THE TEAK REGION. 235 



majority have perfect heads. I have also known certain 

 stags for successive years always about the same locality, 

 and which I have repeatedly stalked at intervals during 

 this time along with natives who constantly saw them, 

 so that I could not be mistaken as to the individual ; 

 and all the time they never once dropped their horns. 



One of these was a very peculiar animal, almost 

 jet black in colour, and with large horns so white as to 

 look almost like a cast pair bleached by the weather. 

 He frequented, during several years I knew him, an 

 open part of the Mona valley, a good deal resorted to by 

 wood and grass cutters. He never could be found like 

 other stags in the morning ; but seemed to lie down 

 before daylight in some strategical position whence he 

 always managed to effect an escape without being seen 

 till far out of shot. I had never even fired at him 

 though I had seen him often, wiien very early one 

 morning I was walking over the grassy plain where he 

 was often seen, and some cart-men who were loading hay 

 told me they had seen a stag lie down on the side of a 

 hillock not far off. I made a long circuit to get to the 

 other side of it, and then slowly, inch by inch and with 

 beating heart, drew myself over the brow. Nothing was 

 to be seen from there, and, with finger on the trigger of 

 my little single " Henry," I crawled down the slope. 

 Just then a stick crackled on my left, and looking round, 

 I saw the stag running in a crouching, tiger-like fashion 

 along the bottom of a water-course I had not noticed, 

 but which, doubtless, had been duly considered in the 

 selection of his position. I had only time for a snap 

 shot, which caught the top of his shoulder and heavily 

 lamed him. He could go just a little faster than myself 

 after this, and had frequently to stop. But he always 



