222 DEER-STALKING. 



and above the rest, evidently being on the look-out. They 

 seemed to have no suspicion of an enemy, and when they 

 stopped to gaze about them their heads were turned more 

 towards the plain around than to the course of the burn. 

 The sentry, too, was seemingly occupied with looking out in 

 every direction excepting where I was. They were not more 

 than two hundred yards off, and I judged that by advancing 

 quickly the moment that they turned the next corner, I 

 should be able to get unperceived within forty or fifty yards. 

 The single hind had disappeared, too, having gone over a 

 small rise. I put on a new copper cap, and felt sure of an 

 easy shot ; the dog, though he did not see the deer, perfectly 

 understood what was going on, and seemed afraid to breathe 

 lest he should be heard. Amongst the herd were two fine 

 barren hinds, both in capital condition. I did not care 

 which of the two I might kill, but determined to have one, 

 and was already beginning to reckon on Donald's delight at 

 my luck in getting a fine hind as well as the stag I had 

 killed yesterday. All the hinds had now gone out of sight, 

 and I moved on. At that very moment the sentry hind, a 

 long-legged, ragged, donkey-like beast, came back to the 

 mound where she had been before, and her sharp eyes 

 instantly detected me. Never did unlucky wight, caught in 

 the very act of doing what he least wished should be known, 

 feel, or, I dare say, look so taken aback as I was. I stood 

 motionless for a moment, hoping that even HER eyesight 

 might be deceived by my grey dress, but it was too late; 

 giving a snort of alarm she was instantly out of sight. I ran 

 forwards, trusting to be in time for a running shot at some 

 straggler, and came in view of the whole troop galloping 

 away, a tolerably long shot off, but still within range, and 

 affording a fair broadside mark as they went along in single 

 file to gain the more level ground. I of course pulled up, 

 and took a deliberate aim at one of the fat hinds. She 

 afforded me a fair enough chance, but I saw, the moment I 

 pulled the trigger, that I had missed her. The ball struck 

 and splintered a rock, and must have passed within a few 

 inches of the top of her shoulder. I saw my error, which 

 was that, miscalculating the distance, I had fired a little too 

 high. However, it was too late to remedy it ; so I stood 

 quietly watching with a kind of vague hope that my ball 

 might have passed through her shoulder, though in reality I 

 was sure this was not the case. They never stopped till they 



