THE STAG OF THE ALPS 119 



doing ' all night, and the concert made by four or five (and 

 often many more) brave warriors within earshot lasts all night, 

 only to die away as darkness is replaced by daylight. 



On clear nights, favoured by a bright full moon (other con- 

 ditions being equally propitious), it is possible for a skilful 

 stalker to get up to within a score of yards of a calling stag, 

 close enough to fire with a good chance of hitting the beast. 

 A smooth-bore, to which one is well accustomed, firing a 

 spherical i3-bore ball, is for such occasions preferable to a 

 rifle with its fine sights, and as a rule less perfect ' fit ' for such 

 hazarding. To a novice unaccustomed to this kind of midnight 

 sport a few practice shots at a dummy should precede actual 

 trial, for distances on such occasions are sadly deceptive, and 

 it is remarkable how much of beautiful Nature there is to be 

 hit in the immediate vicinity of one's would-be prey. 



Ordinarily the sportsman does not begin the stalk (during 

 the rut) till just before the break of day. He has to be on 

 the spot at the first signs of dawn, and therefore it is very 

 advisable to pass the night as close to the scene of the stalk 

 as possible. In most preserves small log huts of the most 

 primitive kind are built expressly for this purpose high up on 

 the mountains close to timber-line, and if possible close to 

 some prominent point of rocks or shoulder of the mountain 

 whence the slopes below on both sides can be, as the Germans 

 say, ' overheard.' What glorious solos, duets, and trios can the 

 lucky stalker not hear on such occasions, when nought but 

 those weird sounds breaks the great solemn silence of night on 

 the elevated Alpine timber-line regions ! And how eagerly does 

 one's ear follow those sounds as they draw nearer or grow 

 fainter, as the champions, bent on war and love, roam hither 

 and thither on the great pine-clad slope lying in solemn silence 

 at the feet of the midnight watcher ! 



The rutting stag, ardent with virile passion, is singularly 

 heedless of danger at this season, and were it not for the hinds, 

 who at this period appear to redouble their vigilance, he would 

 be comparatively easy to stalk. In nine out of every ten 



