through the driving 

 snow rescued the blankets of the' men who had been 

 sleeping in the lodge, and all hands prepared to spend 

 the night in the tent, which luckily was large enough to 

 afford them sleeping room. Toward dark the whirling 

 white clouds of drifting snow gave place to rain, and all 

 through the night when any one of the men awoke he 

 could hear its regular faint patter upon the canvas roof, 

 varied now and then by a rattle of louder, harder blows 

 as a gust of wind brought with it a load of larger drops, 

 which beat fiercely against the tent. 



The next day it was clear and warmer. A Chinook 

 had begun to blow, and on the lower level the snow was 

 disappearing. The outfit of the camp was gathered up, 

 and a great fire built, about which were spread out 

 to dry blankets, ropes, saddles and other property. By 

 mid-day the animals had been gathered and tied up, and 

 the loads were being put on the horses, and an hour or 

 two before sundown camp was made at the old spot at 

 the head of the U pper Lake. 



Meat was needed in camp. The goat meat was not 

 highly esteemed, and even Tail-feathere-coming-in- 

 sight-over-the-hill did not care for it. He expressed the 

 general sentiment when, in answer to a question as to 

 how he liked it, he remarked, shaking his head doubt- 

 fully, "Well, it can be eaten." It is true that we had had 

 plenty of trout and grouse; we had not been brought 

 down to eating bacon: still we wanted some "real meat," 

 some sheep or deer or moose. So two of the old men 

 declared that they would go hunting on the morrow. 



Long before daylight next morning the Chief and Yo 

 were stirring, for they purposed to clamber up on Single- 

 shot Mountain to see if they could not find the little 

 band of mountain sheep, which were known to frequent 

 the basin in which Mad Bear Creek rises. 



It was just gray dawn when— the horses having been 

 brought in and saddled and breakfast having been 

 cooked — they mounted and rode off up the flat. The 

 trail up to Singleshot is steep, but not otherwise difficult, 

 and is quite direct and gives an easy way through the 

 extensive thickets of close-standing quaking aspens. It 

 is an old trail, too, but sometimes is not used for two or 

 three years, and when it is traveled, it is perhaps only 

 passed over by half a dozen horsemen in a season. The 

 result of this is that in many places it is only faintly 

 marked, and this is especially true where it crosses open, 

 grassy spots. You may find it quite plain in the timber, 

 for even where the track made by the hci iet, : hoof s is 

 covered by the leaves of several seasons, the broken ends 

 of the aspen twigs, pulled off by passing hunters, give 

 you the direction to be taken; but when the riders have 

 passed out into the open, they scatter out, and, each one 

 pursuing his own course, the trail is no longer a beaten 

 path from which the grass and weeds have been worn by 

 horses'" hoof . Instead, there are half a dozen faint trails 

 made by single animals, in which the only sign of pass- 

 age is the bent down grass. Such a trail lasts but a little 

 while, and can scarcely be followed after it is a ,few 

 weeks old, especially if rain or snow has in the meantime 

 fallen, Besides this, through these open, grassy spots { 



game has passed. Bear, elk, sheep and deer have made 

 their trails, new and old, in all directions, and it is almost 

 a waste of time to try to puzzle out the ancient footmarks 

 of the Indian ponies that have traversed the meadows. 



The two horsemen had not been on Singleshot that 

 season, but when they had nearly reached the mouth of 

 the inlet by the Upper Lake they turned up hill and 

 struck into the trail, which through the aspens was easily 

 followed. The morning was cold and frosty, and the 

 crisp leaves broke sharply under the feet of the horses, 

 while the slender twigs of the saplings, which, pushed 

 aside by the man in advance, now and then flew back 

 and struck the face of the second, stung sharply and left 

 a red mark on the browned cheek. 



Clambering, higher and higher, now lost in an aspen 

 grove, or crossing open grassy parks sometimes strewn 

 with rotting trunks of giant spruce trees, or plunging 

 into a dark grove of pines, the men kept on, until at 

 length they came to the level bench, upon which, at the 

 foot of the talus slope of the mountain, the last timber 

 grows. Above this, rise the rough rocks over which no 

 horse could make his way without constant risk of break- 

 ing a leg or tearing off a hoof. Here the men halted, un- 

 saddled and picketed their horses so that they could rest 

 and feed during the hour which their riders would spend 

 on the heights above. Coats and all extra clothing were 

 removed and laid on the saddles at the foot of one of the 

 trees, for in this rough, steep mountain climbing each 

 pound of extra weight counts, and the less one has to 

 carry the easier will be his progress. The <tast act pre- 

 paratory to moving on the heights before them was to sit 

 down and smoke: the Chief rolling a cigarette, while Yo 

 whittled some tobacco from his plug and filled his pipe. 



When the last fragrance of the tobacco had been 

 wafted along the mountainside and the ashes had grown 

 cold, the men rose, and, taking up their rifles, faced the 

 steep ascent. A climb up a clay bank 200ft. high brought 

 them to the piled up rocks over which sheep trails led 

 along the mountain side. Before they had gone 200yds. 

 they saw the fresh tracks of three sheep which had been 

 made that morning, but it was impossible to follow them 

 over the rocks, and the only thing to be done was to de- 

 termine the direction apparently taken by the tracks, 

 and to hunt slowly and carefully in the hope that their 

 eyes might be quicker and sharper than those of the 

 game. The men pushed on until they were close beneath 

 the wall rock, and then followed a trail which led up 

 into the basin between Singleshot and Flat Top. As 

 they approached the crest of each little ridge their steps, 

 became slower and more cautions, their heads turned 

 this way and that, and then- eyes rolled as they scanned 

 each foot of the country, and finally, as the leader came 

 to the crest of the ridge, he removed his hat, and inch by 

 inch raised his head, while his eyes roamed over the area 

 before him, his comrade some yards in his rear waiting- 

 motionless until the ground had all been looked over. 



If you see two old hunters going out for game in com- 

 pany, you will observe that they never interfere with 

 one another. New men, those who are just serving.their 

 apprenticeship, are usually anxious to be ahead. They 

 want the credit of being the first to see the game. They 

 want also, perhaps, the first shot. They do not consider 

 that if two heads come in sight over a ridge, the chances 

 that they will be observed are just twice as great as if 

 only one appears. They seem to think, too, that Provi- 

 dence is looking out for them in some especial way, and 

 that game will be deaf and blind to their blunders, 

 though fully alive to those of others. Old hunters act 

 very differently, It is understood by them that the man 

 who is ahead is to do the hunting. The one behind, 

 while keenly scanning the country to see anything that 

 may present itself, and which may have escaped the eye 

 of his companion, never interferes with him, but awaits 

 his directions. He is ready at a sign to creep up beside 

 his leader and shoot, or he is equally prepared to lie 

 down where he is, and to wait there for an indefinite 

 time, or he will make a long round to start the game by 

 giving it his wind or showing himself to it, so as to drive 

 it in some desired direction. For the time being the man 

 who is in the lead is a commander, and if the two have 

 hunted in company often enough to understand each 

 other, they work together with most perfect system. 

 Another thing that you will notice about two old hunters 

 is that they never try to shoot together at game. One or 

 the other takes the shot, and if it fails, then they do the 

 best they can. They know very well that it is almost 

 impossible for two men to shoot at the same time with- 

 out each being a little thrown off his balance, and thev 

 conclude rightly that, the two being both fair shots, 

 there is more likelihood that one ball from a deliberately 

 aimed rifle will kill, than that two, each of which wall be 

 more or less hastily delivered, will reach the mark they 

 are aimed at. 



This morning the Chief was in the lead, and his keen 

 eye swept the mountain side before and below him for 

 an hour or more as the two walked slowly along under 

 the frowning "reefs." Eyes and ears were both intent. 

 At length the ringing sound of a rolling rock was heard 

 below chem, and at the noise both men stood still as 

 statues and watched the rocks whence the noise had 

 come. For five or ten minutes they stood thus, but no 

 repetition of the sound was heard , nor was anything seen 

 to move on the bare gray rocks. As they slowly went on, 

 Yo saw the Chief, who was at this moment ten feet 

 above him on the slide rock, throw up his rifle and fire a 

 quick shot. An instant later the backs of two animals 

 were seen above a ridge of rock two hundred yards below 

 them. For a moment it was hard to tell what these 

 were. Through some optical illusion, which we have 

 more than once noticed in the mountains, they looked 

 red, almost like antelope. Yo at once pitched his rifle to 

 his shoulder and fired at the narrow line of hair which 

 was visible, but he heard the ball strike a rock and then 

 go singing off across the valley, and knew that he had 

 aimed too low. The back disappeared at once, but the 

 hunters knew that the game would try to run around 

 them and to climb the mountains, and both men hurried 

 forward to cut them off. 



It is not an easy matter to run over the loose slide rock. 

 Let any one who does not know what it is imagine a pile 

 of squared paving blocks and building bricks a thousand 

 or two feet high, tumbled down as steep as they can lie, 

 and let him fancy how easy it would be to run along the 

 ■side of this pile at a good rate of speed. The footing is 

 uncertain and the rocks roll and slide and change their 

 position as the weight of a man rests on them. Slipping, 

 stumbling and half falling* the men ran ahead as best 



they could, Yo, who was the lighter weight of the two, 

 being somewhat in advance. Suddenly he saw appear 

 over a ridge before him the heSd and shoulders of a ewe, 

 and besides her the smaller figure of a lamb. There was 

 no time to waste, as the animals, if they should turn, 

 would be out of sight in a single bound, and balancing 

 himself on the moving rocks Yo fired at the ewe's shoul- 

 der. The report of the rifle was followed by a dull sound 

 that indicated that the ball had hit the sheep, and Yo 

 called back, "I think I hit her, Chief. I heard the ball 

 strike." "Good," was the response, "follow her up and 

 see where she is going." 



Moving on to the ridge on which the animal had stood 

 when the shot was fired, Yo looked over it and saw Lying 

 down, on a rock 300yds. beyond, the ewe, evidently hard 

 hit, while by her stood the lamb. From the mother' a ac- 

 tions it was evident that she had received a mortal wound . 

 and would soon die. The Chief crept down the moun- 

 tain side to within range of the animals and fired at the 

 lamb, but it did not fall at once. The two sheep then got 

 up and turning back walked along the slide rock below 

 the men, disappearing behind a great rock, which the 

 hunters could cover from their position. 



It was evident that the two animals needed only to be 

 left alone, and so the hunters sat down and smoked. 

 When this ceremony had been performed they again took 

 up the'r rifles and began the descent of the hill. Pres- 

 ently they reached a point from which they could see the 

 sheep. The lamb was lying dead, while the ewe still had 

 her head up, but was evidently in the last agonies. In a 

 moment she stretched out her legs, gave a few convulsive 

 kicks and began to roll over and over down the hill, fall- 

 ing at least a quarter of a mile before she stopped against 

 a great stone. 



Now followed the uupleasing task of preparing the 

 meat for transportation, and the packing it out to the 

 horses, a labor which occupied the greater part of the 

 day, and during which one of the heavily-laden men fell 

 among the rocks, receiv.ng a strain from which he has 

 not yet recovered, and which threatens forever to put an 

 end to his hunting. At length the meat had all been 

 carried out over the rocks and to the top of the steep 

 bank, below which stood the horses. Down this bank it 

 was rolled, and then came the packing it on the horse 

 which was to carry it to camp. Neither one of the horses 

 would pack meat, yet one of them had to, and the men 

 chose the Chief's mount as the one least likely to prove 

 obstinate. Three times they tried to put the load on the 

 horse and three times it threw itself backward. Finally 

 they blinded and lathed the load on firmly, then re- 

 moving the blind let it buck. It made desperate efforts 

 to free itself, but the load stayed with it, and finally it 

 made up its mind to carry it. Starting on foot down the 

 steep hill, they made good progress, vet before they had 

 got near the lake level it was dark. Then thpy got into 

 a dense thicket of aspens, lost the trail, and for some 

 time wandered about trying in vain to get into the open. 

 It was slow, hard and discouraging work, but at last they 

 got out of the timber and on to the level bottom, and 

 about 8 o'clock they reached the camp, healthily tired 

 and ravenously hungry. " Yo. 



DUNG EN ESS— A WINTER HOME.-I1I. 



MENTION has already been made of the records of the 

 old-time Camden Hunting Club. One rainy morn- 

 ing I took up these hunting books and for hours amused 

 myself with their interesting records. Kunning throueh 

 all the writings the doctrine of State Risrhts was seen in 

 the toasts offered at the club dinners. Floyd, the secre- 

 tary, certainly was an artist, for throughout both volumes 

 are interspersed beau tif ul colored pen sketches, one draw- 

 ing showing a deer at full run across a clearing, another 

 one leaping off of a bank into the river. Each account of 

 a hunt is headed with some illustration, showing di fferent 

 phases of the hunts. The old books also tell of still-hunts, 

 as [related to the secretary by the members. One still- 

 hunter alone killed three bears in a day, and the same 

 man killed seven deer in twenty-four hours. 



As we turn over the pages let us stop at the account of 

 the meet held at Fairfield, July 4, 1837. The afternoon is 

 set aside for the regatta, which will decide the long de- 

 bated question as to whether Gen. Chas. Floyd's Thos. F. 

 Bryan or Col. Dubignon's Goddess of Liberty is the fast- 

 est boat. The first was a ten-oared boat, the la=t with 

 six oars. The Goddess had run with many swift boats, 

 but had never been beaten; the Thes. Bryan was untried, 

 therefore the Goddess was the favorite with a majority 

 of the gentlemen present. The Thos. Bryan rowing ten 

 oars and the Goddess six (her full complement), started 

 with the tide, and the Goddess was easily beaten by 

 about 30yds. out of 250. The second race was run with 

 six oars upon each boat, and in this the Goddess had 

 heavy backers, some of whom made considerable bets. 

 The boats ran with the tide, and the Thos. Bryan again 

 took the lead and came out ahead with much ease. On 

 their return (against tide) the Bryan was again successful. 



"The Goddess of Liberty," says the report, "is a re- 

 markably fast boat, and was considered the fastest hi 

 Georgia, as she had never been shown the stern of any 

 competitor until the Thos. Bryan encountered her. The 

 Thos. Bryan is the fastest boat I ever saw, and the cir- 

 cumstance of her having taken out four of her oars and 

 then beating such a crack boat as the Goddess proves her 

 great speed; withal she is a superb boat, and those who 

 witnessed her speed would readily risk tens of thousands 

 that she will beat any boat that floats." 



The account of this race I haven given almost ver- 

 batim. 



The race finished, we may in imagination ^ee the mem- 

 bers walking up the shady avenues leading from the river 

 to the piazza, overgrown with honeysuckle. There they 

 sit, sheltered from the summer's sun, or strolling out on 

 the lawn, lie at length upon the grass, and, while the 

 attendants pass around cool drinks, talk over the race. 

 Along toward 4 o'clock, when the cool air comes up from 

 the river, the long table is set upon the lawn and decor- 

 ated with roses and flower of the sunny South. The old 

 oaks gracefully bend their limbs, and swaying baokward 

 and forward the moss seems to fan the guests; the mag- 

 nolias glisten, and from bough to bough flirt mockingbird 

 and oriole. 



As the wine is passed freely around and the good old 

 Madeira loosens the tongue, the president, C. E. Floyd, 

 is called upon for the first toast, the sentiment of which 

 I find recorded in these words: 



