Omaha daily bee., 1898-08-14

still that it was . o'clock before we reached
a rocky ledge from which the Indian said
we would probably have the chance of get.
ting a shot at them.
Wishing to hunt alone, | asked Dyche and
the guide to go on before and l would make
for n point, some forty rods to my right,
where it seemed to me a shot could be
obtained. Five minutes later l heard the
report OF the Indians gun; this was followed
by half a dozen more, and. looking over the
cliff, along the dangerous edge of which l
was climbing, I could see a sheep rolling
headlong down the steep declivity.
Half an hour later l came upon a herd Of
the animals grazing among the rocks 1000
feet below. In order to get n better view
and satisfy my curiosity ! %unswung my glass
and lying fiat on the ground watched tho
animals for five or ten minutes. Then l
started on once more. following the narrow
path along the face of the cliff. This, my
first experience in the hunting grounds of
the Alaskan sheep, was the most dangerous
/ had ever encountered. SO steep and
slippery was the path | followed that it
became necessary to remove my shoes, and
in many places where the cliff fell in a sheer
descent Of 5000 feet at my very elbow I
crawled along on hands and knees, dragging
my rifle after me-. To add to the danger
OF the situation the rocks which l was forced
TO clutch for support crumbicd beneath my
hands, At times a bank Of fog would sweep
down from the mountain top, completely
enveloping me-: then nothing was to be
done but to exercise patience, for with ones
eyes blinded by the dense mist a step might
be in the right direction, or, what was moro
probable, over a precipice.
But when the shadows lifted n view was
slowly materialized which would have made
any enthusiastic lover of nature wild with
admiration-and what a nature this! Its
beauty and glory derived from icy crags, 4
limitless stretch OF country, and the fan
tastic effects of the rolling mists, as they
seemed to touch now here, now there, the
towering peaks, again sinking into the
gloomy depths below. To the north, about
seventy-fve miles distant, lay the Alaskan
range, sparkling in a coating Of ice and
snow. To the south rolled the great rock
ridges, over which | had climbed, inter-
spersed with patches Of green and white.
A Hairbrendth Escape
My enthusiasm was somewhat dampened
by the constant watchfuluess l was obliged
to exercise with regard to falling rocks,
which clattered about on all sides. At one
point in the path I heard a tremendous
crashing just above, and, glancing up, saw
a small boulder the size of a bushel basket
coming directly toward me with the speed
of an express train. l had only time to
thrust the butt of my gun into the snow,
and, holding TO the barrel with one hand.
bend my body as far as possible in the
opposite direction. So close came the rock
that it shot through the space between the
rifle and myself, whizzing as it passed like
a MIME bullet.
After an hour of this perilous ~scrambling
and climbing | reached the summit of the
mountain and the sight of nine sheep quietly
feeding about half a mile below renewed
my strength and zeal in their pursuit. With
the aid Of my glass | saw they were slowly
working toward me. Moving in my turn
slowly so as TO meet them, I soon crouched
behind a point of rock and awaited their
approach.
In half an hour the herd came within
rifle shot and could see that there were a
ram, six yves and two lambs. l had re-
solved to bag a ram for myself and Dyche
had expressed a desire to obtain a lamb and
eve for his collection. The distance be-
tween the sheep and myself seemed to be
only about 100 yards; so ! felt reasonably
certain of knocking over three or four before
they could get out of range. Drawing a
careful sight on the ram ! fired; without
waiting to note the result / threw a fresh
cartridge into the barrel and drew bead on
a fat eve before the report of my first shot
had ceased to echo among the distant crags.
A third followed the second as quickly as
l could work the lever of my rifle,
Looking over the rock saw the herd
coming oward me on the run. The eve
and lamb had fallen, but the old ram, al
though apparently badly wounded, was
clambering over the rocks. shaking his
huge horns and swaying unsteadiIy from
side to side. Fearing to lose him l shot
again, when he lurched forward and went
down the steep descent, rolling over and
over in his struggle to regain a footing.
Having brought down my game ! mentally
congratulated myself that my worst troubles
were over, but the mistake was soon APP
parent. The excitement of the hum pass
ting, | awoke to the consciousness of a sting
ing pain in my feet, which were bleeding
from a dozen cuts, for / had been obliged
TO re move my shoes in order to follow the
sheep with any degree of safety.
the Game.
Making my way painfully over the sharp
and ragged rocks, / slid down 100 or more
yards to the place where lay the bodies Of
the eve and lamb, and putting aside the rifle
made a careful examination OF my booty,
wishing to see in what respect the animals
for which l had travelled so many miles
| differed from others of their kind. | found
that the white sheep OF Alaska bear a strik-
ing resemblance to the big horned sheep Of
the Rockies, except that the hair is of a
pure white, of a fine silky texture, and from
six to eight inches in length, Leaving the
animals ] went in search OF the old ram and
found him 100 feet further down the noun
tain side. During his struggles he had
wedged himself between two rocks and lay
with his feet in the air. having been shot
through the shoulder and neck, 1t did not
require a second glance to assure me that |
had secured a splendid specimen. The old
fellow must have been the leader Of the
herd. He was much larger than the ewe,
weighing about $50 pounds. In every way
except as TO the hair he resembled the
mountain sheep, even In the size and shape
of his horns, the color of the eyes and the
general shape and contour OF limbs and