274 
WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WA YS 
CHAP. 
edge of the ridge, and caught sight of this splendid 
animal several hundred yards below us, cantering 
down the rocky slope with the right leg swinging 
from the shoulder—a pitiable sight which grieved me 
sadly, as it was hopeless and impossible to follow it. 
My only consolation was, that throughout my 
trip in the Big Horn range this was the only animal 
that was wounded without being killed. 
After watching this stag until it disappeared from 
view, I returned to examine our two dead animals. 
The first was near us. I found the bullet-hole in 
the hind-quarters, as I had expected ; but I know 
nothing of its course, as we had no time to dissect 
it, having a finer stag to clean below us, the first 
that I had shot. We accordingly descended, and 
having led our horses to the spot, we took off our 
coats, and determined to cut up the stag, as it was 
wonderfully fat, and altogether a beautiful specimen 
of a wapiti. 
We had partially flayed this animal, and were 
stooping over it, engaged in the occupation, when a 
peculiar sound of something pinging in the air above 
our heads, accompanied at the same time by the 
report of a rifle, startled us from our work. Almost 
immediately these ominous sounds were repeated, 
and a third shot in rapid succession caused my 
hunter Jem to exclaim, “ Look out—Indians ! ” 
Another shot followed, and several in rapid 
succession, before we could even guess the direction 
from which they came. 
As we stooped over the deer, we faced the valley 
