INVERNESS-SHIRE. 95 



rises to 3,200 feet, but the whole ground is hilly, 

 rocky, entirely devoid of all timber, and of a 

 peculiarly barren, sterile appearance. Owing to the 

 amount of rocky ground, the stalker here will do 

 best to clothe himself in mixtures of light blue and 

 grey. Deer drives are never resorted to, as four 

 rifles can go out daily ; the stags are weighed with 

 heart and liver, and scale about 12 stone 4 lbs. ; 

 seventy five is the usual total kill, and although it 

 will be noticed that the weights are very small, as 

 compared with those of the mainland, the venison 

 is excellent ; indeed the Harris stags appear to be 

 of an altogether smaller breed than the Ross-shire 

 deer, and even if some of them were transplanted 

 to English parks, and given the full benefit of fine 

 pasture and good climate, it is very doubtful if 

 they would increase to the size of the stags of the 

 mainland. They are very thickly coated with hair, 

 and often are lightish in colour, while naturally their 

 horns are in proportion to their bodies ; but a Harris 

 royal is usually as pretty a small but strong wild 



