i8 



hope we counted none twice over. I believe the estimate of 

 forest stags, year by year, to be a much truer list than the counts, 

 year by year indeed this is quite obvious ; but by sticking to the 

 counts we gain knowledge. It is probably more difficult to make 

 a good count of stags in July than it is to make a good count of 

 hinds in February, the stags being in high ground, and the hinds 

 chiefly in low ground. 



I have no doubt whatever, that since 1884, when we received 



increasing* 58 a neavv blow the bodies of 48 dead stags having been found 



since 1884. the stock of Forest stags has been steadily increasing, and that at 



the present time the increase has become larger yearly. Our careful, 



and we think very successful count of 1889, confirms this. Up to 



and including 1884 the Forest stags were, I believe, decreasing. 



47 stags died in 1882. 



Was Husk the cause of the heavy mortality of 1884 and 1882 ? 



At the worst period, 1884, the Forest stags appear to have 



fallen nearly 100 below our starting point, 1878, at the present 



Great increase time the stock appears to be about 100 larger than ever. The 



increase of hornless animals, hinds, knobbers and calves, is so 



large as to be easily noticed at a glance. 

 Our two counts 

 of Hinds and Spring 1879, we counted 869 hornless animals in Forest. 



Spring 1890, we counted 1429 hornless animals in Forest. 

 This is an increase of 560, or 64 per cent, on Forest in n years. 

 We believe the animals counted 1879, consisted of about what 

 is stated below, the 1879 count being only an unclassed census of 

 hornless animals. 



1879 Count 579 hinds (i year old and more). 

 218 calves. 

 72 knobbers. 



869 



1890 Count 957 hinds (counted separately). 

 355 calves (counted separately). 

 117 knobbers (estimated, tested on i beat). 



1429 



Increase. From these figures we have constructed a series, shewing the 

 number of hinds and calves, each year this is done by taking 



