114 DEER-STALKING. 



alas ! when all was complete, Mrs. Sassenach took a 

 violent dislike to the place, and would not go there; 

 like a wise man, Mr. Sassenach went alone and took 

 his friends, and the first day he stalked, and during the 

 luncheon " sit " chatted away to his forester, who was 

 an old friend, and had been with him for many years, 

 and at last in a rash moment the master confided his 

 troubles somewhat in this way " Well, Donald, before 

 I bought this place we came up here eight seasons in 

 succession, and the poor little lodge was good enough, 

 and we were jolly enough in it; but now that the place 

 is mine, and I've spent thousands on building a splendid 

 house, conservatories, stables, and roads, Mrs. Sassenach 

 says she will not stay here she says it isn't healthy : 

 what do you say ? " Donald pauses, takes his pipe from 

 his lips, and like a thunderbolt comes his reply " She's 

 joost a dommed auld beest ! " 



Tableaux Donald dismissed on the spot, and master, 

 swearing hard, goes straight home. In the library five 

 hours later, Donald is very repentant, and humbly ask- 

 ing pardon ; master, very stern and frigid, slowly yields, 

 and Donald is to stay ; as the door closes behind the 

 downcast but plain-spoken forester, master falls back in 

 his arm-chair shaking from head to foot with laughter. 



In these pages the writer has said little on the subject 

 of hind-stalking, as his experience of it has been very 

 limited; neither has he made any mention of deer- 

 driving, as he has never even seen it on a large scale ; 

 his nearest approach to it has been in a few chats at 

 Brighton with the much-abused Mr. Winans. That 

 gentleman on one occasion frankly told him that he 



