Jan. 17, 1903.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
47 
dians whenever Mr. flicks left camp, and knew from 
his speech and manner that he was complaining. While 
I had no fear that he would do us bodily harm, there 
was danger of his influencing the other Indians to de- 
sert us, or, worse yet, persuade them to return to the 
base camp, steal provisions and then take to the moun- 
tains to hunt bear. Under these circumstances I 
deemed it advisable to pay him off and allow him to 
return home. This I did, after warning him to go di- 
rect to Knik, and saying that if I found his tracks 
about our base camp, or heard him shoot, I would 
burn his cabin and kill him when next we met; a bluff 
that worked. 
During our stay here, Mr. Hicks and Billy patrolled 
the river bottom east of camp for a distance of about 
five miles, and with the glasses they could see sheep 
fully three miles further. They located eight ewes the 
first day, and watched them until May 2, when the band 
divided, leaving but five sheep for them to look after. 
It fell to myself and Andrew to w^atch the sheep seen 
west of camp, so in all we had fully fifteen miles of the 
best sheep country under close obhcrvation. Every 
morning we patrolled the valley a mile and a half from 
the mountains, occasionally stopping to look for sheep, 
and at a point five miles from camp, we made tea, ate 
luncheon, and put in the remainder of the afternoon 
watching the four ewes previously discovered. While 
lying in the shade for hours watching sheep may seem 
monotonous, nevertheless we found it very interesting 
work, tlsually we had little difficulty in locating them 
soon after arriving at our station, but on several oc- 
casions, after watching nearly all day without success, 
we were about to return to camp when a ewe would 
appear from behind a point of rocks, tlien another, and 
another, until they all stood before U3 mere specks to 
the naked ej^es. Again storm clouds obscured the 
mountains, hiding them from view, and when next seen 
they were perched thousands of feet above, on rocks 
so jagged that it seemed impossible for any creature 
other than a bird or squirrel to secure a firm footing. 
For several days, two old rams had occupied a posi- 
tion some distance west of the ewes, but one afternoon 
they appeared to tire of their feeding grounds and 
sought new pasturage. Leisurely they made their way 
toward us, crossing snow-drifts, climbing over rocks, 
and pausing every few hundred yards to look about Or 
munch a mouthful of grass. They did not make the 
astonishing leaps so often credited to mountain sheep, 
but, on the other hand, seemed reluctant to cross dan- 
gerous places. Carefully sliding over the face of a 
clif?, they clung as though deliberating, then gathering 
themselves sprang to the ground, and a few seconds 
later, assisted by the momentum, rushed up the oppo- 
site incline. 
Every night Mr. Hicks reported on the movements 
of the sheep under his care, and one evening said that 
judging from the actions of one of the ewes, which did 
not mingle much with her associates, but lay about at 
the edge of the rocks, he thought a lamb would soon 
be born. 
We had been watching the ewes a week, when one 
morning as we were about to leave camp, three sheep 
were seen skirting along the base of the rocks from the 
direction of the band Andrew and I had been watching. 
We correctly surmised that these were the ones, for af- 
ter spending the day at our accustomed stations, we re- 
turned without having seen them. It was evident from 
their actions that they were not alarmed, but were 
simply changing their feeding grounds. The following 
morning, in company with Andrew, I started up the 
mountain to locate our wandering sheep, which, owing 
to the character of the mountains, could not be seen 
from the valley. From the top of a knob above tim- 
ber-line we had a grand view of the surrounding coun- 
try, but it was not until late in the afternoon that the 
sheep were located far to the eastward. They were in 
an almost inaccessible mass of crags and there was 
little chance of reaching them should a Iamb then be 
born. 
Shortly after returning to camp, Mr. Hicks and the 
Indian came in carrjdng a beautiful little lamb. Mr. 
Hicks stood it on the ground in front of him, and I 
took its photograph at once. It had become attached 
to him through being carried in his arms since noon. 
For some time after Mr. Hicks and Billy took their 
station, that morning, they were unable to locate the 
sheep, but finally saw a ewe walk from behind a ledge, 
closely followed by a lamb, and later the four other 
sheep made their appearance. As usual, they were in a 
mass of crags about half a mile above timber-line. 
After mapping a route, the two men began the hazard- 
ous ascent, and were crawling along the edge of a pre- 
cipice, when Billy lost his nerve and trembled, so a 
halt was called for him to recover. In spite of Mr. 
Hicks' advice to keep his eyes above, it was so far to 
the bottom of the cliffy, the Indian could not resist 
looking down. On nearing the lamb, they parted, Billy 
followed up the canyon to the right, while Mr. Hicks 
made a detour to the left and finally crept between the 
lamb and the ewes, which were separated by a few 
feet. The lamb was on a ledge of rocks hidden from 
the view of the old sheep, so Mr. Hicks allowed them 
to see him and they bounded up the crags and had 
soon crossed the divide unknown to the little one. 
Both men then advanced from opposite sides. At the 
sight of them, the lamb, which was lying down, sprang 
to its feet and scampered back and forth, but did not 
attempt to jump over the ledge. Finding both pas- 
sages blocked, it seemed dazed, but as they closed in, 
ran into Billy's arms and was our captive. In de- 
scending the mountain, one of the men would climb 
over the difficult or dangerous spots, and take the lamb 
from his companion, who then followed. Strange as 
it may seem, the lamb struggled but little and did not 
bleat until after it had arrived in camp. 
It had not been with us more than half an hour be- 
fore it was attacked by the expected and dreaded 
disease, diarrhoea. I was well provided with medicines 
to cope with such troubles, and administered some at 
once. The lamb was inclosed in a pen mai&e of poplar 
tree trunks, and took its capture quietly so long as 
someone was near it, but when left alone it became 
restless and ran back and forth, bleating and bumping 
its head against the uneven rails- Our first attem.pts 
at feeding it were somewhat awkward and amusing. It 
was perfectly willing to accept the condensed milk 
from the nursing bottle, in fact it was too anxious. If 
the milk did not flow (^liite to its liking it dropped to 
its knees, bunted at the person feeding it, switched its 
tail from side to side, and bleated and danced about so 
lively on its hind feet that it required a person to steady 
its hind quarters until after it had finished eating. The 
first night it worried and ran about so much that we 
IN THEIR. WIRE CAGE. 
finally doubled its feet under it naturally and placing 
it in a piece of cheese cloth, brought the sides over its 
back and pinned them, then laid it on the blankets 
close to my head, where I could talk to and care for it. 
It finally went to sleep, but with every blast of wind 
awoke with a start, and after sniiling at my face a few 
times its little eyes slowly closed, and with each beat 
of its heart its head sank closer and closer until it 
rested on my cheek. I could not stir without arousing 
it, and lay in one position until forced to move, secur- 
ing little sleep that night. As I sit writing, and occa- 
sionally glance at the enlarged photograph of the little 
fellow lying in one corner of the inclosure. I fancy I 
see him walking all over me, utterly regardless of my 
face or feelings. When it snoozed ofl:' I quietly stole 
away for a brief rest, but often had no more than 
straddled the rails when it was upon its feet bleating 
and running frantically about, and I was obliged to 
return to comfort it. It weighed eight and a half 
MR. HICKS AKD THE FIRST LAMB CAPTURED. 
pounds, was ten and a half inches high at the should- 
ers, and two days after its capture had four front teeth. 
It lived but a few days, for in spite of zealous care 
and treatment it rapidly grew weaker, and on May 27 
it died lying on my blankets where it had slept every 
night, nor had it been out of my sight fifteen minutes, 
save when I was asleep. 
After the lamb arrived I was unable to leave camp, 
but Mr. Hicks and the Indians kept close watch of the 
sheep we had relocated. It was of little benefit, how- 
ever, for a continuous storm enveloped the mountains 
in clouds, giving us only an occasional view 01 them 
when the mist lifted, and at last the sheep were lost al- 
together. 
Packing up we returned to the base camp and re- 
mained there until satisfied there were no ewes within 
the area of observation, we then pulled stakes and 
started down the river to a mountain which a month 
before was so covered with snow that we passed it by. 
An early camp was made to allow the men to unload 
the boat and pack the outfit around a shoal that a 
loaded boat could not pass over. During tlie after- 
noon two ewes and a lamb were seen high on a moun- 
tain on the south side of the river. It was then too 
late in the day to start in pursuit, so we spent the time 
planning a routf and watched them- until dark. 
The following morning the sheep could not be found 
until about 9 o'clock. Not feeling well, I thought that 
my presence would be a hindrance to the party rather 
than an aid, so remained in camp while Mr. Hicks and 
the Indians started off. 
When within a few hundred yards of the ewe and 
lamb, Mr. Hicks sent the Indians around to the left — 
the right side being guarded by a perpendicular wall — 
Avhile he attempted to -get above them. The Indians 
in a spirit of rivalry laid caution aside and rushing 
ahead, mounted a boulder in full view of the quarry. 
Of course the vigilant mother saw them instantly and 
made for the top of the divide, closely followed by her 
offspring. The lamb scampered over the rocks witli 
remarkable agility for an animal so young, but was un- 
able to keep pace with its mother. At one time, how- 
ever, there was hope of its capture, for while crossing 
a deep drift it became fast in the snow, but finally 
floundered out and disappeared over the mountain. 
Black bears were common. During the time we were 
in the mountains, fifteen were seen. They were usually 
found far above timber-line feeding on roots and the 
berries that had been preserved by the early snows 
of the previous year. One evening an old bear and 
two cubs were seen back of camp. The Indians vvere 
anxious to take after them, but as sheep were in sight 
I feared the firing would alarm them. They finally 
worked into a canyon where one shot could not be 
heard any great distance. Two of the Indians each 
took a gunny sack to put the cubs in, and Billy car- 
ried my .22 rifle, which Mr. Hicks had told him was all 
right, if he "shot the bear in the head." The idea of an 
Indian attempting to kill so large an animal with a 
".22 short" was amusing. I think that Jim understood 
that it was not quite the kind of arm for that purpose, 
for he did not seem particularly anxious to join in the 
hunt. I had my "Savage" rifle, so there was no dan- 
ger of the bear injuring us should it become infuriated. 
Unfortunately our fun was spoiled, for the bear either 
heard or scented danger and escaped. 
June first found us in a new camp on the bank of the 
river at the base of a high mountain somewhat iso- 
lated from the main range. The following morning 
we shouldered light packs, and after a hard climb 
reached timber-line and followed a steep grassy slope 
between it and the rocks, until we reached a position 
directly opposite our camp on the other side of the 
mountain. We camped, and after eating luncheon 
crossed a small stream and valley to a ridge where an 
excellent view of the sheep country was had. A band 
of five sheep came into sight over a rise of ground, and 
twelve more soon followed, but there was not a lamb 
among them. This fact established, the glasses were 
turned upon the rough mass of crags directly in front 
of us, which had been scrutinized once before, but 
without success. From the animated manner of the 
Indians, I was certain that something unusual had at- 
tracted their attention. After a few seconds Billy 
handed the glasses to me and pointing to the rocks 
said, "Little sheep, one!" Sure enough, there was a 
lamb and its mother carefully picking their way down 
the mountain. Camp lay directly in o'^r route and we 
were about to start, when the ewe suddenly ran to the 
top of the mountain; the lamb attempting to follow. 
After describing a wide circle she returned and the 
two lay down in almost the spot where first seen. Evi- 
dently she had been giving the little one a practice run. 
The slope for a few hundred yards below the rocks 
was extremely steep; so steep m fact, that I found it 
necessary to crawl on all fours. The Indians kept well 
ahead of me until we reached the crag:,, when i put on 
moccasins and was then able to keep up with them. 
From fear of detection, we were unable to select the 
most favorable places, but after crawling along ledges 
and scrambling over peaks managed to reach a posi- 
tion well above our game. In the meantime, the ewe 
and lamb were lost sight of, and the Indians in their 
eagerness to secure the honor of finding the game ran 
great risk of scaring it, and finally became so reckless 
that I ordered them back and kept them witli me 
while Mr. Hicks cautiously crept to a high blufif and 
scrutinized the country. He soon returned and in- 
formed us that hidden by the rocks not more than 
three himdred yards above was another ewe, but he 
was not certain that she had a lamb. Protected by a 
high point, we worked carefully along; many times it 
seemed as though we could advance no further, but a 
narrow pass, or niche in the rocks where a footing 
could be secured was always found, and we managed 
to sneak within one hundred yards of the ewe and 
found a lamb lying by her side. 
The mother seemed reluctant to leave the little otie, 
but when finally she walked around a point out of its 
sight we allowed her "to see us and she hurried of¥ and 
was soon lost to view. In attempting to get above the 
little one we lost sight of it. While I held the Indians 
back, Mr. Hicks climbed a clifiE and signaica its posi- 
tion to me. I then sent one of the Indians to the op- 
posite side; stationed the other one below it, and then 
Mr. Hicks came down from his perch and the lamb 
was surrounded. Everything in readiness, we moved 
forward carefully, but such caution was unnecessary, 
for when we came upon the little fellow quietly lying 
at the base of a clifif, he looked inquiringly at us with 
his big innocent eyes, and scarcely attempted to escape. 
It was a tiny creature only a few hours old. I could 
not help thinking of all I had been told about the ac- 
tivity of young lambs, which though a few minutes 
before had caused my heart to throb with excitement 
and anxietv. 
The lamb and ewe seen first had heard or suspected 
danger and had taken over the range. As two persons 
could easily carry the captured lamb, I sent both of the 
Indians after the escaped one, although their chance 
of success was small. 
As Mr. Hicks and I were about to start for camp an 
eagle swooned down and with wings bowed, made 
straight at liim, and for a second it appeared as though 
the big bird Avould snatch the lamb from him, but 
when about ten feet away it sheered off and disap- 
peared as quickly as it came. Had it appeared an hour 
sooner it surely would have cheated us of our prize. 
Cutting about a foot from a cotton flour bag, we 
doubled' th§ lamb's feet under it and placed it in thp 
