i
ROGUE RIVER COURIER. GRANTS PASS, OREGON, NQVEBEMR 27, 1908.
f'MIL HUNTING
I Wfe W THE
Wy Mountain Sheep
p S THEODORE ROOSEVELT
(Copyright, 1M5. by O. P. Putnam'a ione.
published under arrannoment with O. P.
Futnn.m'a Bone, New York and London.)
IQ-IIOUN, more common
ly known as mountain
Btiwp, are eitreuii'ly
wary and cautloua nnl
main, and are plentiful
In but few places. Tbi
la rather surprising, for
they aeem to lc fulrly prolific (al
t lion Kb not aa much ro aa deer and
nnteloM), and comparatively few ore
killed by tlio hunters.
In nl the Mg-horu cornea next to
buffalo and elk, averaging larger than
the hlark-tall deer, while aa old ram
will sometime be aluioHt aa heavy as
a small cow elk. In hla movement
he Ih not light and graceful like the
prong horn and other antelope, bin
marvelloua agility seeming rather to
proceed from sturdy Ntrength and won
derful command over Iron sinews and
muscles. The huge horns are carried
proudly erect by the massive neck;
every motion of the body Is made with
perfect poise; and there seems to be
do ground so difficult that the big-horn
cannot cross It. There is probably no
animal In the world his superior In
climbing; and his only equals are the
other icclea of mountain sheep and
the Ibexes. No mutter how sheer the
cliff, If there arc ever so tiny crarka
or breaks In the surface, the big-horn
will bound up or down It with wonder
ful eace and seeming absence of ef
fort. The perpendicular bounds It can
make ore truly startling In strong con
trast with Its distant relative the
prong-horn which can leap almost any
level Jump, but seems unable to clear
the smallest height. In descending a
sheer wall of rock the big-horn holds
II four feet together and goes down In
long Jumps, bounding off the surface
almost llko a rubber ball every time
he strikes It. The way that one will
vanish over the roughest and most
broken ground Is a perpetual surprise
to any one that has hunted them; and
the ewes are quite as skilful aa the
rams, while even the very young lambs
aeem almost aa well able to climb, and
certainly follow wherever their elders
lead.
To blin the barren wastes of the Bad
Lands offer a moet attractive home;
yet to other living creatures they are
at all times as grimly desolato and for
bidding as any spot on earth can be;
t all aeasnna they teem hostile to
very form of life.
Occasionally the big-born come down
Into the valleys or along the grassy
loes to feed, but this Is not often,
and In such canes every member of
the hand Is always keeping the sharp-
they beat a retreat to their broken
fastnesses. At tilght-tlme or In the
early morning they come down to
drink at the small pools or springs, but
move off the Instant they have aatls
fled their thirst As a rule, tbey spend
their time among the rocks and rough
ground, and It Is In these places that
they must be bunted. In color they
harmonize curiously with the grayish
or yellowish brown of the ground on
which they are found, and It Is often
very difficult to make them out when
lying motionless on a ledge of rock.
1
Ti YOUTH'S
COMPANION
IT MHII HUT Will T HU
The Contents of the 32 Issues (or
1909 will Include
50 Siar Articles
Mv Men and Women of Dlstlno
lion in Muny Vocations.
250 Capital Stories
Of Charm-ter and Adventure.
Iih lulling Six l ino Sol l.il.v
1000 Up-To-Dato Notes
On Current Kvnnta, Natural
History anU Science.
2000 One-Minute Stories
Bits of Humor and Miscellany
The Wcnklv Health Article.
Timely Kiluoi lals. The Clill
di en's I'aue. etc.
Jump CoptVa of the Puptr and WutrateJ
Announcement or IVO!) tent
hrmm to any addiesg.
Free to January, 1909.
F.vry nw ubrribr who at one cut
out ftiwt nd this ilip ur mention thw
pH-r, with 1.73 will rocoiv KKtE
All th Uiu! of Th Companion for th
remaining wk of 1 ttOH, including th
Haauttlul Holiday Numbr.
Tha Companion' Calendar for 1909
"In liamtmothrr' (.iardan, tttho-
rapKrd in thutaan color.
Than Tha Companion for tha 52 weeks
of 10 - a lib. .ty of tha bt taadina
for avary mam bar of tha tanuir.
THE YOUTH'S COMPANION,
BOSTON, MASS.
SUISCRIPTIONI HICEIVID AT THII 0FF1CL
Up tha tllppwry Ice-cnvertA butte w
clambered.
Time and again they will be mistaken
for boulders, and, on the other band,
I bare more than once stalked n te
masses of sandstone that ! hare mis
taken for sheep.
When lying down the big-horn can
thus loan everything below It; and both
while feeding and resting It Invariably
keeps the sharpest possible look-ont
for all danger from beneath, and thla
trait makes It needful for the hunter
to alwaya keep on the highest ground
and try to come on It from above.
Aa far as lay in ua, on our first day's
hunt we paid proper beed to all the
rules of hnntlng-craft; but without suc
cess. Tp the ellppery, Ice-covered
buttes we clambered, clinging to the
rocks, and slowly working our way
across the facoa of the cliffs, or cau
tiously creeping along the nnrrow
ledges, peering over every crest long
and carefully, and from the peaks
scanning the ground all about with the
field-glasses. But we saw no sheep,
and but little sign of them.
Finally wo struck the head of long,
winding valley with a smooth bottom,
and after canterlug down It four or
five miles, rame to the river, Just after
the cold, pale-red snn had sunk behind
the line of hills ahead of ua. Our
horses were sharp shod, and crossed
the Ice without difficulty; and In a
grove of leafless cottou-woods, on the
opposite side, we found the hut for
which we had been making, the cow
boy already Inside with the Are
started. Thronghout the night the
temperature aank lower and lower,
and It waa Impossible to keep the
craay old hut anywhere near freexlng
potnt; the wtnd whistled through tko
chinks and crannies of the kw, and,
after short and by no means elab
orate) supper, wo were glad to cower
down with oar great fur coats still on,
tinder the pile of buffalo robes and
bear skins. My alerplug-hag came In
very handily, and kept me ns warm as
possible, lu spite of the bitter frost.
We were up mid hud taken breakfast
next morning by the time the llrst
streak of dawn had dimmed the bril
liancy of the stars, and Immediately
nfterwurda strode off on foot, ns we
had lieen lmniered by the horse on
the day before. This day, though the
weather hud grown even colder, we did
not feel It, for we walked ull the while
with a quick pace, aud tln climbing
was very hard work. The shoulders
and ledges of the cliffs had Ivcouie
romul and slippery with thy Ice, and It
was no easy eask to move up and
along them, clutching the gun In one
hand, and grasping each little projec
tlon with tlie other.
When on the way back to camp, where
the buttes rose bigheet and steepeM.
we came upon fresh trucks, but as it
was then late lu the afternoon, did not
try to follow them that day When
near the but I killed n sharptal! for
supHr, making rather a neat shot, t'.io
bird Wing eighty yanN o!T. The HUM
was even colder than the preceding
one, and all signs to'd us that we
would soon have a change for the
worse In the weather, whl.-h made me
doubly anxious to get a sheep before
the storm struck u. We determined
that next morning we would take the
horses and make a quick push for the
chain of high buttes where we had
aeen the fresh tracks, and bunt them
through with thorough care.
I W'e started in the cold gray of the
. morning and pricked rapidly off over
the frozen plnln, columns of white
steam rising from the nostrils of the
galloping horses. When we reached
the foot of the hills where we Intended
to hunt, and had tethered the horses,
i the sun had already risen, but It was
1 evident that the clear weather of a fort
1 night past was over. The air was thick
! and haiy, and away off In the north
j west a towering mass of grayish white
clouds looked lllie a weather-breeder;
I every tblug boded storm at no dls-
tant date. The country over which we
I now hunted was wilder and more
! mountainous than any we had yet
struck. High, sharp peaks and ridges
j broke off abruptly Into narrow gorges
I and deep ravines; they were bare of
! all but the scantiest vegetation, save
on some of the sheltered sides where
grew groves of dark pines, now laden
down with feathery snow. The climb
ing was as bard ns ever. At first we
went straight up the side of the tallest
peak, and then along the knlfe-Hke
ridge which Joined it with the next.
The ice made the footing very slippery
as we stepped along the ledges or
crawled round the Jutting shoulders,
and we had to look carefully for our
footholds; while In the cold, thin air
every quick burst we made up a steep
hill cuused ua to pant for breath. We
had gone but a little way before we
saw fresh signs of the animals we
were after, but It was some time be
fore we came upon the quarry itself.
We left the high ground and de
scending Into a narrow chasm walked
along Its bottom, which was but a
couple of feet wide, while the sides
rose up from It at an acute angle.
After following this for a few hundred
yards, we turned a sharp corner, and
shortly afterward our eyes were
caught by some grains of fresh earth
lying on the snow In front of our feet
On the sides, some feet above our
heads, were marks In the snow which
a moment's glance showed us had been
made by a couple of mountain sheep
that had come down one side of the
gorge and bad leaped across to the
other, their sharp toes going through
the thin snow snd displacing the earth
that had fallen to the bottom. The
tracks had evidently been made just
before we rounded the corner, and as
we had been advancing nolselesly on
the snow with the wind In our favor,
we knew that the animals could hive
no suspicion of our presence. They
had gone np the cliff on our right, but
as that on our left was much lower,
and running for some distance parallel
to the other, we concluded that by run
ning along Its top we would be moat
certain to get a good shot. Clambering
Instantly np the steep side, digging my
hands and feet into the loose snow,
and grasping at every little rock or
frozen projection, I reached the top;
and then ran forward along the ridge
a few paces, crouching behind the
masses of queerly-shaped sandstone
and saw, about ninety yards off across
the ravine, a conple of mountain rams.
The one with the largest horns was
broadside toward me. his sturdy, mass
ive form outlined clearly against the
sky, as he stood on the crest of the
ridge. 1 dropped on my knee, raising
the rifle as I did so; for a second he
did not quite muke me out, turning his
head half round to look. I held the
sight fairly on the point Just behind
his shoulder ntul pulled the trigger.
At the report he staggered and
pitched forward, but recovered himself
and crossed over the ridge out of sight
We Jumped and slid down Into the ra
vine again, and clambered up the op
posite side as fast as our lungs and
slippery Ice would let us; then taking
the trail of the wounded ram we trot
ted along. We had not far to go; for.
up old Manltou, who can carry any
thing and has no fear, and the big
horn was soon strapped across his
back. It was a fine ram, with perfectly-shaped
but not very large horns.
The other ram, two years old, with
small horns, had bounded over the
ridge before I could get a shot at him;
we followed his trail for half n mile,
but as be showed no signs of halting
nml we were anxious to get home we
then gave up the pursuit.
It was still early In the day, and we
made up our minds to push back for
the home ranch, as we did not wish
to le caught out In a long storm. The
lowering sky was already overcast by
a mass of leuden-gray clouds; and It
was evident that we had no time to
lose. In a little over nn hour we were
buck at the log camp, where the 'ram
was shifted from Manltou's back to
the buck board. A very few minutes
sufficed to pack up our bedding and
provisions, and we started home. Mcr
rlfleld and I rode on ahead, not spar
ing the horses; but before we get home
the storm had burst, and a furious
blizzard blew In our teeth as we gal
loped along the last mile of the river
bottom, before coming to the home
ranch house; and as we warmed our
stiffened limbs before the log fire. I
congratulated myself upon the success
ful outcome of what I knew would lie
the last hunting trip I should take dur
ing that season.
The death of this ram was accom
plished without calling for any very
good shooting on our part. He was
standing still, less than a hundred
yarda off, when the shot was fired; and
we came across him so close merely by
accident Still, we fairly deserved our
luck, for we had hunted with the most
patient and painstaking care from
dawn till nightfall for the better part
of three days, spending most of the
time in climbing at a smart rate of
speed up sheer cliffs and over rough
and slippery ground. Still-hunting the
big-horn hi always a toilsome and labo
rious task, and the very bitter weather
during which we bad been out bad not
lessened the difficulty of the work,
though In the cold It was much less ex
hausting than it would hnve been to
have hunted across the same ground
In summer. No other kind of hunting
does as much to bring out the good
qualities, both moral and physical, of
the sportsmen who follow It. If a man
keeps at it It Is bound to make him
both hardy and resolute: to strengthen
his muscles and fill out bis lungs.
Mountain mutton Is In the fall the
most delicious eating furnished by any
game animal. Nothing else compares
with It for Juiciness, tenderness, and
flavor; but at all other times of the
year It la tongh, stringy, and worthless.
PYROGMPHY
GOODS Shsss.
Clemens Sells Drug's
Wherein Thay Dhferod.
I. BrnOy Blaekwell, one of the pio
neer of bar sex In medicine, beard
yeas physician deliver fierce dia
tribe against epenlng the doors of the
proftoaton to women. When be ceased,
she asked:
"Will yon please tell me one reason
why they should not practice medi
viner "Certainly, madam. They haven't
the muscle, the brawn, the physical
strength."
"I see, sir. Tour conception of a
sickroom Is a slaughter bouse. Mine
la not"
The Courier has the largest circula-:-,
j- r.,.,, -yt , ,f mv inre".
The Rogue River Nurseries
Are strong on TOKAY GRAPES, having about 250,000
fancy cuttings that are rooting nicely in the reddest of
lands. We are ready to contract for fall delivery at prices
that will surprise you. We are as well prepared to fur.
nish you with anything in line of trees and general
nursery stock.
Conklin Building
Grants Pass Or.
TREES ! TJXl:i34 ! TREES
BUY YOUR TKEES FROM
"Old Reliable Albany Nurseries"
and you are sure of getting just what you order. We grow
our trees for quality not cheap prices.
GEO. H. PARKER, - Agent
Office with J. E. PETERSON
The Development of the
Remington
is the History of the Writing Machine
New Models 10 .nd 11 Now Ready
Model 10
with Column Selector
Model 11
With Built-in Tabulator
Remington Typewriter Company
(lacorporalej)
New York and Everywhere
HV fourul him luring on hit tide.
in I rxiHvtPil, wo found Mm lyltiR on
hlii si.le a couple of humlrvd yiirils U
yonit the rliikv. his eyes already s'ltiej
lu death. The bullet had jfiuie lu l
hind the shoulder mid railed clean
throuch his IhhI.v crosswise, Rolrg a
little forward: no animal less touch
than a mountain ram could have pone
any distance at all with such a wound,
lie had most oMIkIubIj- run round to
part of the hill where w e could bring
up one of the horses without v.rv
much dlfliculty. Accordingly I brought J
"Tour of the Tourist"
REMARKABLE event in the history of automobiledora was the tour of
more than thirty Tourist cars from Los Angeles to San Francisco and return,
August 12th to 22d, 1908, carryina 94 men, women and children.
This tour differs radically from any previous automobile run in that practically
every car was operated by its owner instead of a professional driver, thus demoratrating
simplicity and ease of operation, and proving forcibly that the Tourist is an owner's
car so simple in operation and mechanism as to enable the novice to negotiate the
severest test to which an automobile could be put.
This more-than-a-thousand-mile-run was successfully accomplished without mishap
or accident, and will live long in the annals of automobiledom as a glowing testimonial
to mechanical genius and constructional ability.
T fW Model Model ttSpsJ,
Tti Type "K" Tooting Cu, tht powefut, itady
X aten giant which earned nxh aa ennabU rapotatioa
the part lew yean, it a two-cylinda car ol mind ilila
ability.
Ill cotutructioa U th my acme ol timpticity, and tot
accompWhmenU hav earned lac its makep woiloVwidt
TkW car. beautifully finohed in a
choice of four colon 21 H. P.
BTe-panenger remorabla toooeau, ii
SI300aLo. Aaaelea,
TourUt Can are corered by a very
Ibenl ruarantce, and wtth the factory
UeetUadlo rep lac all pam ukkly.
I
R. S. MSON Agt.,
Grants Pass
Oregon.
The Type "O" Teurt RoacUer mptmmt. aVe aak
aaurioa point in two-cylindec automobile eoentrucboav
All the faacarec of the now fanow model "K" aM hea
loaded waa tha racy, due kne ol nS hiejVpncee
toed iter.
ftothmg on the market today eaa coarpeee favorably
with the typo "G lot all mnm
oriceebibty. atyle, leliaUliry and w
price. . ,
ThU car with a laeW finuW
trunk oa mat tail lot tt
Wo ramble teal oa Cnmk. S132
and with double iadmdael eeaM oa
Mu,SI3Sa F. O. B. Lo An
'V