Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1908-09-04

Wapiti keep their antlers until tie
spring, whereas deer and moose lose
slseirs by mid winter. The bulls ba-
5havior IN relation to the cow u mere
" that Of d vicious ana brutsl ccw-
ard He bnliies her continually, and
In times of danger his one Thought ii
for sneaking on to secure his own
safety. For all his noble looks he Is q
very unamiable beast, who behaves
with brutal ferocity to the weak, and
Shove abject terror OF the strong
According to his powers, be Is guilty
Of rape, robbery, and even murder.
never felt the least compunctton al
shooting q bull, but I hate to shoot 4
TOW, even when forced by nscesnity.
IS During the rut the bulls are very
noisy: and their notes Of ahmorous
challenge are called '.whistling' by
the frontiarsmen, very inappropriate-
". They begin to whistle about ten
days before they begin to run; and
they have In addition an odd kind Of
bark, which Is only heard occasion
ally,
Heard at a little distance, and In Its
proper place, the call Of the wapiti Is
one Of the grandest and most beauti.
full sounds in nature. Especially IL
this the case when several rivals are
answering one another, on some frosty
moonlight night in the mountains.
Once, while In the mountains, listen
ed to a. peculiarly grand chorus OF
this kind. We were travelling with
pack ponies at the time. and our tent
was pitched In grove Of yellow pine,
BY q brook In the bottom Of q valley.
On either hand rose the mountains.
covered with spruce forest. 1t was III
September, and the first snow had
Just fallen.
The day before we had walked long
and hard and during the night slept
the heavy sleep Of the weary. Early
In the morning, just as the east began
to grow gray, I walked; and as did
SO, the sounds that smote on my ear,
caused me to sit up and throw OFF the
warm blankets. Bull elk were chal-
longing among the mountains on both
sides Of the valley, a little way from
us, their notes echoing like the calling
Of silver bugles. Cropping about Id the
dark, ! drew on my trousers, an extra
pair OF thick socks, and my mecca
sins, donned a warm jacket, found my
fur cap and gloves, and stole out OF
the tent with my rife. Two herds
were approaching one another from
opposite sides Of the valley, a short
distance above our camp; and the mas
ter bulls were roaring defiance as they
mustered their harems.
I walked stealthily up the valley
until 1 felt that was nearly between
the two herds; and then stood motion
less under a tall pine. / nude up my
mind, from the sound Of the challeng
ing, now very near me, that one bull
on my right was advancing towards 4
rival on my left who was answering
sTery call. Soon the former approach
cd So near that | could hear him cracl
the branches, and beat the bushes
with his horns; and slipped quietly
from tree to tree, so as to meet hin
when he came out into the more opef
woodland Day broke, and crimson
CLEANS played across the snow-clas
mountains beyond.
At last, just as the sun famed rec
above the hIll-tops, I heard the roar o.
the wapiti's challenge not fifty yards
away; and I cooked and half raised
my rifle, and stood motionless. In {
moment more, the belt Of spruces il
| front of me swayed and opened, ant
| the lordly bull stepped out. He bor'
his massive antlers aloft; the snow la.
thick ON his name; he snuffed the al
1 and stamped on the ground as b.
walked. As ! drew a bead, the mo
ton caught his eye; and Instantly hi
4 bearing Of naughty and warlike self
confidence changed to one Of alarm
/ Ny bullet smote through his shoulder
i blades, and be plunged wildly for
ward. and fell full length on the blood
stained snow.
Nothing can be finer than wap.t
BULBS carriage when excited or alarm
A ed; he then seems the embodiment o
strength and stately grace. But a
ordinary times his looks are less al
tractive, as he walks with his necl
level with his body and his head out
stretched, his horns lying almost O
his shoulders. The favorite gait Q
4 the wapiti is the trot, which is yer
fast, and which they can keep up 70
countless miles; when suddenly an
4 greatly alarmed, they break into a
awkward gallop, which Is faster, bu
which speedily tires them.
sGJhlENa