292 HISTORY OF CALIFORNIA. 



about tlie middle of May, at first one, but ordinarily 

 two calves, of a brown red color. These are so 

 simple and void of fear that in the first months they 

 are easily taken, and if in the water, where they wil- 

 lingly go to avoid the flies, they will suffer persons in 

 a canoe to come up to them and take them by the 

 head vfithout appearing in the least frightened. 



The dags, prickets, or incipient antlers are the first 

 year not more than an inch in length ; the second, 

 they rise to a foot ; the third, they are forked ; and 

 the fourth, they assume six snags and are somewhat 

 flattened ; the fifth year the blade is still small, but 

 their expansion from that time forward is uniform, 

 though it does not appear that the number of snags 

 ever exceed twenty-eight. In a very large specimen — 

 there were twenty- two, the length, from the head to the 

 tip twenty-seven inches, and from tip to tip across the 

 horns three feet six ; the two lower snags on either 

 side separated by a deep indenture ; the weight about 

 thirty-three pounds. Old Elks shed their horns in 

 January and February, and, if lean from a severe 

 winter, in March ; the younger later, till the month of 

 May. They are again completely restored in the 

 former by the end of June, and in the latter in 

 August. 



Several other species of deer are found in Cali- 

 fornia. Among others are the Large Eared Deer 

 (Cervus Macrotis). This is a species, resembling the 

 Virginian and Mexican deer, and also in some respects 

 the Wapiti ; but according to the descriptions of 

 Harlan and Say, it is different. The upper part is 

 light reddish brown^ and the sides and fore part of 

 the nose ash color ; the back intermixed with blackish 

 tipped hairs, which form a distinct line on the neck 



