So THE RED DEER OF EX MOOR. 



to run on the open, on a day when there is a scent, 

 there is no time to hang about, for it takes the speed 

 of a really good horse to keep up with them. Much 

 has been written, and many have been the discus- 

 sions, as to the need for giving a stag plenty of 

 *'law" — plenty of time to make his point without 

 being unduly rattled. It is a difficult problem. It 

 stands to reason that to clap the pack on ten yards 

 behind a fat old stag will be to bustle him so fast at 

 first that he will be utterly blown, and collapse in a 

 very short time. But the necessity for giving law is 

 very greatly exaggerated, as stags on the forest fre- 

 quently run well for an hour or more when the tufters 

 have started close to them, and give a run with the 

 pack after that. 



All a stag wants is a couple of minutes to stand 

 still, look about him, shake himself, and otherwise 

 attend to his creature comforts before settling down 

 to run. This his pace is always sufficient to gain for 

 him whenever he wants it, if he is given anything 

 like a fair chance. To a stag which has been roused 

 by tufters, and has been running in covert for some 

 time before facing the open, law is unnecessary. 



The stopping of the tufters and the bringing on of 

 the pack always takes some time. The quickest lay 

 on is generally from Cloutsham, when a. stag found 

 in Sweet Tree goes away for the moor ; but even 

 then it may be doubted whether the interval between 

 stopping the tufters and laying on the pack is ever 

 less than ten minutes, which is considered ample law 



