220 LEAVES FEOM A GAME BOOK. 



for the forest, and putting him ashore at the head of 

 Loch Dhu, he was met by Farquhar Mackenzie, the two 

 going off to the hill. The yacht then took me on to 

 Glen Coul to meet William Elliot (a brother of John's), 

 With him I had a very long, wet tramp, during which 

 we followed for many a mile a small herd of stags, 

 rendered restless by the bad weather. Just as dusk was 

 coming on I got a shot at about one hundred and fifty 

 yards, a distance, to my mind, much preferable to fifty 

 yards. The bullet sped true, dropping the stag in his 

 tracks ; it was a directly down-hill shot, and as he 

 fell on the steep slope, the muscular contractions of 

 his hind-quarters, which are ever more or less present 

 in the death throes, started him rolling before we 

 could get up to where he lay. Never before have I 

 seen such a roll as that, as for fully 300 yards his 

 carcass bounded down this broken, rocky face ; and 

 gathering impetus at every turn, he was thus so utterly 

 smashed that, when seen skinned in the larder next 

 day, he was indeed a sorry sight. 



On the 27th the Duke had promised us a spectacular 



