THE SECRET OF HAPPINESS 113 



certainty for a good stag or two, " When this was a 

 forest, but now," and his looks said the rest; and 

 often I found myself muttering, " When this was a 

 forest," as day after day we toiled over and 

 around the West Hill and the North Hill, and 

 Glengowrie and all the big broken flats between, 

 and never the sight of a decent beast to cheer the 

 faint heart of the laird and the stout heart of his 

 lady. However, so it is, and it is no use sighing 

 over " the days that were and never will be more " ; 

 and as the secret of happiness lies in limiting our 

 aspirations, let us be content with what the gods 

 give us and not hanker after the halcyon days 

 that are for ever gone, I fear " Farley, with all 

 thy sheep I love thee still," and would rather kill 

 seven stags thereon than fourteen elsewhere. 



And seven stags were all we did get this season. 

 I got another on the West Hill on the llth, after an 

 inglorious miss at a small beast in the morning on 

 the North Hill; he was a moderate beast of 14 stone 

 with a very poor head, but he was something to go 

 home with, a joy not often ours this season, and 

 as we got him on the east side at the foot of the 

 West Hill, we were quite close to Sandy and the 

 pony, and we all rolled home together for the only 

 time this year on Farley ! I never got another 

 stag, though two extra days were kindly given us; 

 but after I had said good-bye to John on the last 

 day he had a bit of luck, as he got a very good 

 6-pointer in the wood when it was nearty dark. 



