. Neither did the bull offer a fair
mark. He stood face to face with the hunter, and Basil fancied that a
shot on the frontal bone might not kill him. He knew it would not kill a
buffalo. There was only one other part at which he could aim--the
fore-shoulder; and after waiting some moments for the animal to give him
a fairer chance he took aim at this and fired. He heard a loud cracking
of hoofs, as the cow and calves shambled off over the plain, but he saw
that the bull was not with them. He was down behind the willows. No
doubt he was dead.

CHAPTER XXV.

ENCOUNTER WITH A MOOSE.

What was a rare thing for Basil to do, he rushed forward without
reloading his gun. A few springs brought him into the open ground, and
in presence of the game. To his astonishment, the bull was not dead, nor
down neither, but only upon his knees--of course wounded. Basil saw the
"crease" of the bullet along the neck of the animal as he drew near. It
was only by a quick glance that he saw this, for as soon as the bull saw
_him_ he rose to his full height--his eyes flashing like a tiger's--and
settling his antlers in a forward position, sprang upon the hunter!
Basil leaped aside to avoid the encounter; and in the first rush was
successful, but the animal turned suddenly, and, coming up a second
time, raised his fore-feet high in the air, and struck forward with his
long-pointed hoofs.

Basil attempted to defend himself with his rifle, but the piece was
struck out of his hand in an instant. Once more avoiding the forward
rush of the infuriated beast, the young hunter looked around for some
object to save him. A tree fell under his eye, and he ran towards it
with all his speed. The moose followed close upon his heels, and he had
just time to reach the tree and get around its trunk, when the animal
brushed past, tearing the bark with his sharp antlers. Basil now slipped
round the trunk, and when the moose again turned himself the two were on
opposite sides of the tree! The beast, however, rushed up, and struck
the tree furiously first with his brow antlers, and then with his hoofs,
uttering loud snorts, and at intervals a shrill whistling sound that was
terrible to hear.

The disappointment which the enraged animal felt, at seeing his enemy
thus escape him, seemed to have added to his rage; and he now vented his
spite upon the tree, until the trunk, to the height of six feet, was
completely stripped of its bark. While this was going