THE THIRD DAY'S SEARCH. 63 



slowly raised his head, drove some tiresome flies from 

 his flank with his horn, and then lay down again at full 

 length on the heather. Rob saw at a glance by the 

 listless movement of the stag, that he was ailing in 

 health, and, drawing his hunting-knife from his pocket, 

 he crept up the bank, suddenly sprang to his legs, and, 

 rushing in upon the animal, before it had time to 

 comprehend what was going on, seized hold of one 

 hind leg, and hamstrung it. The stag now wheeled 

 quickly round on its remaining leg, as on a pivot, and 

 threw Rob to the ground with some force ; but, pre- 

 pared for such an attack, he speedily rolled aside and 

 escaped unhurt. For a long while they stood eyeing 

 each other, the deer angrily shaking his head and 

 uttering an occasional snort or a moan of pain, and 

 Rob watching for an opportunity to close with his 

 antagonist. Night overtook the two parties still in 

 this position. But, though the glassy eye of the deer 

 and his look of anguish and exhaustion moved the 

 poacher's commiseration, and increased his wish to 

 terminate the scene, yet his recollection of yesterday's 

 defeat, and the testimony his own bones bore to the 

 rough treatment he had then received, prevented him 

 from exposing himself to a repetition of the penalty 

 paid for approaching too near the wounded animal. 

 At length therefore, as darkness closed in upon him, 

 he was compelled to postpone further operations to the 

 morning, sure of then finding the deer, disabled as he 

 was, near the same spot. 



As the third day dawned Rob set out, his gun care- 

 fully cleaned and loaded with ball. He soon reached 

 the place where he had left the deer on the previous 

 night; and though he could not perceive the animal 

 itself, he soon detected traces of it. These he care- 



