TRACKING DEER BY SLOT. 115 



night the stag will go out to feed, and may 

 chance not to return. He now hopes that 

 a slight shower may fall and cease before 

 one o'clock in the morning, to moisten the 

 surface, and so give good impressions. He 

 dreads most a heavy downpour after dawn, 

 which may wash out almost every trace. A 

 slight shower is so useful that he can har- 

 hour at once ; if it is very dry weather it 

 may take half an hour to examine a single 

 field. 



The stag goes to his harbour directly 

 it is light, and soon after dawn the har- 

 bourer starts for his second and final round. 

 If the cover is small he does not approach it 

 till he thinks the stag has had time to lie down 

 and settle himself in his ' bed.' because if the 

 stag should be still standing up and 'wind' 

 him, i.e. catch scent of him, he would very 

 likely move on to another copse ; but when 

 once settled down the stag would not shift 

 his quarters for so little disturbance as that. 

 With a large wood 110 such care is necessary, 



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