58 NEWFOUNDLAND CARIBOU 



least they don't lie down so much. As the two stags fed at 

 frequent intervals, they, together with the rest of the herd, 

 worked their way gradually toward the scrubby growth on 

 the windward side of the barren. Slowly I followed, keeping 

 my eyes on every one, especially the big white doe, to see 

 that none went down wind, for the does have an exasperating 

 habit of going away from the herd and suddenly appearing 

 in some unexpected place where they catch the scent of the 

 hunter. On and on we went, the nearest ones being some- 

 times within forty yards or less of me, till the herd distributed 

 itself among the stunted trees. Carefully creeping over the 

 last bit of open ground I, too, found myself in cover. 

 Once there I felt more comfortable, for I could then stand 

 erect and get the stiffness out of my joints. 



By moving very cautiously I soon got into the midst of 

 the herd. They were everywhere to windward, stags and 

 does and beautiful soft-eyed fawns. Of course, in the nature 

 of things, the biggest stag was among those farthest away ; 

 but there were several good-sized ones quite close, within 

 ten or twenty yards, and about twelve yards away was the 

 big light coloured stag with the long horns which has 

 already been mentioned. I had a splendid chance to 

 examine him as he stood with lowered head gazing intently 

 at the base of a small tree. What this particular habit 

 means nobody knows. For hours at a time a stag will stand in 

 this curious position almost without moving, sometimes with 

 the head nearly touching the ground. This is done I believe 

 only during the rutting season and then as a rule only among 

 the mature stags, particularly those that are fairly old. This 

 stag was undoubtedly a veteran, if one might judge by the 

 extreme length of the horns and the absence of points ; the 

 illustration facing this page shows their form and is a better 

 description of them than I can give in words. In colour these 



