REMINISCENCES OF A ROSS-SHIRE FOREST. 157 



" Xo, sir, I could not ; it was too early in the 

 moming. But there were a good many hinds, and 

 two stags with them." 



I knew exactly from his description where they 

 were ; and after a walk of four miles, we stopped, by 

 mutual consent, at the top of the hrae leading down 

 to the river. One deer only was visible from where 

 we stood, and his head was not in sight ; but the in- 

 stant I got the glass on him " If that's not a good 

 stag," I said to myself, " I never saw one." Moving 

 carefully down the hill we brought his head into 

 view. 



" He's the very stag, sir ! " said Duncan. 



" What stag ? " I asked, eagerly. 



"The one I was telling you about, sir, that Mr 



C and I saw a fortnight since ; there's not 



another like him in the forest ! " 



Little did I then imagine the day's work this 

 gentleman was going to give us; as little did I 

 imagine the bad counsel and bad temper I was going 

 to have a specimen of. Yes; I'll show you up, 

 Duncan. A worse counsellor, or a sulkier little 

 beggar than you were that day, it has never been 

 my misfortune to meet. But to proceed. We soon 

 made out, as we thought, all the deer he had seen in 

 the morning six hinds and another stag, a very 

 good beast too. They were restless and suspicious 

 why, we could not discover; but by careful general- 

 ship we very soon got, say, to within 130 yards of 



