OF THE HARBOURER. 55 



progress across the field can readily be traced. It is 

 wonderful what havoc a few big stags will make in 

 a turnip field. A dainty dish that a stag can never 

 resist consists of the young sprouts of ash, and when 

 these are nibbled the harbourer may be sure of a stag, 

 for hinds do not touch them. The other signs cannot 

 be absolutely relied on, especially if there is an old 

 yeld hind in the district, for she will ape a stag's 

 peculiarities in feeding as well as in other things. 



It is on the slot that the harbourer can most safely 

 relv. From that he can, under favourable circum- 

 stances, deduce all he wants to know. 



The cloven foot of a deer is a wonderful piece of 

 mechanism, and to its strength and pliability a large 

 part of the springy gait of a deer is to be ascribed. 

 The slot of a stag is naturally larger than that of a 

 hind, and the horn, which is equallv strong and hard 

 in male and female, has more weight to sustain, and 

 is subjected to more friction and wear. It is not 

 surprising to find that in a big stag the toes are 

 shorter and blunter and the heel wider, with the 

 cushion or flexible portion at the heel more developed. 

 The edges are less sharp and distinct, and the imprint 

 on the ground less sharply defined. 



The natural inclination of both sexes when moving 

 slowly on a hard surface is to keep the two halves of 

 the foot close together, but the hind, with longer toes 

 and less weight to carry, is less careful of this, and 

 carries her toes wider apart than a stag. It is when 

 pace and soft ground come to act on the cloven 



