194 WjLD spouts op the highlands chap. 



me, and not above fifty yards off, looking with astonishment at 

 the group before him, who had taken possession of the very 

 spot where he had intended to slake his thirst. The deer 

 seemed too much astonished to move, and for a moment I was in 

 the same dilemma. The rifle was on the ground just behind 

 the slumbering Donald. I was afraid the deer would be off out 

 of sight, if I got up to take it, or if I called loud enough to 

 awake Donald. So I was driven to the necessity of giving him 

 a pretty severe kick, which had the effect of making him turn 

 on his side, and open his eyes with a grunt. " The rifle, Donald, 

 the rifle," I whispered, holding out my hand. Scarcely knowing 

 what he was at, he instinctively stretched out his hand to feel 

 for it, and held it out to me. All this takes some time to 

 describe, but did not occupy a quarter of a minute. At the 

 same instant that I got the rifle, the gillie lifted up his head 

 from the water, and half turning, saw the stag, and also saw 

 that I was about to shoot at him. With a presence of mind 

 worthy of being better seconded, he did not raise himself from 

 his knees, but remained motionless with his eyes fixed on the 

 deer. As I said before, I had never killed a deer, and my hand 

 shook, and my heart beat. I fired, however, with, as I thought, 

 a good aim at his shoulder. The deer at the instant turned 

 round. After firing my shot, we all (including Donald, who 

 by this time comprehended what was going on) ran to the top 

 of the bank to see what had happened, as the deer disappeared 

 the instant I fired. I had, I believe, missed him altogether, 

 though he looked as large as an ox, and we saw him going at 

 a steady gallop over the wide flat. Donald had out the glass 

 immediately, and took a steady sight at him, but having watched 

 the noble animal, as he galloped up the opposite slope and stood 

 for two or three minutes on the summit, looking back intently 

 at us, he shut up the telescope with a jerk that threatened to 

 break every glass in it, and giving a grunt, vastly expressive of 

 disgust, returned to the well, where he took a long draught. 

 His only remark at the time was, " There's no the like of that 

 stag in the country ; weel do I mind seeing him last year when 

 shooting ptarmigan up yonder, and not a bullet had I. The 

 deil's in the rifle, that she did na kill him ; and he'll cross the 

 river before he stops." It required some time, and some whisky 

 also, to restore Donald to his usual equanimity. 



