t to the camp, the women cut it into long
strips, about a quarter of an inch thick. These strips were hung on
sticks to dry, which operation takes several days. When thoroughly
dried, the women bend it up and tie it into bundles, in which shape it
is preserved for home consumption or taken to the trading posts, to be
bartered for ammunition or other articles wanted by the Indians. Some
parts of the buffalo, not fitted for making the dried meat, were dried
by a very fierce fire until it became brittle. A buffalo hide was then
spread out, with the skin uppermost, and the dried pieces of meat
spread on it, and thrashed into small bits by sticks. The tallow of
the buffalo was cut up, melted and poured on the powdered meat, which
was then worked up until it became well mixed. Whilst still warm, it
was pressed into bags made of buffalo skin, which were then sown up.
When cold the mixture, known to the whites as _pemican_, becomes as
hard as a rock, and makes good eating. The marrow bones were boiled in
water for their oil, which, when extracted, was poured into the
bladder of the animal. One bladder will hold eleven or twelve pounds
of oil.

Buffalo are frequently killed in winter without any of the dangers
experienced in the fall hunt. The alternate thawing and freezing forms
a thick crust on the surface of the soft snow. The heavy animals break
through this thin crust, and plunge cumbrously into the deep snow,
whilst the Indian hunter glides easily on his snow shoes close to the
side of the unwieldly monster, and dispatches it at his ease.

Elk, reindeer, grizzly bears, wolves, with some other animals, are
killed with rifles, or arrows, frequently with the aid of dogs. The
dogs are of a strong, powerful breed and are trained to catch by the
ears or jaw, so that the fur is not injured. The elk and reindeer are
very difficult to approach, having a keen scent, and show fight if
close pressed. The attack on a grizzly bear is also dangerous, and the
hunter frequently has to fight desperately for his life.

Black bears and wolves are frequently caught by a peculiar trap. A
young sapling tree is bent down so that its top is but a few feet from
the earth. A rope, formed of pieces of raw hide firmly twisted
together, is fastened to the top of the tree and a strong double hook
of iron or steel is attached to the other end of the rope. One arm of
the hook is lightly caught in a log or a stake driven in the ground,
and on the other