of targeting their rifles, firing
perhaps a dozen shots apiece in all before they turned to walk back to
the camp. As they did so Rob, happening to look back of them, suddenly
halted them with a low word. "What's that?" said he.

An animal large as a two-year-old heifer and wearing short stubs of
horns was trotting toward them steadily, as though bound to come
directly up to them. So far from being alarmed by the firing, it
seemed to have been attracted by it, and really it was only curiosity
which brought it up thus to its most dangerous enemy. It had never
heard a rifle or seen a human being before in all its life.

"Caribou!" said Rob in a low tone of voice. Even as he spoke John's
rifle rang out, and the other two followed promptly. The stupid beast,
now within sixty yards of them, fell dead in less time than it would
take to tell of the incident. A moment later the boys stood at its
side, excitedly talking together.

"Go back to camp, Jesse," said Rob, at length, "and tell Moise to come
out. John and I will stay and begin to skin out the meat."

Moise, when he came out from camp, was very much pleased with the
results of this impromptu hunt. "Plenty fat meat now," said he.
"That's nice young caribou, heem." He fell rapidly to work in his
experienced fashion, and in a short time he and George had packed the
meat down to the camp and loaded it in the two boats, both of which
were now ready for the departure.

"That's the most obliging caribou I ever heard of," said Rob, "to walk
right into our camp that way. I've read about buffalo-hunters in the
old times running a buffalo almost into camp before they killed it, to
save trouble in packing the meat. But they'd have to do pretty well if
they beat this caribou business of ours."

Leo stood looking at the young hunters with considerable surprise, for
he had been very skeptical of their ability to kill any game, and
extremely distrustful of their having anything to do with grizzly
hunting.

"Plenty caribou this valley," said he; "big black-face caribou. Heem
plenty fool, too. Caribou he don't bite. But s'pose you'll see
grizzlum bear, you better look out--then maybe you get some scares.
S'pose you get some scares, you better leave grizzlum alone."

"Never mind, Leo," said Uncle Dick, laughing at him, "let's not worry
about that yet a while. First find your grizzly."

"Find plenty grizzlum to-morrow, one day, two day," said Leo. "Not far
now."

They determin