- We cannot see more - the
mist boils from the ruin of shattered waters and conceals the
bottom of the fall. The roar vibrates like thunder in the rocky
mountain, and forces the grandeur of the scene through every
nerve.
No animal or man, once in those mysterious pools, could ever
escape without assistance. Thus in years post, when elk were not
followed up in this locality, the poor beast, being hard pressed
by the hounds, might have come to bay in one of these fatal
basins, in which case, both he and every bound who entered the
trap found sure destruction.
The hard work and the danger to both man and bound in this
country may be easily imagined when it is explained that the
nature of the elk prompts him to seek for water as his place of
refuge when hunted; thus he makes off down the mountain for the
river, in which he stands at bay. Now the mountain itself is
steep enough, but within a short distance of the bottom the river
is in many places guarded by precipices of several hundred feet
in depth. A few difficult passes alone give access to the
torrent, but the descent requires great caution.
Altogether, this forms the wildest and most arduous country that
can be imagined for hunting, but it abounds with elk.
The morning was barely gray when I woke up the servants and
ordered coffee, and made the usual preparations for a start. At
last, thank goodness! the boots are laced! This is the
troublesome part of dressing before broad daylight, and
nevertheless laced ankle-boots must be worn as a protection
against sprains and bruises in such a country. Never mind the
trouble of lacing them; they, are on now, and there is a good
day's work in store for them.
It was the 30th May, 1853, a lovely hunting morning and a fine
dew on the patinas; rather too windy, but that could not be
helped.
Quiet now! - down, Bluebeard! - back, will you, Lucifer! Here's a
smash! there goes the jungle kennel! the pack squeezing out of it
in every direction as they hear the preparations for departure.
Now we are all right; ten couple out, and all good ones. Come
along, yo-o-i, along here! and a note on the horn brings the pack
close together as we enter the forest on the very summit of the
ridge. Thus the start was completed just as the first tinge of
gold spread along the eastern horizon, about ten minutes before
sunrise.
The jungles were tolerably good, but there were not as many elk
tracks as I had expected; probably the high wind on the ridge had
driven them lower down for shelter; accordingly I struck an
oblique direction downward, and I was not long before I
discovered a fresh track; fresh enough, certainly, as the thick
moss which covered the ground showed a distinct path where the
animal had been recently feeding.
