172 SIR VICTOR BROOKE CHAP. 



a little rocky knoll in time to see the three beasts pass 

 in under it, the female going very sick. I fired both 

 barrels at her, hitting with one in the haunch. Follow- 

 ing them, found lots of blood which led to a very 

 difficult narrow couloir, down which they had gone. 

 When the men came up we went round and down, and 

 after a little searching found her dead in a thicket 

 below the couloir. She was a fine female with a large 

 young male in her. She weighed 60 Ibs. dressed, 

 74 Ibs. clean. Height, 30^- inches ; length from shoulder 

 to ischium, 3 I inches ; length of foreleg, from ulna to 

 heel, 1 7 inches ; circumference of chest, 3 5 inches ; of 

 forearm, 9 inches. She was in capital condition. It 

 came on so misty that we could do nothing in the 

 afternoon. 



In January 1879 Brooke made his second sporting 

 expedition to the Vallee d'Arras with his brother 

 Harry, and the whole party had a narrow escape of 

 losing their lives from an avalanche ; it was also in this 

 expedition that he killed the famous bouquetin. I 

 have no diary relating to this period, but his brother 

 has given me the following particulars : 



We started in the depth of winter, leaving Gavarnie 

 at 4 A.M. one morning in January to cross the Porte 

 Gavarnie into Spain ; but about 6 A.M. a heavy snow- 

 storm came on, and we trudged wearily along in the 

 footsteps of our two guides, Celestin and Francois, 

 above our knees in soft snow. For many hours we 

 struggled on, the snow beating in our faces, and the 

 cold very great ; at last it became evident the 

 guides had lost their way and were getting frightened 

 of avalanches, Celestin whispering to us not to speak 

 loud. He had hardly said this when a blue streak 

 flashed between Victor (who was in front of me) and 



