The Mule- deer 51 



In books by imperfectly informed writers we often 

 see allusions to the buck as protecting the doe, 

 or even taking care of the fawn. Charles Dudley 

 Warner, for instance, in describing with great 

 skill and pathos an imaginary deer hunt, after 

 portraying the death of the doe, portrays the 

 young fawn as following the buck when the latter 

 comes back to it in the evening. 1 While the 

 fawn is so young as to be wholly dependent upon 

 the doe, the buck never comes near either. More- 

 over, during the period when the buck and the doe 

 are together, the buck's attitude is merely that of 

 a brutal, greedy, and selfish tyrant. He will un- 

 hesitatingly rob the doe of any choice bit of food, 

 and though he will fight to keep her if another 

 buck approaches, the moment that a dangerous 

 foe appears his one thought is for his own preser- 

 vation. He will not only desert the doe, but if 

 he is an old and cunning buck, he will try his 

 best to sacrifice her by diverting the attention of 

 the pursuer to her and away from him. 



By the end of the rut the old bucks are often 

 exhausted, their sides thin, their necks swollen; 

 though they are never as gaunt as wapiti bulls at 

 this time. They then rest as much as possible, 



1 While the situation thus described was an impossible one, the 

 purpose of Mr. Warner's article was excellent, it being intended as 

 a protest against hunting deer while the fawns are young, and against 

 killing them in the water. 



