84 DEER-STALKING. 



fed away from us over the hill top and out of sight. 

 The question now was, could we venture to creep across 

 the flat without being detected by these two little 

 " beasties " ? We determined to try; and then began 

 one of the longest, most tedious, and wettest of creeps I 

 have ever had to undertake. The flat was simply a 

 morass, and no hillock or water-course to shelter us 

 higher than two feet or deeper than one. Forth we 

 crept,, as if we had been own brothers to the original 

 serpent ; in a moment we are wet from breast to knees, 

 sinking well over our elbows at every movement, often 

 having to wait motionless for many minutes while these 

 two little despicable and provoking stags ceased feeding 

 and gazed about them. When we were three parts 

 across, to our great joy they turned off after the herd, 

 and pleasant indeed was the relief of standing up and 

 beginning a run ; but we had not done with them yet, 

 fur one turned back ; luckily we saw his horns coming 

 into sight, and down we dropped as flat and still as two 

 stones. This quite did away with any pretence of being 

 dry, for in going down I slipped, and fell on my back 

 in a pool, and there laid for some time, afraid to stir 

 hand or foot; the cause of our trouble, having un- 

 consciously put us to all the annoyance possible, at 

 length turned and went off, and in safety we got to 

 the hillock at the edge of the flat. Here we took 

 the rifle out of the case, and began to crawl up ; 

 having advanced about a hundred yards in this way, 

 the hinds could be seen on either side of us, and 

 almost within shot ; and as they were feeding quietly 

 and no stags were visible, it became next door to 



