338 
June, 1918 
FORES'] 
T |a 
N D STREAM 
AMONG THE WHITE SHEEP OF THE NORTH 
THE SECOND PART OF A STORY OF ALASKAN ADVENTURES UP WHERE 
THE WHITE SHEEP ROAM ALONG THE BACKBONE OF THE WORLD 
Bv JOHN P. HOLMAN 
I T was still windy and clouds of fog 
were flying down the valley when 
w; locked out upon the world the 
morning after the sheep hunt, but we 
decided to make a try for the top and 
staried up the old trail again. Tom 
came along to pack back the sest of 
my sheep. The first hard ascent ac¬ 
complished, we divided again, Andy 
and Mackay heading up over the 
range and Ben and I went north 
toward the glacier, skirting the base 
of the high peaks. We had not gone 
very far when Ben spied a lone ram 
about a mile away and we immediate¬ 
ly started in his direction. He was 
feeding quietly in a hollow between 
two ridges and after a hard climb we 
found ourselves sufficiently above 
and in a good position to study him 
carefully through our glasses. He 
seemed to have good horns with a full 
curve, so we continued to creep nearer 
and nearer, keeping well hidden behind the 
benches—taking advantage of all depres¬ 
sions and hummocks until we finally arrived 
at a spot Ben judged close enough to try a 
shot, although still at long range. 
Ben advised me to take his rifle, as it had 
gold sights, and, remembering my experi¬ 
ence with my first sheep, I accepted it and 
rose to view my ram. He had evidently be¬ 
come uneasy, scenting danger and was mov¬ 
ing off up the mountain about two hundred 
yards away. I opened fire and hit him with 
the first shot. He kept on climbing, how¬ 
ever, so I delivered another bullet which 
toppled him over and he rolled a couple of 
hundred feet down the mountain side. He 
proved to have a larger head than the first 
one, measuring thirteen and a half inches 
around the base of the horn, had a twenty- 
one inch spread and a circle of thirty-four 
and three-quarter inches! We smoked a 
pipe and then we dressed and quartered the 
body, taking the head and* cape. While we 
were working on him a raven appeared 
overhead as if by magic and began to circle 
above us uttering hoarse croaks, then an¬ 
other one came out of the dim distance and 
joined the circle. Ben said they could smell 
blood miles away and come in a straight 
line to satisfy their hunger, flying down 
toward us as near as they dared and then 
swinging aloft very much excited over 
their good fortune. 
As the weather was not very clear and 
the wind continued to blow pretty hard, we 
decided to walk back toward camp, so we 
drifted slowly down the mountain enjoying 
to the limit our wild surroundings and feel¬ 
ing very well satisfied with our day’s work. 
It is strange how much easier it is to travel 
over hard places after a successful day than 
it is with discouragement in your heart. I 
had killed two of my three rams allowed by 
law and was well content to wait for the 
morrow before trying for my last one, 
which I decided must be the biggest one of 
all. The wind had increased to a gale, long 
wisps of fog strung out down the valley, 
shutting down and lifting again as the wind 
A monarch ram of the mountains 
drifted it hitper and thither. The marmots 
shrill whistle and the far off croak of 
ravens were fit accompaniments to the 
wild mood of nature. We wondered how 
Mackay was; making it up among the peaks 
and crags. jPretty tough going down here, 
what must tt be on the bare rocks above! 
But no matter how hard the going there 
remained a deep sense of enjoyment. The 
hunter’s makeup is such that with the com¬ 
bating of tlie elements comes delight and 
the harder jhe struggle the greater the sat¬ 
isfaction. |o feel the pressure of the gale 
as you benfl your body to meet it, tuning 
your ears to its wild cry, advancing steadily 
over the rqcks toward your goal in spite of 
the fierce opposition of every tempestuous 
gust—there is the joy of conquest! 
B EN aid I reached camp in good time 
for a hot lunch and brought to the 
feast the keen appetite of outdoor 
men—piletl more wood on the fire and 
eagerly ^waited the return of our com¬ 
panions. About dusk we saw them coming 
along the edge of the little lake to the north. 
A long -white sheep cape hung in front of 
Andy ani we caught the glint of horns 
above his ; back, so we knew that they would 
have a stpry to tell. Arriving in camp their 
first thought was for rest, then food. We 
feasted bn the delicious mountain mutton 
Walter had prepared and stretching our 
tired bodies, we lay smoking around the 
fire as Mackay and Andy recited the story 
of the day’s hunt. 
After leaving us they had progressed up¬ 
ward, skirting the edge of Benjamin Creek 
basin. A terrific wind was blowing which 
at times lifted them completely off their 
feet, but they advanced slowly and finally 
located three rams which they succeeded in 
getting near enough to for a shot. Mackay 
killed one of them with his first shot and 
then directed his attention to the other two, 
which were moving off rapidly. One of 
them he succedeed in bringing down with 
a well directed shot and flesh wounded a 
third, which got away. Both the rams he 
shot had large horns of about the 
same size. They tracked the wounded 
animal away down into Benjamin 
Creek Basin, but finally gave up the 
chase, as it was getting late and camp 
a long way off. Then followed the 
long hike back over the ridge, facing 
the wind, to the spot where the dead 
rams lay. They packed one of the 
heads into camp and left the other 
one where it fell. After much hard¬ 
ship and dangerous maneuvering they 
finally gained the valley of the Killey 
and worked their way to camp. 
We examined the head they had 
brought in and found that it meas¬ 
ured thirteen and three-quarter inches 
around the base of the horns, twenty- 
one inches spread, and had a circle 
of thirty-six inches—a very good 
trophy indeed and Mackay was well 
satisfied, only regretting that he had 
not bagged all three with one fell 
swoop, which would have been a feat well 
worthy of his prowess. 
T HE rain had ceased and the quiet stars 
peeped out of the mist with a new moon 
hanging low, presaging a good day for 
the morrow, when we would make another 
try for the largest head. Always the hunter 
sees the greatest trophy just ahead, and I 
know I dreamed fitfully that night of a 
wondrous stalk crowned with the mighty 
head of the wisest and oldest ram in the 
mountains. With the dawn came another 
storm, the rosy prophesy of the evening had 
not been fulfilled, but we started up the 
mountain through the fog and wind, hoping 
it might clear up by the time we reached 
the first bench. Arriving there we debated 
for some time whether to continue, it looked 
so bleak and austere on the heights above. 
We finally decided to keep on going. Mac¬ 
kay and Andy with Tom then struck 
out for the scene of yesterday’s hunt. Tom 
was going to bring back the head they had 
left up there and Mackay wanted to look up 
the ram that he had wounded. 
Ben and I took a zigzag course up the 
mountain, sweeping as much of the coun¬ 
try as we could see through the mist 
with our glasses every time we stopped 
to rest. Ben finally located a bunch of 
sheep lying on a ledge of rock in an almost 
impossible position to stalk safely, but we 
reconnoitered for awhile and decided that 
by climbing straight up the mountain we 
might be able to sneak down on them and 
were about to adapt that course when we 
spied a lone ram away up near the top 
which seemed to have horns considerably 
larger than any in the band below, so we 
started after him. The fog lifted at times 
and the wind came in gusts, but it had 
turned suddenly cold and my hands got 
pretty well numbed before we reached the 
summit on which we had seen the ram. 
Thus we advanced quietly along the face 
of a high cliff, picking and testing each rock 
before we stepped upon it and had almost 
gained the position we had judged suffi- 
