228 THE KEEPER'S BOOK 



ground they have lived on for years, with tricky winds 

 blowing up the corries, and take your " gentleman " 

 safely up to shooting distance. 



My experience of the deerstalkers I have met and 

 crawled with, and they are a goodly few, I look back 

 upon with the greatest pleasure. I have invariably 

 found them most delightful companions and keen (in 

 fact, sometimes too keen) sportsmen, and I may say that 

 some of the happiest days of my life have been spent 

 on the hillside in their company, and I don't think I am 

 wrong in calling them Nature's gentlemen. 



Now and again one comes across lazy and indifferent 

 stalkers (men who, in many cases, have become degener- 

 ate by the too frequent use of the black bottle), but, as 

 a rule, they are few and far between, and for them I have 

 no use, and have nothing to say. 



These fewlittle hints I am now writingare not meant 

 in the least to serve as advice to the old deerstalker 

 he has little to learn, and is as wise and cute as the 

 red deer himself or an old cock grouse on a mountain- 

 side ; but it is for the young stalker learning the practices 

 of his trade that I write these few lines of simple advice, 

 which may possibly be of use to him. For, looking back 

 on old stalking days, how well I remember many a long 

 and difficult stalk and crawl magnificently planned and 

 carried out by the stalkers, marred at the last moment 

 by some trifling error arising from want of experience. 

 Instead of the stalk being a red-letter day in the forest, 

 a day crowned by the prize of a goodly stag, it has ended 



