reliable than the Government in his forecasts of the
weather.

Hazletine examined the Winchester repeating-rifles of the boys with
great care. He pronounced them excellent weapons, as were the Smith &
Wesson revolvers with which they were furnished.

"Your outfit is all right," he said, "but it remains to be seed whether
you know how to handle 'em."

"We cannot claim to be skilful," was the modest remark of Jack, "but we
have had some experience at home, though when we hunted there it was
mostly with shotguns."

"The main thing, younker, is not to git rattled. Now, if you happen to
see old Ephraim sailing for you, all you have to do is to make your aim
sure and let him have it between the eyes, or just back of the foreleg;
or, if you don't have the chance to do that, plug him in the chest,
where there's a chance of reaching his heart."

By "old Ephraim" the hunter referred to the grizzly bear, as the boys
knew.

"I have heard that it generally takes several shots to kill a grizzly."

"That's 'cause the bullets are not put in the right place. You see, old
Ephraim don't take any trouble to give you a better show than he has to,
and you must look out fur yourself."

"There are other kinds of bears in Wyoming?"

"Rather--several of 'em. For instance, there's the cinnamon, which, in
my 'pinion, is about as bad as Ephraim. I've fit both kinds, and the one
that left that big scar down the side of my cheek and chawed a piece out
of my thigh was a cinnamon, while I never got a scratch that 'mounted to
anything from Ephraim."

"What about the black bear?"

"He's less dangerous than any of 'em. A black bear ain't much more than
a big dog. Last fall I killed one with my revolver."

"What other kinds of game are we likely to meet?"

"Wal, it would be hard to name 'em all. There's the deer and antelope,
of course, which you find in all parts of the West. Then there's the
mountain lion, that is fond of living on beef."

"I never saw one of the creatures."

"Have you ever seen the Eastern panther?" asked Garrison.

"No; though they used to be plentiful in the northern part of the State
of New York."

"Well, the mountain lion is the same animal. Our climate and conditions
have made some changes in his appearance and habits, but there is no
doubt the two are identical."

"There's one kind of game that I wish we could meet," resumed Hazletine,
"but they've got so scarce that I haven't seen one fur three years.
Tha