DEER-SHOOTING IN HUNGARY. 273 



armour, and the principal gallery was filled with stuffed 

 eagles and vultures, targets riddled by balls, and horns of 

 stags, fallow deer, roebucks, and chamois. One room was 

 devoted entirely to arms, ancient and modern, from the old 

 arquebuss to the modern pocket-pistol : another, where coffee 

 was usually served, contained a rich assortment of pipes; I 

 counted more than eighty, ranged upon shelves. Here was 

 a fine collection of engravings, that appeared more appro- 

 priate to the boudoir than the sacristy. There was an excel- 

 lent library, full of the best ancient and modern literature. 

 The furniture of the rooms was in the same style and taste ; 

 the bed-carpets were the skins of bears and leopards, and 

 every chair and bureau was ornamented with curious and 

 valuable wood-carving. 



The chase of the stag, which had been my inducement for 

 a journey into Hungary, is conducted in various ways. It 

 would be here next to impossible to hunt on horseback, 

 owing to the steep declivities of the mountains and the deep 

 ravines. When dogs are used, they are of a very small 

 breed, not so large as our beagles, which beat a certain ex- 

 tent of cover at one time, and do not drive the game to a 

 greater distance than their little sharp tongues can be heard. 

 Grand battues sometimes take place, but the most common 

 and the most successful mode of shooting is at the same 

 time the most simple that can be imagined. Without fol- 

 lowers or dogs, the sportsman starts alone with his rifle, 

 stalking the stag through the forest. Sometimes the animal 

 is found reposing, at others, his track is followed up through 

 the snow or damp ground. Generally he is perceived from 

 a long way off by his red colour amongst the green boughs, 

 and then the only difficulty is to get within shooting distance. 

 There is nothing very difficult in all this, but at the same 

 time it requires a knowledge of the country and the habits 

 of the animal, as well as a clear sight, coolness, watchfulness, 



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