In gazing out, my eye was attracted by some objects. They were animals,
but of what species I could not tell. There are times upon the prairies
when form and size present the most illusory aspects: a wolf seems as
large as a horse; and a raven sitting upon a swell of the plain, has
been mistaken for a buffalo. A peculiar state of the atmosphere is the
magnifying cause, and it is only the experienced eye of the trapper that
can reduce the magnified proportions and distorted form to their proper
size and shape.
The objects I had noticed were full two miles off; they were in the
direction of the lake, and of course on the other side of the barranca.
There were several forms--five I counted--moving phantom-like against
the rim of the horizon.
Something drew my attention from them for a short while--a period of
perhaps three or four minutes' duration.
When I looked out again they were no longer to be seen; but by the edge
of the pond, at less than five hundred yards' distance, five beautiful
creatures were standing, which I knew to be antelopes. They were so
close to the pond, that their graceful forms were shadowed in the water,
and their erect attitudes told that they had just halted after a run.
Their number corresponded with the objects I had seen but the moment
before far out upon the prairie. I was convinced they were the same.
The distance was nothing: these creatures travel with the speed of a
swallow.
The sight of the prong-horns stimulated my hunger. My first thought was
how to get near them. Curiosity had brought them to the pond; they had
espied my horse and myself afar off; and had galloped up to reconnoitre
us. But they still appeared shy and timid, and were evidently not
inclined to approach nearer.
The barranca lay between them and me, but I saw that if I could entice
them to its brink, they would be within range of my rifle.
Once more staking down my horse, I tried every plan I could think of. I
laid myself along the grass, upon my back, and kicked my heels in the
air, but to no purpose: the game would not move from the water's edge.
Remembering that my serape was of very brilliant colours, I bethought me
of another plan which, when adroitly practised, rarely fails of success.
Taking the blanket, I lashed one edge to the ramrod of my rifle, having
first passed the latter through the upper swivel of the piece. With the
thumb of my left hand I was thus enabled to hold the rammer steady and
transverse to the barrel. I now dropped upon my knees--holding the gun
shoulder-high--and the gay-coloured serape, spread out almost to its
full extent, hung to the ground, and formed a complete cover for my
person.
Before making these arrangements, I had crept to the very edge of the
barranca--in order to be as near as possible should the antelopes
approach upon the opposite side.
Of course every manoeuvre was executed with all the silence and caution
I could observe. I was in no reckless humour to frighten off the game.
Hunger was my monitor. I knew that not my breakfast alone, but my life,
might be depending on the successful issue of the experiment.
It was not long before I had the gratification of perceiving that my
decoy was likely to prove attractive. The prong-horned antelope, like
most animals of its kind, has one strongly developed propensity--that of
_curiosity_. Although to a known enemy it is the most timid of
creatures, yet in the presence of an object that is new to it, it
appears to throw aside its timidity, or rather its curiosity overcomes
its sense of fear; and, impelled by the former, it will approach very
near to any strange form, and regard it with an air of bewilderment.
The prairie-wolf--a creature that surpasses even the fox in cunning--
well knows this weakness of the antelope, and often takes advantage of
it. The wolf is less fleet than the antelope, and his pursuit of it in
a direct manner would be vain; but with the astute creature, stratagem
makes up for the absence of speed. Should a "band" of antelopes chance
to be passing, the prairie-wolf lays himself flat upon the grass, clews
his body into a round ball, and thus rolls himself over the ground, or
goes through a series of contortions, all the while approaching nearer
to his victims, until he has them within springing distance! Usually he
is assisted in these manoeuvres by several companions--for the
prairie-wolf is social, and hunts in packs.
The square of bright colours soon produced its effect. The five
prong-horns came trotting around the edge of the lake, halted, gazed
upon it a moment, and then dashed off again to a greater distance.
Soon, however, they turned and came running back--this time apparently
with greater confidence, and a stronger feeling of curiosity. I could
hear them uttering their quick "snorts" as they tossed up their tiny
muzzles and snuffed the air. Fortunately, the wind was in my favour,
blowing directly from the game, and towards me; otherwise, they would
have "winded" me, and discovered the cheat--for they both know and fear
the scent of the human hunter.
The band consisted of a young buck and four females--his wives; the
nucleus, no doubt, of a much larger establishment in prospect--for the
antelope is polygamous, and some of the older males have an extensive
following. I knew the buck by his greater size and forking horns, which
the does want. He appeared to direct the actions of the others, as they
all stood in a line behind him, following and imitating his motions.
At the second approach, they came within a hundred yards of me. My
rifle was equal to this range, and I prepared to fire. The leader was
nearest, and him I selected as the victim.
Taking sight I pulled trigger.
As soon as the smoke cleared off, I had the satisfaction of seeing the
buck down upon the prairie, in the act of giving his last kick. To my
surprise, none of the others had been frightened off by the report, but
stood gazing at their fallen leader, apparently bewildered!
I bethought me of reloading; but I had incautiously risen to my feet,
and so revealed my form to the eyes of the antelopes. This produced an
effect which neither the crack of the rifle nor the fall of their
comrade had done; and the now terrified animals wheeled about and sped
away like the wind. In less than two minutes, they were beyond the
reach of vision.
The next question that arose was, how I was to get across the barranca.
The tempting morsel lay upon the other side, and I therefore set about
examining the chasm in order to find a practicable crossing.
This I fortunately discovered. On both sides, the cliff was somewhat
broken down, and might be scaled, though not without considerable
difficulty.
After once more looking to the security of my horse's trail-rope, I
placed my rifle where I had slept, and set out to cross the barranca,
taking only my knife. I could have no use for the gun, and it would
hinder me in scaling the cliffs.
I succeeded in reaching to the bottom of the ravine, and commenced
ascending on the opposite side where it was steeper; but I was assisted
by the branches of the trailing cedar that grew among the rocks. I
noticed, and with some surprise, that the path must have been used
before, either by men or animals. The soil that laid upon the ledges
was "paddled" as by feet, and the rock in some places scratched and
discoloured.
These indications only caused me a momentary reflection. I was too
hungry to dwell upon any thought but that of eating.
At length I reached the scarp of the cliff, and having climbed out upon
the prairie, soon stood over the carcass of the prong-horn. My knife
was out in a trice, and next moment I was playing the part of the
butcher.
You will no doubt fancy that the next thing I did was to go in search of
something to make a fire for the purpose of cooking my breakfast. I did
nothing of the sort ate my breakfast without cooking. _I ate it raw_;
and you been in my situation, delicate as you are, you would have done
the same.
It is true that, after I had satisfied the first cravings of appetite
with the tongue of the antelope, and a few morsels of steak, I became
more fastidious and thought a little roasting might improve the venison.
For this purpose, I was about to return to the barranca, in order to
gather some sticks of cedar-wood, when my eyes fell upon an object that
drove all thoughts of cookery out of my head, and sent a thrill of
terror to my heart.