Morning showed us that we had camped in a small glen, which, being watered by numerous springs, displayed a rich vegetation for its elevated situation. The grass was fresh, and mingled with many juicy plants, which our cattle seemed to be very fond of. The stream on which we had camped had a good deal of bush on its banks, out of which grew a few stunted trees, which by their growth, and the moss covering their bark, clearly showed that they did not feel at home in this region. We were very pleased to have reached this oasis, and resolved to let our cattle rest here for at least a week, not only to enable them to regain their strength, but also to give vegetation more time to sprout.
We made many hunting excursions, but always on foot, as we wished to grant our cattle perfect rest, and we could get through the mountains better in this way. We did not find the common deer here, but the elk, whose dry flesh soon became repulsive to us. Now and then we killed an antelope, and Tiger brought in one evening a mountain sheep, an animal exactly like the ibex, which lives in large flocks in these mountains. Its meat is agreeable and tender, and its skin produces first-rate leather for clothes.
Our stock of game was again reduced to the dry flesh of an elk, when at daybreak I cooked a bit of it for breakfast, and, after eating it, seized my weapons and left the camp with Trusty to go in search of better game. I followed the stream some distance, and soon reached the bare slopes which ran down to the Arkansas: here I turned to the stream which ran through the valley about six miles under me, and its banks were covered with green meadows and numerous bushes. Down to it ran bare, smooth strata of rock, between which countless gorges opened on to the stream, which had been hollowed out by the mountain torrents in their furious course. Between them lay, on the steep slopes, patches of large and small rocks, often piled up on each other as if human hands had arranged them. Little vegetation was to be seen here. A few bushes rose from among the stones, while here and there the broken, withered stems of torch weeds, which plant seemed the most common here, stood in groups. Not a tree or bush offered a relief or variety to the eye gazing over this solitude: right and left, as well as across to the mountains on the other side, so far as I could distinguish objects, nature seemed to be utterly dead. I looked again at the narrow, green strip which ran like a long snake along the glistening stream, and tried to discover the game grazing on it through my glass.
I noticed several elks, as well as a single buffalo, and had walked about half an hour along the rocky strata, when I reached a group of stones which attracted my attention by their remarkable and picturesque arrangement. The lower layer consisted of three enormous rock-plates, at least five feet thick, on which again smaller ones rested, and several stones rose in this way, so that the edifice resembled from a distance a pyramid, which could be seen through at several spots. I had walked to the base of this mass of stone, and was examining its strange form, when, on looking back to the river, I noticed three dark forms, which were moving sideways toward me up the steep, and were scarce half a mile from me. At the first glance I recognised in them three grizzly bears, rapidly advancing at a sling-trot behind one another. I knew the danger of meeting these savage brutes, and quickly measured the distance back to camp. But I was on foot, and felt as if I had lead boots on which bound me to the spot. It was hopeless to think of escaping; the animals were following a course as if they wished to pass above the rocks near which I was standing, when they must cross the recent track of myself and Trusty, which they would indubitably follow at once.
It was pairing time, at which season all beasts of prey are more savage and active, and hunt more from the pleasure of killing than to pacify their hunger. The grizzly is so fast that it can catch up a buffalo or a horse going at full speed, and its gigantic strength renders it more enduring than any other animal. Only one chance of escape is left the man it pursues, and that is, a tree, for this bear cannot climb. But then there was not a tree anywhere around, and besides I could not take Trusty up one with me, and he must be saved. I had no time for reflection, as the peril rapidly approached. I laid my rifle on the first layer of rock, seized Trusty round the body, hoisted him on my shoulders, and helped him on the rock, up which he scrambled: with one bound I was by his side, then aided him up the second and third layers, and laid myself close to him on the uppermost blocks, where I placed my weapons and ammunition ready to hand.
If the bears passed under my fortalice I would let them go in peace, for in that case it was probable they would not find my track; but if they passed above it, I must throw away no opportunity to render them harmless as soon as possible. I peeped over the rock with my rifle, when the three monsters were scarce fifty yards from me, proceeding to cross my trail above me. An old she-bear slouched carelessly along in front. Close behind her followed a gigantic, very old he-bear, and a short distance in the rear came a rather smaller male. The old one drew up to the she-bear and laid his right paw on her leg, but she was greatly offended by this caress, and dealt my lord such blows with her enormous paws that the hair flew out of him. He sprang back; she sat up, showing her frightful teeth, and with her side turned to me, I pressed my barrel firmly against the rock, and pointed it at the heart of the she-bear. I fired; she crossed her paws over her face, and sank lifeless in a second. The old bear ran up to her and laid his paws over her, but his rival came up, and a fearful struggle began between the two monsters, in which they rolled over and over, and tore out each other's greyish brown wool in great masses. The old bear had the best of it, however, and sat up, uttering frightful growls at the smaller bear. By this moment I had reloaded and sent a bullet into the brute near the heart. With one bound it leapt on its foe, which tried to escape it, but the old bear held it tight in its fore-claws, and dug its monstrous teeth into the other's back. The other bear defended itself desperately, and soon found that the old brute's strength was giving way: it sprang on it and buried its tusks in its chest, and standing over it tore it up with its two hind-paws.
I was certain of the victory, and was so careless as not to reload my rifle, but fired my second barrel at the younger bear without concealing myself properly behind the rock. I hit it well, but it scarce felt my bullet ere it turned its savage head toward me, and galloped toward the rock with an awful roar. In an instant it reached the base of my fortress, and sprang with its fore-legs on the first layer, while it opened, its blood-stained throat, and, with smoking breath, uttered the most fearful sounds. At the moment when it raised itself on the rock I held my revolver as near as I could, and fired between its small glowing eyes: it fell back, but at once got up again, and tried still more furiously to scale the rock, by springing with all four feet at once upon the first stage, and raised its blood-dripping face just under me. I had pulled out my second revolver, and held it cocked in my left hand. I pointed both barrels at the monster's head and fired them together: it turned over, and rolled motionless on to the ground. I looked at the two others which still lay quiet side by side, and could scarce believe my eyes as they gazed down on the victory which I had gained over these three terrors of the desert. I quickly reloaded, and looked around carefully from my fort, especially in the direction from whence the brutes had come, for other male bears might easily follow their track. I could see nothing to alarm me, and now sprang down from the rock with Trusty, went cautiously up to the bears, and found them all lifeless. They were three monstrous brutes: the old bear must have weighed at least fifteen hundred pounds, the she-bear one thousand, and the smaller bear eight hundred.
These beasts are often found on the Rocky Mountains, where they are very numerous, as the hunters do not care to pursue them. Everybody is glad to get out of their way, and only uses weapons against them when he is attacked, or can fire at them from a place of safety, such as a boat on a river, when the bears are on land, or from a stout tree. The Indians also only fight them in self-defence, and hence their claws are considered the greatest mark of honour with which they can adorn themselves. The value of a grizzly stands in no proportion to the danger the hunter incurs in pursuing it, for its hide is too heavy, and its hair not so fine as that of the black bear: it never becomes so fat as the latter, and its flesh is not so delicate. Hence people are glad to avoid it, and the hunter willingly surrenders his booty to it, when on following the bloody track of a head of game he runs a risk of being caught up by the grizzly. This animal does not know what fear is, and once irritated it will fight and hit as long as it is able. I know instances in which a grizzly had some thirty bullets in its body ere it was killed; but if hit at the right spot, it falls as easily as any other animal. The she-bear gives birth, from November to January, to two or four cubs, which soon follow it on its forays, and are trained to hunt, which speedily develops the savage, cruel qualities of the young monsters. It hunts both in the mountains and on the prairies: in the former it lays in wait for the game, and darts down from the rocks on its unhappy victim, while on the latter it will chase its terrified quarry for miles, and mercilessly rend it when captured; for instance, it seizes buffaloes, horses, wild cattle, &c., at full gallop by the hocks, tears out the sinews, and in a second renders them incapable of flying farther. When caught quite young and trained, these animals become very tame, but they must never be trusted, as any negligence may cost one's life, and I knew several instances on the frontier of men being torn by such tamed bears, or at least losing an arm or a leg.
I had had enough sport for to-day, and fled from the battle-field, as I was fearful of the advance of other foes. I went straight to camp, and was saluted by a hurrah! as my early return indicated a successful hunt. I had the two mules got ready, and invited the Indians and John to go with me. They all wanted to know what I had killed, but I merely told them that I had killed a heap of game, as they would soon see. We made a hurried dinner, and then started with the mules. We soon reached the slope, and rode quickly down to the river, during which I constantly saw my rock fort, but it was too far to notice my quarry. My comrades believed that the game lay on the river, and kept their eyes turned towards the latter, while I led them a little to the west of my rock, to keep them from seeing the bears as long as I could. When we were in a right line with them, I turned aside, and we suddenly caught sight of them. The amazement and surprise of the Indians were very great, and were expressed by the most extraordinary outbreaks. They danced as if stung by a tarantula, swinging their rifles over their heads, round the dead bears, and imitated their roar in a remarkable manner. At one moment they crept close to the ground up to the animals, then ran past them with fierce yells, or leapt over them, swinging their guns with wild shouts of delight. After they had finished this dance of triumph, they sat down on the old bear, sharpened their knives on small stones they took out of their medicine-bag, and wished to cut off its claws. I told them, however, that I wished to keep this skin with the claws on, but the two others were at their disposal; with which they were perfectly satisfied. We skinned the largest bear, and cut out the best meat and the fat, which we intended to take with us. We took the paws and fat of the other two, after the Indians had appropriated the claws. I pulled all the tusks out of the three heads, and we now packed the mules to convey our booty to camp. As we intended to remain a few days here, I asked the Indians if they would dress the large skin for me, to which they readily assented; for this purpose they split the head with an axe, and took out the brains.
We rejoined our comrades before sunset, who were also very pleased at my success. We at once took some of the bears'-grease we had brought, and fastened it with strips of hide round the hoofs of our cattle, as this fat refreshes the horn, and deprives it of the brittleness which is the principal cause of its breaking when marching over stony ground. My bearskin was staked out on the grass, and we all set to work with our knives scraping off the flesh and fat, after which the brains were rubbed in and the skin rolled up. We then laid heavy stones on it and hurried to supper, which we greatly enjoyed after our powerful exercise during the day.