Some Harmless Beasts. 1 73 



" In the woods of the North there are insects that prey 

 On the brain of the elk till his very last sigh ; " 



his application thereof being — 



*' O genins ! thy patron?, more cruel than they. 

 First feed on thy brains and then leave thee to d;e." 



But I am unable to find any grounds for the poets' facts, at 

 any rate in special relation to the elk. 



Another northern "deer" that is occasionally met with 

 in verse is the reindeer. Montgomer)' is specially fond of 

 it Campbell makes it the steed of Winter — 



" Howling Winter fled afar 

 To hiils that prop the polar star ; 

 And loves on deer-l>ome car to ride 

 With barren darkness by his side." 



The gemsbok gives Jean Ingelow the subject of a power- 

 ful vignette — 



" Or far into the heat among the sands 

 The gemsbok nations, snuffing up the wind. 

 Drawn by the scent of water, and the bands 

 Of tawny-bearded lions pacing, blind 

 With the sun-dazzle in their midst, opprest 

 W'ith prey, and spiritless for lack of rest ! " 



And " the brindled gnu " finds also a single reference. 



