HIS NOBLE ANTLERS. 87 



he would have to lay out where he fell till Monday 

 a period of nearly forty-eight hours, and foxes, eagles, 

 or very heavy rain might all combine to spoil him. 

 This was not to be thought of. The lodge was but 

 four miles in a bee lyie, so telling Donald to look sharp 

 and go back for a pony as fast as he could, I volun- 

 teered to wait his return and help him to put the 

 stag on the saddle, for no one man could have done 

 this. Off went Donald ; and seating myself by my 

 prize I lit a pipe, and had ample time to admire 

 anew his goodly proportions and noble antlers a per- 

 fectly shaped " chandelier " horn, of great substance 

 and width, with very long, strong brow antlers, as were 

 also the three points on each top. Since then I have 

 carefully looked at many royal heads hanging round 

 the walls of friends' houses, and have. noticed but few 

 that can " take the shine " out of the one that then 

 laid by my side, which I will confess had already become 

 an object of speculation as to whether it would be 

 given me to grace the walls of my very small dining- 

 room. 



Time passed on, and also began to pass very slowly, 

 when two shots in the distance called me to attention ; 

 putting the spy-glass on to the place from whence 

 the sound came, I found my host and his man work- 

 ing a brace of dogs. From his pass he had seen 

 that the deer were away, and sending back for his 

 gun, he was having an afternoon with the grouse, and 

 shooting towards me. I quickly joined him, and he 

 shot up to where my trophies lay, getting eight 

 brace on the way; arrived there, we sat down and 



