vii POST GETS A YOUNG MALE 197 



as they were out of sight, I went along the narrow ledge 

 above the rocks to examine the marks they had seen, 

 and also in hopes of something coming back. I sat 

 down from time to time. I was greatly struck with 

 the disintegration of the sides of the precipices. Here 

 and there there are large bushy ledges very difficult 

 of access, but once there, roomy enough for a herd 

 of bouquetin. It is impossible for the men to examine 

 these innumerable, small, disjointed ledges, and still 

 on any one of them the finest old male in the valley 

 might be lying, and there he would lie till they 

 passed. Above me I saw the ledge along which 

 the old " boodah " had passed when I was here with 

 Harry (2Oth January 1879?), and farther on came 

 to the ledge, with its solitary little pine bush, behind 

 which the female and young male hid themselves two 

 years ago. The dogs had hunted them out of the 

 Sanctuary, and Celestin had fortunately seen them go 

 up on to this ledge. After this he had kept watch on 

 them for about two hours while he sent for us, and they 

 had never shown the top of their noses, even lying 

 absolutely still behind the pines. Even when we arrived 

 we had to fire some two or three shots or so to make 

 them come out. I never heard or saw any sign of any- 

 thing living in the Sanctuary, so went down to the 

 beeches in the flat and lay on my back a long time 

 spying the cornices and precipices on all sides. Upon 

 arriving at the cabane, to my astonishment, my question, 

 No han visto nada? received the unexpected answer, 

 Si, un bucardo, y estd muerto. The dogs had put up a 

 fine young male just below the Banbox and run him 

 long and merrily all over the west end of the Sanctuary 

 within 50 yards of his heels, and had at last put him 

 up on to the chateau within 10 yards of Arthur, who 

 at first shot saw nothing but his astonished face and hit 



