A STAG FOR A GUN". 135 



lived in a village about three miles off; that the stag 

 had been taken when young, and became completely 

 domesticated, and went regularly to feed with the sheep. 

 As Greneral Sir Hildebrand Oakes had a menagerie of 

 birds and beasts near La Valette, I determined to call 

 on the priest, and endeavour to purchase the stag of 

 him, hoping I should be able to get him conveyed to 

 ]Malta by some man-of-war, as a present to Sir Hildebrand. 

 The next day I made him a visit, and on asking him if 

 he would sell the stag, he replied, " Non, Signor, per 

 dinero non; but as I feel a great desire to have an 

 English double-barrelled gun, I will make the exchange, 

 the stag for a gun." Luckily I had with me an old 

 double-barrelled gun which had seen much service, but 

 with gold pans and touchholes and some ornaments of the 

 same kind on the breach, which I felt sure would be a 

 great attraction to the padre; and on my next visit I 

 showed him the gun, and had nearly completed the 

 bargain when I expressed a wish to have another view 

 of the stag, and we walked to where the flock was feed- 

 ing. Amongst the sheep I saw a fine ram with most 

 singularly-shaped horns tmsted round two or three 

 times; it struck me this would be a valuable addition to 

 the Grovernor's menagerie : I therefore told the priest 

 that I must have the ram as well as the stag in exchange 

 for my gun. This proposal at first startled liim, and he 

 made some difficulty at parting ^\"lth the ram. But as 

 I continued obstinate in this respect, and he made a 

 second inspection of the gun — I always suspected that 

 the gold touchholes and pans decided the affair in my 

 favour — I got both the animals, which arrived safe 

 at Cagliari. I afterwards sent them to Malta by the 

 late Captain Digby, who kindly took them on board his 



