NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE. 19 



LETTER VII. 



'HOUGH large herds of deer do much harm to the neigh- 

 bourhood, yet the injury to the morals of the people is of 

 more moment than the loss of their crops. The temptation 

 is irresistible ; for most men are sportsmen by constitution : 

 and there is such an inherent spirit for hunting in human 

 nature, as scarce any inhibitions can restrain. Hence, 

 towards the beginning of this century all this country was 

 wild about deer-stealing. Unless he was a hunter, as they 

 affected to call themselves, no young person was allowed to 

 be possessed of manhood or gallantry. The Waltham 

 blacks at length committed such enormities, that govern- 

 ment was forced to interfere with that severe and sanguin- 



o 



ary act called the "Black Act,"* which now comprehends 

 more felonies than any law that ever was framed before. 

 And, therefore, a late Bishop of Winchester, when urged 

 to re-stock Waltham Chase, f refused, from a motive 

 worthy of a prelate, replying " that it had done mischief 

 enough already," 



Our old race of deer-stealers is hardly extinct yet : it 

 was but a little while ago that, over their ale, they used to 

 recount the exploits of their youth ; such as watching the 

 pregnant hind to her lair, and, when the calf was dropped, 

 paring its feet with a penknife to the quick to prevent its 

 escape, till it was large and fat enough to be killed ; the 

 shooting at one of their neighbours with a bullet in a 

 turnip-field by moonshine, mistaking him for a deer ; and 

 the losing a dog in the following extraordinary manner? 



* Statute 9 Geo. I., cap. 22. 



t This chase remains unstocked to this day; the bishop waa 

 Dr. Hoadly. 



