Preservation of Horns j i 



When the loss is finally discovered, perhaps after months or 

 more, it is difficult to identify the head. 



In the case of shed horns, it is a very good plan to 'mount those 

 cast by each stag one below the other on one shield, putting the year 

 under each pair, as in this way it is possible to study the growth 

 of each year, and to decide if the stag is worth keeping, and 

 when he is at his best, if he is to be shot. If the stag is 

 finally shot, the entire set can be mounted beside, or around, 

 his stuffed head. 



It is advisable, in all cases where the age of the stag is known, 

 to mention this on the label, as well as his weight, the date when 

 killed, and if a wild or a park deer, etc. Moreover, when a suite 

 of horns cast in different years are mounted together, an abnor- 

 mally wet, cold, or dry season should be mentioned, or anything 

 else which may account, for certain pairs differing in size, weight, or 

 shape from what should be the normal for their particular ages. 



As a rule, after the fifth year, a stag's horns do not grow 

 much in length from year to year ; in fact when the animals are 

 very old the horns become shorter, although the thickness and the 

 number of points will continue to increase till the stags begin 

 to get feeble, either from illness or old age. 



After stags get well on in years the weight of their horns does 

 not increase, and therefore in order to make the increase in the 

 number of points, bony substance is used which would otherwise 

 go into the beam ; consequently the beam gets thinner as the 

 number of points increases, while it also becomes shorter during 

 the last few years of life. 



I have found, especially among fallow deer, that if a buck who 



