A MOONLIGHT SHOT 25 



the stag; but by this time it was 6 o'clock and 

 getting dark, and if it hadn't been for a lovely 

 moon I could not have seen to shoot. As it was, 

 it was difficult enough to see him, as he was a dark 

 beast and would stand facing us, roaring away like 

 a Hon. However, at long last he turned, and 

 I fired and got him; but he staggered towards 

 the wood, which was only about 100 yards distant, 

 so we dashed down to him and gave him the coup 

 de grace just in time, as if he had gained the wood 

 we should probably have lost him in the dark. 

 I shall never forget the scene lying waiting for the 

 shot " seldom the time and the place and the 

 Loved One altogether " but this was one of 

 those rare occasions. The moonlight and the 

 moor, and the wood in the background, and the 

 deer scattered about, and his majesty roaring 

 away, bidding defiance to foes seen and unseen 

 it was a wonderful picture in a still more wonderful 

 setting at the end of a great stalk. Our stag was 

 an 8-pointer weighing 15 stone 1 pound. On the 

 7th of October Herbert got a switch on Erchless 

 weighing 12 stone, and I missed again on Farley. 

 The 9th of October was the silver lining to the 

 cloud which darkened the stalking of 1916. In 

 the first place, Merton Barker broke the run of 

 Matheson's ill-luck and got a good stag on Farley 

 above the Lily Loch a very nice 6-pointer 

 weighing 15 stone 3 pounds. Susan and I went 

 to Erchless, and had a blank morning. After 



