70 CATALOGUE OF BIRDS. 



now too late to try further, the terriers were coupled 

 and we turned back. 



We had not gone more than one hundred yards when, 

 hearing a scuffle behind us, we turned round, and saw a 

 hen Ptarmigan struggling in the mouth of one of the 

 fox-terriers ; on shouting to the dog the bird flew away, 

 none the worse excepting the loss of a few tail 

 feathers. 



As we expected, the terrier had seized her on her 

 nest, which contained seven eggs. He had, luckily, 

 only been able to catch hold of her tail, as the other 

 terrier to which he was coupled was tugging in the 

 opposite direction, and had most probably so saved 

 the life of the bird. As I required the female in the 

 present state of plumage, we determined to retire to 

 the shelter of a large rock about two hundred yards 

 off, and await the return of the bird to her nest. 



I then sent off one of the men to the pony for what 

 was left of our eatables and drinkables, and we made 

 ourselves as comfortable as the circumstances would 

 permit. 



The head keeper, who had joined us, said he had 

 observed our pony from the lower cairn, and thinking 

 we were from the Kannoch side of the hill, he had 

 come up to order us off the ground, for he had a great 

 antipathy to the people who marched with him in that 

 direction, as they frequently came on his side of the 

 hill and shot his hares and Ptarmigan. On the last 

 occasion he had met with them about half a mile over 

 the march, and after informing them that he had no 

 desire to give them another day's shooting, had sternly 

 walked away, refusing all manner of tempting liquors 

 which had been pressed upon him. 



