The Young Alaskans on the Trail

ut of their tent and went down to the river for their morning bath. Heartily as they had eaten the night befo

r to-day?" asked Rob; "are we going

o heavier water now, so I suppose we ought to be a little mor

to go down along the bank and do

"and Moise might do that while we

Now, we were speaking about bears and sheep. W

" said Alex. "I told you we'd

got to do with g

the same as any other laws. At the same time, the government is wise, and knows that men in this far-off country have to live on what the country produces. If the people could not kil

got to do with ou

place where we started yesterday. But we have been running north very strongly thirty or forty miles. While I can't tell exactly where we are, I'm very positive that we are at this camp somewh

ellow ought to keep the game laws even when he is away from the towns. In some of the States in the earlier days they used to have laws all

ry here," went on Alex, "for I don't

r air, "we don't much care for b

ever killed

goats sometimes, and all sorts of bears and moose and things. We've never hunted very much except when we were on K

Moise, "he'll be best for eat of anything there is

start out to get one? This look

ed Rob. "Jess, do yo

while he was tall for his age, he was rather thin and

his fish, and maybe they can go down and have a look at the rapids from the shore. We ot

r," said Rob. "Can we make it

out at least one night, maybe mor

a blanket and a little something to eat-I suppose we could carry enough." He look

" said Alex

e rolled up in a piece of canvas, which he placed on his pack-straps. He asked the boys if they thought they could get on with a single blanket, and when they agreed to this he took Rob's blanket,

t your rifles and your ammunition. I don't need any blanket for a night or so. W

it is, and you're not to be uneasy if we don't come back for two or three days. Don't go out in the

"I'll stay here all summer. I

but stalked off. The two boys, rifle in hand, followed him, imitating his dignity and no

ter a time, however, they came out at the top of a high plateau, where the undergrowth was not very thick and tall spruces stood more sc

er a time. "I think good for moose,

d Rob, who was running on a little in ad

his moccasins," sa

a Kadiak bear; but see, his foot sinks a long way into the ground,

d examined the trai

. Rob. When an old white-face starts off he may go forty miles. Again, we might run across him or some o

likely. Our boats are pretty full now, and we're maybe coming to bad water. There's good bear hunting farther north and eas

said John. "Besides, we've

leaving the big bear trail. "I'd just lik

u shall follow one just as b

much covered with undergrowth. At last they reached the edges of bare country, where the sun struck them fully. By this time the boys were pretty tired, for it was far

see any signs of sheep up in here, and I don't think this looks like

e kind of country that bighorns like. You mustn't get discouraged too soon on a hunt. An Injun may be slow to start on a hunt, but wh

he added, "I'd like to ask you, are you su

before them. Rob had his field-glasses with him, and these he now

led out, excitedly. "

ey?" called J

id Rob, "but just where

near-by ravines. "Don't you see that long mark, lighter in color, which runs d

see that; bu

rom the high country beyond. It looks to me as though they might have a watering place, or maybe a

under a tall spruce-tree whose branches spread out so as almost to form a tent of itself. He now loosened his straps and bits of rope from about the bundle,

t at anything greasy or salty," he explained. "We'll call this camp, and we'll stop here to-night, because I can

oved steeper than they had looked for, keeping up a pretty fast pace, until finally they got almost as high up as the trail which Alex had sighted. This latter lay at some distance to the right o

ll crawl up to the top yonder and look over. If yo

larm any near-by game. They saw him flatten out, and, having removed his hat, peer cautiously over the rim. Here he lay motionless for some time, then, little

ere pretty much out of breath, as they had hurried in the

ram. Do you want to have a look at them? Be very careful-they're up at the top of the slo

ohn's leg and another on Rob's shoulder, for fear they would make some sudden movement and frighten the game. When at length the b

some spring in the mountain, although I don't know. In fifteen or twenty minutes

ime I tell you to fire, and you, Mr. John, will take the other ram, no matter whether it's the big one or the little one. Let the ewes alone. And whatever you do, don't shoot into the flock-wait until each of you can see his animal

s of both the boys were rather trembling, and knew that sometimes when a man is in t

ckly, and then smiled

buck fever," said Alex, in his low tone. "Injuns even get excited, and I've known old hunters to get buck fever right in the middle of a hun

vancing rather steadily down the narrow path on the steep mountain face. The biggest ram was in advance, a stately and beautiful game creature, such as would have made a prize for the mo

ly admonished them to be quiet. "Wait now,

ger on his lips for silence and motioned to each boy to see that his rifle was

ong the slate rocks where perhaps some sort of saline water oozed out, and it was this that these animals had visited so often as to make a deep trail on the moun

ber ball in its sportive antics, which almost made John laugh as he watched it. Turning to look at this, the smaller ram paced off to the right, followed now by the larger ram. Both creatures now, as if

uickly; and almost as he s

hn's lot, was not struck beyond a slight singe of the bullet along the hair of its back. It sprang, and with incredible speed began to make its way up the opposite slope. The ewes also scattered and ran. Ale

ing now, although they did not know it, and jabbered excitedly as they started on down the

e. "I couldn't have done better. Mr. John, y

downhill. A fellow nearly always shoots too high

ex, "and a very common f

n. "If you can see where your bullet goes

got to take out both these heads, for they're too good to leave in

the shoulders and hams of each sheep and split the remainder of the carcass, detaching the ribs along the spine with blows of his heavy bladed knife. After a little he rolled up the meat of each sheep in its own hide, lashed it firmly with thong, and made it into two packs. The heads he next skinned

have a couple of sheep heads that many a hunter would give hundreds of dollars to k

of these rams weig

ay, might make fifty of that, I don't know. We'll have to make two trips down to the bi

f the meat packs we'll take one of the heads between us

dred pounds down here, I suppose, but there's plenty of ti

tle bivouac they had made under the spruce-trees. They were very tired but

"because you will see that we aren't over sand or g

soil until he got down to the moist and sandy laye

that a forest fire is a terrible thing, and nearly always they come from careless camp-fires. You know the earth itself burns in a forest l