ABOVE THE PINE-ZONE 31 



deer do not get their antlers until after the first 

 year, and these whilst growing are soft and velvety, 

 but harden as they mature. Wide range and 

 abundant food are productive of the best " heads," 

 and these continue to improve until about the 

 fifteenth year, after which they deteriorate. Not 

 only does the annual growth of the antlers keep the 

 stags in low condition, but it is probably this that 

 inclines them to leave the main herd, as whilst "in 

 the velvet " they are extremely sensitive. The 

 younger deer know this, and sometimes take a quite 

 unfair advantage. For instance, it is recorded how 

 a small stag has been seen to make a big fellow with 

 soft horns get up, so that the little one might lie in 

 the vacated bed; and as soon as the old stag once 

 more got comfortably settled the little one would turn 

 him out again. 



In summer the stags mostly stick to the higher 

 hills, though some few lie in the water-holes of the 

 woods, or in deep shaded retreats. By early autumn 

 the stags separate, and whilst the hinds and calves 

 seek the rich luxuriance of the valley bottoms, the 

 former make for the tender herbage on the tops of 

 the highest hills. It is these that yield the best and 

 sweetest venison, for whilst they are growing fat they 

 need less food, but that of a higher quality. In 

 September the deer often travel long distances, 

 visiting the seashores and outlying forests; and a 



