DEER STALKING. 105 



those of their papas and mammas, that beyond fifty or sixty 

 yards they are tolerably secure ; but the moment the sports- 

 man comes within that range they give a " hop, skip, and 

 jump," and show their white scuts at the entrance to their 

 holes. But when there is a spot which will enable the rifle 

 shooter to get within one hundred yards of rabbits either on 

 the feed or at play, they may often be picked off by a good 

 marksman, but seldom more than a couple of shots can be 

 obtained, as they are readily alarmed ; and even if they are 

 missed, they retire to their holes till dark comes on and puts 

 an end to the chance of shooting them on that occasion. 

 Occasionally the hand and eye are so quick that a " snap- 

 shot" is successful; but there are few sportsmen who can 

 attain this extreme excellence in the art; and I confess I 

 have never seen the attempt successful, though I have 

 known it tried by good shots. The rifle may be made of 

 sufficient lightness to be easily and rapidly handled; but it 

 requires such a delicate adjustment of the eye to the sights 

 to insure accuracy, that it is almost impossible to cover so 

 quick an animal as the rabbit. 



DEER STALKING. 



Not having had any practical experience in this kind of 

 rifle shooting, I can say nothing about it excepting at 

 second-hand, and my readers must consult the pages of Mr. 

 Scrope for full information on the subject. As, however, 

 they may like to have an idea of what it is, I shall extract 

 one or two passages from his most amusing and instructive 

 book. The deer stalker should never attempt this kind of 

 sport without being possessed of a strong, active, and hardy 

 frame, together with nerves of iron and the patience of Job. 

 For a " quiet shot," the last quality is the only requisite ; 

 but few deer stalkers would consider themselves as worthy 

 of the name who contented themselves with this imitation 

 of battue shooting. There must also be an amount of train, 

 ing which requires some time for its performance, and as a 

 consequence the denizens of our cities who run down to 

 Scotland in the hope of acquiring laurels, are generally 

 doomed to be disappointed. Not only is simple walking 



