60 ERCHLESS AND FARLEY, 1918 



and finally got us, gave the alarm, and off they 

 went, and disappeared down the Hare Hill on the 

 home beat side. Eraser and I dashed after them, 

 and soon got them again, about a quarter of a 

 mile below us ; so we embarked on a most apoplectic 

 downhill crawl of about 200 yards, and finally I 

 had to take the shot at about 250 yards. I took 

 a full sight and missed comfortably, and then 

 found the 300-yard sight had somehow in the 

 crawl been raised, and so, of course, with the full 

 sight I had taken, I was well over him. We got 

 no further chance at them, as they joined up with 

 another big herd of deer and made off towards the 

 sanctuary. The latter was not a miss to weep 

 over, but worse was to follow; for as we were 

 wending our homeward way and I was trying 

 to forget my imbecility, Eraser spied a small stag 

 by himself just outside the wood about a quarter 

 of a mile from the spying rock, and as he was in a 

 very favourable position, got me up to 50 or 60 

 yards from him, and then, with everything in my 

 favour, I missed him clean under him, I think. 

 Eraser said I must not have another shot at a stag 

 till he had tried my rifle at the target, which he did 

 next day, and found that it was shooting low, 

 and as I was aiming low at these near shots it 

 accounted somewhat for my sins ; but the last miss 

 was absolutely a sitter, and I did indeed feel sick 

 at heart and as though the sun would never shine 

 again. 



