THE THREE LEGGED BUCK. I 33 



probably told it of the threatened danger, as it suddenly 

 ceased feeding and walked off, and the other evening a 

 crow settled on one of the horns of a Sambur I was 

 watching. 



On Saturday, 3rd March, 1870, I was up at dawn and 

 went to the Big Hill ibex ground to sketch ; having fixed on 

 a spot, I set to work sending Francis to look out, he presently 

 came back and reported a herd of fifteen ibex on Big Hill ; 

 he said that there was a buck amongst them very lame, so 

 I went up to have a look, and there was a buck hobbling 

 along on three legs ; from the shadows I could not tell 

 whether he was a saddle back, so I started for a stalk and if 

 possible to bag the lame chap. We dodged round behind 

 an opposite hill where we could get a good view, without 

 disturbing them ; six of the herd were busy feeding, and 

 for a long time I could not see the others, at last I spied 

 them under a solitary tree, and there amongst them was a 

 saddle back. I made sure he was the lame party and pretty 

 sure he was the one I had wounded at Christmas ; the only 

 thing that bothered me was that he appeared to have only one 

 horn, still I might not have noticed this defect on a former 

 occasion. He was beautifully situated for a stalk, so I put on 

 my goloshes; whilst watching him, a doe came up and lay down 

 alongside of him. I was afraid she would spoil my stalk, but 

 the undulation of the ground enabled me to approach within 

 a few yards, and when I raised my head there was the doe 

 on the rock above looking out, but I was able to keep a tuft 

 of scrub between her head and mine. I craned over to look 

 for the buck, but he was not where we had last seen him ; a 

 step forward and the doe was off the rock and I saw the saddle 

 back making tracks with the rest about forty yards off. I 



