A DEER CHASE. 139 



bearing right down on us. Pull, pull away my brave 

 fellow." He did pull, and so did I, and we flew over 

 the surface. The other boat had been compelled to 

 lay-to a moment to mend an oar, which had given 

 us the advantage, but it was now again sent with 

 no stinted strokes down the lake. At length I could 

 see the head and antlers of the noble buck, as with 

 dilated nostrils and terror-stricken glance, he swam 

 and doubled on his pursuers. "Hold," I exclaimed, 

 as he glanced away towards the shore. The boat fell 

 into the trough of the waves just as I raised my 

 rifle to my shoulder, and the little cockle-shell rocked 

 so like mad on the water, and my frame was quiver- 

 ing so with the exhausting effort of the last few 

 minutes, that the muzzle of my piece described all 

 sorts of mathematical diagrams around the head of 

 the deer, as I endeavored to make it bear for a 

 single second upon it. I could not shoot — but "fire! 

 fire!" shouted Mitchell, and "fire" it was. The bul- 

 let struck just under his throat, throwing the water 

 over his head, while he made a desperate spring and 

 pulled for the shore. Shame on me, but I might as 

 well have shot on horseback under a full gallop. 

 At that moment the other boat flew like a spirit 



