xxn THE DEER 357 



against the rough bark of some old birch, or any tree that will 

 assist to cleanse its antlers from the irritating substance. 



When the large horns of sambur or wapiti are growing, they 

 make an excellent dish; first scalded to divest them of the down, 

 and then gently stewed with a good sauce and a few vegetables. 



If a deer is badly hurt during the growth of antlers, there will 

 generally be some deformity in the shape of one, or perhaps both. 

 Any accident to the horns while young in velvet has a direct effect 

 upon the antlers, and will set up a local inflammation, which 

 interferes with the ripening of the horn. I have seen a stag 

 which had two peculiarly curved tines of great length ; these had 

 interfered with its progress through the woods (in America), and 

 had evidently caught among the branches like a grapnel. Although 

 the horns were perfectly hard when I shot the animal, the ends of 

 these tines were bloody, and instead of sharp terminations, they 

 were round and thick, showing that a chronic inflammation had 

 prevented the horns from hardening, and had kept the blood-vessels 

 in continued action. 



As the stag becomes old, and its powers are on the wane, the 

 annual horns become shorter and thinner, the rough exterior loses 

 its knobby appearance and becomes smooth, the tines are short 

 and fewer in number, and the antlers, which in former years were 

 the signs of vigour, exhibit in their reduced appearance an evidence 

 of decay. Should a stag be castrated, the horns cease their growth. 



The female carries about eight months, and has only one calf. 

 None of the females of the genus Cervus have horns except the 

 reindeer; but I have had no personal experience of the latter 

 species. 



It is to be deeply regretted that the red-deer no longer exist in 

 the New Forest in Hampshire, the Forest of Dean in Gloucester- 

 shire, and other places, where in 1838 they were sufficiently 

 numerous. I remember them when they were strictly preserved 

 by the Crown, and the heads of those in the Forest of Dean were 

 very superior to any that exist in Scotland. I am surprised that 

 such persons who are the fortunate proprietors of deer-forests do 

 not import fine specimens of German deer to cross with those of 

 our own country. Any visitors to Vienna must be struck by the 

 magnificence of the antlers borne by the stags in the Prada, on 

 the outskirts of the city ; in our own country there is nothing that 

 will compare with them. 



The hunting of deer, like all other sports, must depend upon 

 the condition and customs of the localities. There can be little 

 doubt that "hunting" is far superior, as a sport, to shooting. 



