INTRODUCTION 71 



moment when the sudden appearance of a hind or a 

 sheep, or change of wind, threatens to upset his most 

 carefully considered strategy and spoil his stalk ; then 

 the last crawl to some particular boulder or heathery 

 knoll within shot of which the big stag is grazing, or 

 the more easy approach to an overhanging precipitous 

 rock where he may lie down in comfort and ' wait for 

 him to rise,' and, lastly, when he does rise, the 

 thrilling moment before the shot is fired. ' To be or 

 not to be ! ' Can any man who has gone through 

 such scenes and experiences say that even an un- 

 successful day in a deer forest is not a thing worth 

 living for ? 



Let us now take weather as an element in the 

 consideration of the problem. As regards the com- 

 fort or discomfort of pursuing any particular form of 

 sport in bad weather, there is not much to choose. 

 The grouse-shooter, perhaps, experiences most incon- 

 venience in this respect. He requires to use his gun, 

 or at any rate be ready to use it, frequently, and in 

 rainy weather he cannot protect himself as efficiently as 

 the stalker, the fisherman, or the hunter. There are 

 also minor troubles in regard to his ammunition, injury 

 to the game, and so forth. But as regards the practical 

 effect on the sport itself, I think that, judged by the 

 test of weather, deer-stalking more than holds its 



