one now in the face of this insolent
foe. His matted front came against the wire with a force so cunningly
moderated that he was not thrown back by the recoil. And the keen
points of his horns went through the meshes with a vehemence which
might indeed have done its work effectively had they come in contact
with the adversary. As it was, however, they but prodded empty air.

The moose, meanwhile, had been in doubt whether to attack with his
antlers, as was his manner when encountering foes of his own kind, or
with his knife-edged fore-hoofs, which were the weapons he used
against bears, wolves, or other alien adversaries. Finally he seemed
to make up his mind that Last Bull, having horns and a most
redoubtable stature, must be some kind of moose. In that case, of
course, it became a question of antlers. Moreover, in his meetings
with rival bulls it had never been his wont to depend upon a blind,
irresistible charge,--thereby leaving it open to an alert opponent to
slip aside and rip him along the flank,--but rather to fence warily
for an advantage in the locking of antlers, and then bear down his foe
by the fury and speed of his pushing. It so happened, therefore, that
he, too, came not too violently against the barrier. Loudly his vast
spread of antlers clashed upon the steel meshes; and one short prong,
jutting low over his brow, pierced through and furrowed deeply the
matted forehead of the buffalo.

As the blood streamed down over his nostrils, obscuring one eye, Last
Bull quite lost his head with rage. Drawing off, he hurled himself
blindly upon the barrier--only to be hurled back again with a vigor
that brought him to his knees. But at the same time the moose, on the
other side of the fence, got a huge surprise. Having his antlers
against the barrier when Last Bull charged, he was forced back
irresistibly upon his haunches, with a rudeness quite unlike anything
that he had ever before experienced. His massive neck felt as if a
pine tree had fallen upon it, and he came back to the charge quite
beside himself with bewilderment and rage.

[Illustration: "Only to be hurled back again with a vigor that brought
him to his knees."]

By this time, however, the keepers and Park attendants were arriving
on the scene, armed with pitchforks and other unpleasant executors of
authority. Snorting, and bellowing, and grunting, the monstrous
duellists were forced apart; and Last Bull, who had been taught
something of man's do