AMERICAN MOUNTAIN SHEEP. 2 97 



moderate breeze can; the reason seems to be that a moder- 

 ate breeze travelling slowly, permits the scent to become 

 diffused through the atmosphere, and the tainted air to become 

 purified before reaching the herd; while a strong wind, 

 moving with great speed, carries the scent over the same 

 space in too short a time to allow its influence to be 

 diminished." * 



This is very much our own opinion. Mr. Macrae 

 is also a very strong advocate for stalking from above, 

 and not up-hill; long experience having taught him 

 that the advantages are "on the whole greater when 

 above, than below deer." f The wild black-tailed deer 

 of America, and mountain sheep and goats of all kinds, 

 for instance, almost always post themselves high up 

 upon the mountains, at the base of some precipitous 

 slope among rocks and other cover, that makes it very 

 hard to distinguish them. From such a point they 

 take care to have a perfect view over everything that 

 passes below, while anything that approaches from 

 above is detected by the loose fragments of stone started 

 by the feet of the hunter, which come rolling down 

 the slope and so give the alarm. 



Should animals be discovered in such positions 

 therefore, it often necessitates a wide detour being 

 made to leeward, in order to be able to approach 

 with any chance of success. According to Colonel 

 Dodge the only plan likely to prove effective in 

 difficult cases, is to send another man round to wind- 

 ward, who is to approach cautiously as soon as the 

 sportsman has got into a good position ; and the 



* A Handbook of Deer- Stalking, by Alexander Macrae, late Forester 

 to Lord Henry Bentinck, 1880, pp. 28 and 29. 

 t Ibid., p. 45. 



