DEER KIND. 345 



and repeat their blow ; upon this, it again sum- 

 mons up sufficient vigour to get a-head ; but at 

 last, quite tired, and spent with loss of blood, it 

 sinks, as the describer expresses it, like a ruined 

 building, and makes the earth shake beneath its 

 fall. 



This animal when killed is a very valuable ac- 

 quisition to the hunters ; the flesh is very well 

 tasted, and is said to be very nourishing. The 

 hide is strong, and so thick that it has been often 

 known to turn a musket-ball ; however, it is soft 

 and pliable, and when tanned the leather is ex- 

 tremely light, yet very lasting. The fur is a light 

 grey in some, and blackish in others ; and when 

 viewed through a microscope, appears spongy like 

 a bulrush, and is smaller at the roots and points 

 than in the middle : for this reason it lies very 

 flat and smooth, and though beaten or abused 

 never so much, it always returns to its former 

 state. The horns also are not less useful, being 

 applied to all the purposes for which hartshorn is 

 beneficial : these are different in different animals ; 

 in some they resemble entirely those of the Euro- 

 pean elk, which spread into a broad palm, with 

 small antlers on one of the edges ; in others they 

 have a branched brow-antler between the bur and 

 the palm, which the German elk has not ; and in 

 this they entirely agree with those whose horns 

 are so frequently dug up in Ireland. This animal 

 is said to be troubled with the epilepsy, as it is 

 often found to fall down when pursued, and thus 

 becomes an easier prey : for this reason an ima- 

 ginary virtue has been ascribed to the hinder hoof, 



