The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1909-06-20

below. Nearing the valley their trails
converged; one band joined another,
which in time drew to it other recruits
until IN the end there was a continual
stream of starving elk pouring over the
mountains, hurrying desperately south
ward to where they would find food and
protection.
Then nature played one of those iron
zeal little jokes with which it loves to
| remind its children, animal or human,
of their helplessness and dependence.
The snow was light in Jackson IS Hole
sure enough. But at the beginning Of
! the winter a few warm days had been
followed by sudden, killing spell Of
| cold. The first six inches of snow,
melting under the sun of the warm
days, had Immediately been frozen by
the sudden cold. On top of this fell
about a foot of soft, white snow The
starving creatures, rushing on to the
feeding ground, where before there al
ways had been food in plenty, scraped
through the top snow and struck their
sharp hoofs against six-inch layer
of solid ice.
Beneath. the ice there was grass in
plenty. 1t might as well have not
been there at all. The elks could not
| reach it. They paved vainly at the
hard surface, then wandered about,
frantically searching for willows or
| other shrubs or dropping in their tracks
| according entirely to their condition.
Sixty thousands of them came rush.
ing into the valley. Thirty thousands
| of them remained scattered in small
| herds along the northern end and found
along the rivers and in the surround
ing mountains. Thirty thousand rush
ed to the valleys southern end, strip
ped the willows along Flat creek to the
| ground in a few days, and then looked
dumbly around, with starvation for
| nlne-tenths of their number staring
them in the face. Majestic antIered
| bulls beloved their final pang of hun
| ger and fell helpless into the snow be-
side the weak COW or calf. The white
face of the valley became dotted here
and there with little brown heaps. Flat
creek became choked with Jumps OF
similar description.
From far away these Jumps looked
like rocks; on closer inspection they
became dead elk with the bones ST. elk
| ing through the hide. There were
hundreds of them within a few days.
There would have been thousands in a
| few weeks. Then the hand of man
took part in the unequal combat
| against nature.
In the middle of February the set
tiers in Jackson S Hole became alarmed
at the terrible fate awaiting $4,000 of
the noblest game animals of the west.
1t was certain that this number would
perish unless they were fed and fed al
once. Seven hundred dollars was raised
among the settlers for the purchase OF
hay, and an appeal made to the legis
| lature for help for the starving elk
One week later State Game Warden
Nowlan came into the town of jackson
with the news that $4,000 had beer
| appropriated by the state for the care
of the elk during the winter. The leg
islature had acted promptly, and the
| elk were saved.
| In their semi domestication the AMI
mails roam to within easy gunshot OF
| town, and on March II, the day dur
ing which Mr. Sheffield made the pie
lures. an excited citizen of jackson
came running to the hotel with a de
mand for the "fellow with ths
camera.
''Come on with me- he cried whel
Sheffield appeared. E'I'n show you
chance for a picture that viii bea
| them ALL -
| Hurriedly he led the way to the rea
of a grocery store. A noble bull ell
was nosing around among a pile of til
cans, searching for stray morsel o.
! canned corn or tomato
Sheffield set up his camera. Then b