Hunting -- West (U.S.); Outdoor life; West (U.S.) -- Description and travel
We entered a large living room, hung with tapestries and hunting trophies
where a perfectly appointed table was set opposite a huge stone
fireplace, blazing with logs. Then came a delicious course dinner with
rare wines, and served by a French chef. The surprise and delight of it
in that wilderness--but the crowning delight was the guestroom. As we
entered, it was a wealth of colour in Japanese effect, soft glowing
lanterns, polished floors, fur rugs, silk-furnished beds and a crystal
mantelpiece (brought from Japan) which reflected the fire-light in a
hundred tints. Beyond, through an open door, could be seen the tiled
bath-room. It was a room that would be charming anywhere, but in that
region a veritable fairy's chamber. Truly it is a canny Host who can thus
blend harmoniously the human luxuries of the East and the natural glories
of the West.
In our rides around the Palette I saw Wahb's tracks once again. The Host
had taken us to a far away part of his possessions. Three beautiful wolf
hounds frisked along beside us, when all at once they became much excited
about something they smelt in a little scrub-pine clump on the right. We
looked about for some track or sign that would explain their behaviour. I
spied a huge bear track.
"Hah!" I thought, "Wahb at last," and my heart went pit-a-pat as I
pointed it out to Nimrod. He recognised it but remained far too calm
for my fancy. I pointed into the bushes with signs of "Hurrah, it's
Wahb." I received in reply a shake of the head and a pitying smile. How
was I to know that the dogs were saying as plainly as dogs need to "A
bobcat treed"?
So I followed meekly and soon saw the bobcat's eyes glaring at us from
the topmost branches. The Host took a shot at it with the camera which
the lynx did not seem to mind, and calling off the disappointed dogs we
went on our way. The Host allows no shooting within a radius of twelve
miles of the Palette. Any living thing can find protection there and the
result is that any time you choose to ride forth you can see perfectly
wild game in their homeland.
* * * * *
It was not till the next year that I really saw Wahb. It was at his
summer haunt, the Fountain Hotel in the Yellowstone National Park. If
you were to ask Nimrod to describe the Fountain geyser or Hell Hole,
or any of the other tourist sights thereabouts, I am sure he would
shake his head and tell you there was nothing but bears around the
hotel. For this was the occasion when Nimrod spent the entire day in
the garbage heap watching the bears, while I did the conventional
thing and saw the sights.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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