SPOTTED DEER 



had hit fair in the middle of the body, too far back for the 

 lungs, but had caused great internal bleeding, the cavity of 

 the body being full of blood, so that the poor beast must 

 have suffered great agony, and the idea made me wish we 

 had followed it up and finished it off at the first. It had 

 a nice, even little head of 24^ inches. 



On this same trip I brought off a double shot which 

 rather pleased me. We had tramped for 2 miles along 

 a filthily muddy elephant track through the jungle to reach 

 another set of parks, and, approaching the edge of the 

 forest, I stole forward and peeped out, catching instant 

 sight of a herd of deer peacefully feeding and lying about 

 not 80 yards away, amongst them being two bucks, one 

 showing a peculiar malformation in the horns, and the other 

 having an ordinary little head. 



I stooped down to get a clear view and steady shot, 

 letting fly at the buck of the malformed head first, hitting 

 him fair, whereupon the rest of the deer ran about be- 

 wildered, not seeing the author of the noise, the second 

 buck presently coming to a stand exactly opposite, and 

 facing me, offering only his chest as a mark at about 90 

 yards. I fired, however, and after running round in a half- 

 circle for a few yards he staggered, swayed about, and fell. 

 We all ran out and found the first buck lying dead, not 

 having run over 30 yards ; the second one we knifed, as it 

 was still alive and kicking. 



The malformed head had a fine perfect left antler 29! 

 inches, but the right was merely a brow tine, and instead 

 of a main beam a sort of crumpled hook, sticking out 

 behind, about 6 inches long, the pedicle also of the mal- 

 formed horn growing out from the head at a curious angle 

 almost horizontal, whilst between the two pedicles is a 

 bump of bone sticking up like a knuckle-joint on top of 



227 



