They now had luncheon and then Phil began a three-hour task of preparing the slain animals for curing and mounting. “Old Baldy” himself stood forty-eight inches high; was seventy-six inches long and, it was estimated, weighed four hundred and seventy-five pounds. His heavy, semicircular horns measured forty-nine inches from tip to tip. His pelt was in such bad condition that no attempt was made to save it. The next largest specimen was a beautiful ram, his horns indicating a growth of thirteen years. This sheep was shot by Phil and it was almost black in color. It was forty-one inches across the shoulders; sixty-nine inches long and weighed about three hundred and fifteen pounds. The others were all smaller. One of the latter, Lord Pelton’s prize, had by far the best formed and most perfect horns.
By four o’clock Frank had made temporary repairs on the landing wheel and with the Englishman had cleared a stretch of summit of all fragments. Frank also made another round of the summit snapping pictures and then the souvenirs of the expedition were put aboard the Loon; the skeleton of Koos-ha-nax, as the boys firmly believed; the six heads and horns; the five pelts and the fragments of the Indian’s bow and pipe bowl.
The ascent that followed was the quickest and most successful that the Loon made on its western trip. The rock floor was smooth and amply long for the preliminary run. At six o’clock the monoplane was again at Smith’s ranch.
“And so far as I am concerned,” exclaimed Frank, “I don’t care whether we turn another trick. All I want is to see Skinner and Hosmer and show ’em these heads.”
“And Koos-ha-nax’s skull, pipe and bow,” added Lord Pelton.
“O, no!” said Phil, “these are for Captain Ludington. They’ll prove to him that the Kootenais knew what they were talking about.”
By the light of the lanterns that night Phil sweat over the specimens, in anticipation of which work the camp was liberally supplied with arsenical soap, burnt alum and saltpeter. As the preparation of the heads and skins was not completed that night it was agreed the next day that Phil should remain in camp while Frank and Lord Pelton made an attempt to join Mr. Mackworth’s party.
They made a beautiful flight along the course of tortuous Goat Creek and reached Goat Pass in less than an hour. So far there was no sign of the mountain party but—as the members of it were to turn south into the Herchmer range, at the headwaters of the creek—Frank laid a course along the ridge of these unmistakable heights. The entire country was either abrupt mountain slopes or heavy, abutting pine forests.