DEVON AND SOMERSET. 289 



from the hounds, but in the wilder west, where 

 the chffs drop sheer to the rocky beach, deep 

 water hes closer inshore, and three or four 

 desperate bounds will carry him through the 

 surf and into the deep heaving waves. Swimming 

 low in the trough of the curling sea, a stag 

 with a big head soon becomes ditftcult to keep 

 in view, as the rise and fall of the water hides 

 him completely, except when he is lifted on 

 the top of some dancing roller. 



The lifting of a heavy stag into an open 

 boat even in a moderate sea, is a task which 

 needs much skill and practice, but is frequently 

 accomplished by the crew of the Porlock Weir 

 boat. Certain spots in each of the rivers that 

 drain the strongholds most affected by deer, 

 see most of the finishes of runs that take place 

 in their neighbourhood. When beaten deer 

 take to a water of any size, their failing limbs 

 naturally carry them down stream in their last 

 efforts, and they are able to follow the river's 

 course until thev reach some obstacle, generally 

 an artificial one, that brings them to a stand- 

 still and causes them to turn to bay. 



Now in beating down the Horner Water, 

 whether they come by way of the East Water 

 stream or the main channel of the Horner Valley, 

 deer come to the junction of the Horner Mill leat 

 with the natural bed of the stream, and as it 

 happens to lie a little further from the valley 



IT 



