IN SCOTCH DEER-FORESTS 87 



When the men came up, one of the keepers asked me 

 if I had not seen the hummel ; whereupon I remem- 

 bered noticing for a moment what I had taken to be 

 an enormous hind passing through the trees. 



I have heard on good authority that the hummel, 

 or hornless, stag is usually master of the herd. At 

 first sight this appears a remarkable fact, but probably 

 is accounted for in a simple manner by the extra size 

 and weight of the beast, the whole of his vitality no 

 doubt going into bone and sinew, instead of partly 

 into horn. 



Colonel Walker was kind enough to send me at the 

 time his season's bag at Fasnakyle and the other two 

 forests mentioned, and at his request I compiled a 

 statement on the subject which was subsequently 

 published in the Field of February 7, 1894. 



This Fasnakyle bag constitutes, I believe, a ' record ' 

 in the annals of Scotch deer- stalking. The details 

 were as follows : 



In forty-seven days on the hill 202 stags were 

 obtained on the three forests in question, the first 

 being killed on August 19 and the last on October 14, 

 1893. Of these stags, 185 were killed in forty -five 

 days' stalking. The last two days were spent, as I 

 have said, in driving the woods, when ten stags were 

 shot ; and seven wounded stags were during the 

 season recovered subsequent to the days on which 

 they were respectively shot. There were never more 

 than three rifles out on any one day, the average 

 being two and a half rifles per day. 



The average weight of the 195 stags brought in 

 and weighed (in stones of 14 pounds) was 14 stone 

 4 pounds, gralloched, but including heart, lungs, and 

 liver. The heaviest stags included one of 19 stone 



