318 BAD HEADS SHOULD BE KILLED OFF 



land) there were some ten years ago more rotten horns 

 than I ever saw elsewhere. 



The reason that finer heads are now obtained in 

 Sutherlandshire than in most places is that the Duke 

 of Sutherland allowed his royals a jubilee year, so 

 that, in addition to having the rubbish shot down, the 

 fine heads are allowed to improve and breed good 

 horns ; and his Grace has been well-repaid the trouble 

 he has been at to improve his Highland heads, with- 

 out havino- had recourse to the demoralizinof effect 

 produced by the present fashion of crossing. Owners of 

 forests make terrible mistakes at times in their anxiety 

 to produce large horns and bodies ; but it is only the 

 true stalker who can appreciate the killing a really good, 

 pure-bred Highland head in its natural wild state. 



I have over and over again known crossed deer as 

 tame as sheep in the corn and other crops ; but the 

 pure Highland deer will not come down as low as 

 those which are crossed, neither will they do one- 

 quarter the amount of damage to the crops, unless the 

 winter is exceptionally severe. In such winters the 

 crossed deer will almost feed out of the keeper's hands, 

 whereas the wild deer of old would sooner die than 

 come near to a man. Hence a true stalker would not 

 give a pin to shoot a tame crossed deer, whereas he 

 would willingly give £20 to shoot a pure wild head. 

 The latter, if self-stalked and shot, is a genuine trophy 

 of true sport, and the pleasure is never forgotten. I 

 believe that if a man were to live until he was a 

 hundred he would have greater pleasure in the re- 

 membrance of some worthy achievement in deer- 

 stalking than in that of any other sport. 



