174 



.) at Natural 



twenty-four pounds ; and the whole of this 

 immense mass of true bone is produced in 

 about ten weeks. During its growth the 

 branches of the external carotid arteries, 

 which perform the office of secreting this 

 new bone, are considerably enlarged, for 

 the purpose of conveying so large a supply 

 of blood as is necessary for this rapid forma- 

 tion. These vessels extend over the whole 

 surface of the horn as it grows, and the horn 

 itself is at first soft and extremely vascular, 

 so that a slight injury, and even merely 

 pricking it, produces a flow of blood from 

 the wound. It is also protected at this time 

 with a soft, short, hairy or downy coat, which 

 is termed the velvet ; and hence the horns 

 are said to be in ' the velvet ' during their 

 growth." 



The Stag is supposed to have been origin- 

 ally introduced into our own island from 

 France, where it is very common : but it 

 has been in a great degree expelled from 

 most parts of this kingdom to make way for 

 the common, or Fallow Deer, the venison of 

 which is far superior to that of the Red 

 Deer, and the animal itself of a more 

 manageable and placid disposition. The 

 Stag has a fine eye, an acute smell, and a 

 good ear. When listening, he raises his 

 head and erects his ears. When going into 

 a coppice or other half-covered place, he 

 stops to look round him on all sides, and 

 scents the wind, to discover if any object be 

 near that might disturb him. Though a 

 simple, he is a curious and crafty animal. 

 When hissed or called to from a distance, 

 he stops short, and looks steadfastly, and, 

 with a kind of admiration, at horses or men; 

 and if the latter have neither arms- nor dogs, 

 he moves on without betraying any symp- 

 toms of alarm. He eats slowly ; and after 

 his stomach is full, he lies down and rumi- 

 nates at leisure. 



In Dr. A. T. Thomson's notes to an edition 

 of" THE SEASONS," by his celebrated name- 

 sake, we find appended to line 454, (Au- 

 tumn,") 



" The big round tears run down his dappled 

 face ; " 



the following very apposite remarks : 

 "This supposed peculiarity of the Stag to 

 shed tears is noticed by several poets, but by 

 none so strikingly as by Shakspere* and 

 our author : but, indeed, it is not wonderful 

 that it was the popular belief before it was 

 noticed by poets, for the eyes of the Stag, 

 and nearly all the deer tribe, display a pecu- 

 liarly weeping aspect. This is more obvi- 

 ously displayed in the male than in the 

 female. It depends on a remarkable glan- 

 dular sinus, crumcn, or tear-pit, placed at 

 the inner angle of each eye, close to the nose 

 without having any communication with it, 

 or with what are termed the lachrymal 



In piteous chase ; and thus the hairv fool, 

 Much ma- keel of the melancholy Jaques, 

 Ptood on the extremes! verge of the swift brook 

 Augmenting il with tears." 



At You Like It, act ii. sc. 1. 



! passages. It is composed of a fold of the 

 I skin, and is capable of being opened and 

 shut at the pleasure of the animal. It is 

 furnished at the bottom with a gland, which 

 secretes an oily, viscous substance, of the 

 colour and consistence of the wax of the 

 ears, and which hardens and becomes black 

 when exposed to the air. The precise func- 

 tion of this organ is unknown, although 

 many conjectures have been offered in ex- 

 planation of it : and there can be no doubt 

 that it serves some important purpose in the 

 economy of the animal. The moistened 

 moving edges of the sinus have been mis- 

 taken by general observers and the poets, 

 for precious tears let fall over that part of 

 the eyelids ; and, in our love for the roman- 

 tic, we almost regret to be undeceived." 



In winter and spring this animal rarely 

 ever drinks, the dews and tender herbage 

 being sufficient to satisfy his thirst ; but 

 during the parching heats of summer, he not 

 only frequents the brooks and springs, but 

 searches for deep water wherein to bathe 

 and refresh himself. He swims with great 

 ease and strength, particularly when he is 

 in good condition, his fat contributing to his 

 buoyancy. His voice is stronger, louder, 

 and more tremulous, in proportion as he 

 advances in age ; and during the rutting 

 season it is really fearful. The cry of the 

 hind, or female, is not so loud as that of the 

 male, and she is never excited but through 

 apprehensions for the safety either of herself 

 or her young, Like all the rest of the Deer 

 tribe, except the Elk, the female is destitute 

 of horns ; she is also more feeble and unfit 

 for hunting than the male. The pairing 

 season is in August ; the time of gestation is 

 between eight and nine months; and she 

 seldom produces more than one at a time. 

 The usual season of parturition is about 

 May, during which these animals are very 

 assiduous in concealing and tending their 

 young ; nor is this a needless precaution, 

 since almost every animal of the canine or 

 feline kind is then an active enemy ; nay, 

 unnatural as it may seem, the Stag himself 

 is also one of their most dangerous assailants. 

 At this season, therefore, the courage of the 

 male seems to be transferred to the female ; 

 for she resolutely defends her offspring ; and 

 if pursued by the hunter, exposes herself to 

 great apparent danger, for the purpose of 

 diverting his attention from the object of 

 her parental regard. The Calf (the name 

 by which the young of this animal is called) 

 never quits the dam during the whole sum- 

 mer ; and in winter, the hind, together with 

 all the males under a year old, assemble in 

 herds, which are more or less numerous in, 

 proportion to the mildness or severity of the 

 season. At the approach of spring they 

 separate, none but those of the age of one 

 year remaining associated. They are, how- 

 ever, generally gregarious ; and only danger 

 or necessity can possibly divide them. 



" When a Stag stands at bay," says the 

 accomplished Editor of Thomson's Seasons, 

 before quoted, " his instinct leads him to do 

 so in a river or a lake, if either be near ; in 

 which case he has a great advantage over 

 the dogs, for he firmly stands and holds his 



