HARBOURING AND TUFTING. 137 



between the branches, and unable to regain her foot- 

 ing to extricate herself, had perished miserably. Still 

 deer pay a deal of attention to the corn and turnip 

 fields around the covers, and, it need hardly be said, 

 work therein not a little havoc. Various means are 

 resorted to for excluding them ; but if once they grow 

 attached to a particular feeding ground it is difficult 

 to keep them out. There is of course a fund to make 

 good the damage as far as possible, but this would be 

 useless without the goodwill of the farmers, which in 

 almost every case is most freely and unselfishly given. 

 There is sometimes great difficulty in harbouring a 

 stag, when, as occasionally happens, the deer never 

 leave the cover to feed for days together. This was 

 the case during the earlier part of the hot, dry autumn 

 of 1884, which was enough to break a harbourer's 

 heart. In such circumstances the experience of har- 

 bourer and huntsman must make up as well as it can 

 for the deficiency. Stags have some few favourite 

 beds which are occupied by one tenant after another ; 

 and these being well known may be tried in default of 

 better information. Mr. Bisset frequently speaks of 

 one such favourite seat, '* the Oakbush in Haddon 

 Wood." On the open moor a stag with a herd may 

 be seen to lie down in the heather without there being 



