The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1885-06-26

anu having come 10 tnr Ioot On the Dig
Horn Aloutains we took n nights
hunt through them after elk and bear.
We went into the mountains with a
pack-tran. leaving the ranch-wagon at
the place whore we began 10 go up the
first steep rise. There were two Others
besides myself in the party; one Of
| them. the teamster, weathcr-bcatcn
old plansInan who possessed most
extraordinary stock Of miscellaneous
msnformation upon every conceivable
subject, and the other my ranch fore
man. Merriicld Merrificld was origin
ally an Eastern backwoodsman. and
dnring the last year or two has been
my nius Achnfes Of the hunting field.
He i wcIl-built, good-looking fellow.
an excellent rider frst-class shot and
a keen sportsman None OF US had ever
been within two hundred miles OF the
Big Horn Range before. SO that our
hunting trip had the added zest Of Dcing
also an exploring expedition.
Each OF us rode one pony. and the
packs were carried on four Others. We
were not burdened by much baggage.
Having no tent we took the canya,
wagon-shert instead: our bedding.
plenty Of spare cartridges, some Hour,
bacon, coffee. sugar and salt and few
very primitive cooking utensils COM
\ pletcd the outfit.
The Big Horn Range i chain OF
bare rocky peaks, stretching length
wise along the middle OF tablc-land
which IL about thirty miles wide. At
its edges this tablc-land falls sheer of
into the rolling plains country. From
the rocky peaks flow rapid brooks OF
clear. lev water, which take their way
through deep gorges that they have
channcled out in the surface Of the
plateau a few miles from the heads %
the streams these gorges become regu-
lar CANYONS, with sides so steep as to be
. almost perpendicular. In travelling.
therefore, the trail has TO keep well up
toward the timber-linc. a lower down
! horses find il difficult or impossible Il
. get across the valleys. In strong con-
trast 10 the treecss cattle plains extend
! ing TO its foot. the sides of the table.
land are densely wooded with tall pines.
. II, top forms what i called park
country that i, il Is covered with
, alternating groves OF trees and oper
. glades, each grove or glade varying in
, size from half a dozen To many hundred
acres.
: Early next morning we were over a
the elk carcass. and. as we expected
found that the bear had eaten his fill al
: it during the night. His tracks SHOWED
] him to be an immense fellow and wer,
so fresh that we doubted If he had lief
! long before we arrived; and we made
up our minds to follow him up and tr,
a. ~ - hat Iftsn.
on these mountains had evidently beer
little disturbed Indeed. the indians
and most Of the white hunters arr
! rather chary Of meddling with "Ol'
!, Ephraim. as the mountain men styl'
the grizzly. unless they get him at
4 disadvantage; for the sport is fraugh
! with some danger and but small profit
: The bears thus seemed to have Yer,
: little fear OF harm. and we thought
I far from unlikely that the bed Of tn
!, one who had fed on the elk would no
be far away.
I NV companion was skillful tracker
J and we took up the trail at once. 70
! some distance it led over the soft. yield
y inc carpet Of moss and plnc-needle
! and the footprints were quite easil
!, made ont. although we could fOllo'
\ them but slowly: for we had. OF course
J. to keep a sharp lookout ahead am
y around u a. we walked noisrl ssly o.
!, in the Somber half light always prevail
: ing under The great pine trees. ihroug
whose thickly intcrlacing branches stra
: but few beams Of light. no matter no,
bright the .ul may be on side. w
made no sound ourselves. and ever
u little sudden noise sent a thrill thrOug
me a. peered about with each sens
n on the alert Two or three of Oh
y ravens which we had scared from th
n carcass lew overhead. croaking hoarss
! Is: and the pine top, moaned an
NJ sighed in the light breczc--for pin
70 trees seem to be ever in motion. n
y: matter how light thu wind
y After going few hundred yards III
n tracks turned off On a well beaten pat
y made bv the elk: the woods were
" many places cut up by these game
u trails. which had often b come rs al
'e tinct as ordinary foot-paths. III
~ beasts footprints were perfectly plal
70 in the dust. and he had numbered alon
m M the path until near the middle of 4
p hillside. where the ground bsoke ava
VI and there were hollows and bowlder
9, Here there had been windfall. and a
9 dead trees lay among the living. pile
X across one another in AL direction
= while between and around the
&C sprouted up thick growth Of youn
's spruce aud other eyergrccns. The trs
g. turned of into the tangled tlickc
ut within which il was almost certain '
he would find our quarry We could -
ly follow the tracks. by the slight scrap
m OF the claws on the bark or BY u
bent and broken twigs; and we advanc'
I'd with noiseless caution, slow
Id climbing over the dead trer-trunks ~
m. upturncd stumps. and not letting