130 A HUNDKED YEARS 



would have got a favourable berth, say fifty yards from 

 him, and would have waited till he woke and stood up. 

 We despised such manoeuvres on this our first stalk, and 

 the consequence was that he did not rise up, but flew 

 into the air and away over a flat piece of ground faster 

 than any deerhound. I could shoot decently, and so 

 banged off my slug barrel, while Suter fired the Claiseach, 

 but neither of us touched him. This seemed to paralyse 

 me till Suter cried out: * The other barrel.' I had quite 

 forgotten my bullet till the monster was nearly one 

 hundred yards off. Then I fired, and he rolled over and 

 over like a rabbit, the bullet having broken his neck. 

 We were soon beside him, and while I was reloading, 

 Suter, who was over six feet high and broad in proportion 

 rushed at the stag and seized him by the horns. He 

 merely bowed his head, threw it up again, and sent 

 Suter yards away like a pair of old boots. It ended 

 with my having to kill the deer outright by a bullet in the 

 heart, and then we two danced Gillecallum and hur- 

 rahed like two madmen, for though I had seen many deer 

 killed by Hector Cameron, they were all like calves in 

 comparison to our monster. 



** Nothing would serve me but cutting off his head 

 and walking home direct with it about four miles, and 

 sending a horse for the body. So, soon after twelve, 

 there was I marching up the avenue to Tigh Dige under 

 a royal stag's head, and Suter with the pieces of ordnance 

 behind me. The story having got about, there were father 

 and mother on the stone stair head outside in little 

 less glee than I was, though a wee thing less tired. The 

 head was handed over to the Jack-of-all-trades, William 



