The record-union., 1893-09-23
TWO KINDS OF WOLVES.
The Biped and the Quadruped
Variety.
A Montana Ranchman's Story of How
He and His Friends Showed Graft
tude for the Service Done Them by
a Herd of Elk.

He and HIS FRIENDS showed OfaIl-
tude for tho Service Done Them by
Herd of Elk.
'One season, three or four years ago, a
pack of white wolves laid siege to my
ranch and some of the neighboring
ranches around the head of Wind River"
said Miles Holden of Montana to q New
York Sun man, land played hob with
our cattle and sheep. The white wolf IS
bigger and more aggressive than the
black timber wolf. He grows to be al
most as big as a yearling calf. His
strength is most extraordinary. AS fleet
as the wind he deties ali pursuit, and,
even if he were not SO swift afoot. his re-
markable cunning would amply serve
him in GLIDING his pursuers. This big
and fierce beast OF prey will kill cow
with ease, and pack of them proving
about the range will soon make alarming
inroads on the size of a mans herd.
''This is just what this pack was doing
the season L speak OF, and my neighbor
and myself had spent much time and
ridden many miles in fruitleSs efforts to
hunt the marauders down. They had in
fiicted hundreds of dollars loss upon us,
and the way they were keeping up their
raids they threatened to break us all
up in business before the war was out.
More than once we started out to
follow the trail of these wolves, deter
mined to bring them to bay before we let
up, only to come back foiled and to find
that while we supposed we were pressing
in their wake they had been back to the
ranch Of some one Of us and despolled 1t
of several head more of fat cattle. after
ward learned that no one ever knew
white wolf to be caughtor killed by either
of those methods.
''At last, after more than usually de-
structive and comprehensive raid on the
ranches around us, half dozen Of us got
together and resolved to take the war
path against the pack, and to remain on
it night and day until we either wiped
its members off the face of the earth or
drove them out of that country. We
started out thoroughly equipped for the
crusade. We called ourselves wolf hunt
ers, but, from the way the hunt ended
we should have been called wolves in
stead of hunters, for we were guilty OF
most bloodthirsty act at its close. We
deserved to be hunted down like wolves
ourselves for it. Until my dying day L
WILL De ashamed LOT IttQ kJdEI III IL.
THE ELK AND THE WOLVES.
ave struck the trail while it was fresh.
1t led us a wild and tortuous chase all
day, and when we had to camp for the
night we didn't suppose we were any
nearer the sly marauders than we were
when we started. We halted in a narrow
valley, which was closed at one end by a
border of thickly growing bushes and
had its head at the foot OF high bluff. A
little stream flowed through it. We
camped at one edge OF this valley. We
were astir at daybreak, eager to start on
the chase again. While we were eating
hasty breakfast we felt curious trem-
bling of the ground. One OF our party,
an old hunter, said that it was caused by
a herd of animals of some kind that were
coming to the creek for water. We hid
in the bushes to see what they might be.
We had hardly done so when a pair of
great antlers parted the bushes at the
lower end of the vale only a few rods
away, and following them a magnificent
bull elk stepped cautiously through into
the opening. He held his head high in
the air, shifted suspiciously in every di
rection, and then, as if satisfied that no
danger lurked near, he made a peculiar
whistling sound and marched forward
confidently. Responding to his signal,
such procession as / can never hope to
have the good fortune to see again came
proudly in his wake, herd of thirty elk,
stately bucks, sleek cows and glossy
calves. All of the bulls were large and
splendidly antlered, but none of them ap-
preached in majestic proportion of mien
the noble leader of the herd.
For a moment every one of US gaZed
spellbound on the grand spectacle, and
then the brute instinct in US asserted it
self, and every mans rifle went to his
shoulder. But before one of us could
fire there broke upon the scene some
thing that gave quite another aspect to it,
and mechanically every mans gun was
lowered. An immense white wolf dashed
through the fringe of bushes through
which the elk had just made their way,
and with a frightful yell Sprang upon a
calf that stood by the side of its mother
while the latter was quenching her thirst
at the creek. The calf, bleating pitifully,
went down beneath the leap OF It's blood
thirsty foe, and instantly the VOLTS fangs
were at its throat, and the next instant
the whole pack came rushing and yelping
like demons in upon the startled herd.
That this was the pack we were pursuing
there could be no doubt. Chased from
their quest of blood at the ranches, they
had struck the trail of the elk and had
crept upon them in that quiet vale.
There were twelve in the pack, not one of
them less than five feet in length. True
to their kind, they all bounced upon the
calf that the first wolf had killed, and
the gnashing, snarling and swapping of
their great jaws as they fought for a NOR
sci of the meat was enough to frighten an
Indian from the spot. Before we had
time to think what it would be best Tor
us to do to make our attack on the wolves
most effective, a movement among the
bull elks caused US to postpone consider
alton of the attack.
RAVENOUS BRUTES TORN TO PIECES.
"At the first onslaught of the wolves
the elk stood as if paralyzed with fright
or astonishment, but before the ravenous
pack could strip the meat from the bones
of the calf the bull elks separated from
the COWS and joined each other in group.
There were nine of them. For moment
they tossed their great antlered heads in
the air, paved the ground, and made
everything tremble with their loud bel
lowing. Then they formed in circle
about the swapping and snarling wolves,
their bristling cheveaux de frise of horns
turned toward them. The wolves, intent
on tearing and gorging on their prey, had
not noticed tue action of the elks, and
not until they had left nothing but the
skeleton of the calf and turned to look
for another victim did they discover the
threatening circle of terrible heads that
confronted them. With cleaning fangs,
blood-red jaws wide open and eyes blaZ-
ing like Goals OF fire, they attacked the
elks with ferocity that few things could
have stood firm against, but they only
hurled themselves upon the sharp and