The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-12-26

likely to part company before my journey
was ended Half mile further on, in an
old charcoal clearing, flushed part
ridge at which took snap shot that
Knocked a cloud of feathers out of the
bird without retarding its flight, but |
was sure it was hard hit, and began a dill
igent search where it had disappeared at
the edge of the clearing.
Looking the ground over carefully, step
by step, mad gone much further than
one who does not know how far mortal
" wounded grouse can fly, would think it
of any use to search, when | heard far
behind me what | took to be the Diteous
howl of lost hound.
| was wishing the poor fellow might find
my track and come up to me, when the
Ong-drawn plaintive wall was repeated
at point so distant from the first that
it was evident it could not have been ut
tered by the same animal and presently
| 1t was taken up at another distant point.
Still cropping over the ground in search
of the dead bird, wondered at so many
hounds having gone astray that day,
when just as 1 found my bird lying belly
NJ. stone dead, l also came upon some
thing that gave me startling enlighten-
ment.
! The fallen leaves and the soil were torn
and furrowed. stones and patches of moss
| were overturned, in evidence of a des-
perate struggle, the result of which was
plainly shown by the antlered skull and
| scattered bones of a deer and mat of
coarse gray hair trodden into the mold.
Hirams wolves were no harmless
|
realities, and chill ran down my back
as 1 realized the probability that the pack
was now rallying on my trail. I did not
doubt that had heard their voices.
! / took my bearings and went forward
at my best pace with far less thought
i of hunting than the fear of being hunt
| hearing nothing but the swapping of
twigs and swish of branches made by
my own rapid progress till a clamor of
| jays broke out 40 rods in my rear. AS
lfracrl nd witt hn
! rustic and Datter Of many swift feet. L
was near the crest of one of the ledges
that ridge crosswise the long westerly
| incline of the mountain side, and look
| ing backward down the slope, I saw
| two wolves break through the under-
| growth of whortleberry bushes, and had
glimpses Of others behind them:
My next look was for a tree that could
be climbed and was fortunate in dis
covering one close at hand, a low
branching pine of more than two feet in
| diameter at the base of the trunk, which
for 10 feet up to the whorls of sturdy
green boughs bristled with stubs of dead
limbs that made convenient steps.
! My gun was of German make. rugged
with a sling, which till now [ had always
thought useless appurtenance. but in
this emergency 1T proved quite otherwise,
when by sliding the gun over my back |
got up, easily and quickly. None too quick
! ly, for in two minutes the leaders of the
pack were beneath me and glazing up at
me with cruel hungry eyes having evil
IDENTIFY seen my ascent, for they were not
at fault a moment.
Others came till there were seven in
all, some circling about the tree. some
sitting on their launches and treadin@
impatiently with their forefeet, like a
dog waiting for choice morsel, and lick
ing their slavering chops some knawed
at the trunk or made prodigious leaps at
the lower branches.
1 climber to a secure and comfortable
seat on a limb 20 feet from the ground,
and, after getting. my breath, and my
nerves were a little settled | tried the
effect of a charge of No. 6s on one of the
besiegers, as [ got a tolerable fair aim at
his uplifted muZzle through an opening.
There was a yelp of surprise and pain
followed by a general conmotion among
the crew, and when the smoke had lifted
above me | caught glimpses of the stune
brute clawing his head with alternate
forepawS
/ fired several times as opportunity
offered but desisted when it became evil
dent that instead of driving off my as
sailants. the sting of the small shot made
tried smuggling the shot in a cartridge
made of a bit of the lining of my coat
but it amounted to nothing. Bewailing tbs
incredulity which had made me refuse tbs
buckshot, l was at my wits end how
to raise the siege.
Perhaps my supply of provisions would
last till the enemy was starved out, i
the weather did not turn cold and freez
me on my roost, which was a prospect les
: agreeable than that of subsisting on raw
partridge flesh.
Then it occurred to me to climb to thu
top and see if there was any chance o
} making alarm shots heard down in tn
settlement. Singing my gun began tn
7 ascent. But ten feet further up the pin
2 came to an end, for there the whole tol
was broken off just above a whorl o
stout branches onto which ! climbed, Blu
could get no outlook through the ire
2 tops.