40 RED DEER. 



no sign of pursuit, they began to graze, 

 and so moved slowly on over the hill. 



By the edge of the coombe I found their 

 path ; it was well trodden, and evidently 

 much used ; the heather was all bent down 

 one way, leaning over downhill, but the 

 dry stems and the hard ground had taken 

 no impression or slot. In the dry heather 

 the heat of the sun seemed greater than 

 where the surface had been burnt, and 

 walking was slow and difficult. But in a 

 short time another coombe opened the 

 upper shallow end of a valley and on the 

 opposite side I saw a stag. He was lying 

 down, but immediately got up, and looked 

 straight across at me. His horns, in velvet, 

 were not so high as his ears, but his coat 

 was in perfect condition, a beautiful red gold 

 colour, and he was a runnable deer, that 

 is, of age and size sufficient for the chase. 

 After a glance at me he turned, showing 



