3o8 WILD SPORTS OF THE HIGHLANDS chap.' 



his hard hoofs struck the stones, and at one time he had to 

 pick his way through a wet splashy piece of marsh, which he 

 did deliberately and slowly, occasionally looking round at the 

 shepherd below him. At this time we could not move or lift 

 our heads for fear of being seen, but had to wait till the deer had 

 passed the rocks amongst which we were concealed, that we 

 might let slip the hounds at a distance of about thirty or forty 

 yards. The deer was now close to us, not more than ten yards 

 off, but we did not want to let the dogs go for fear of turning 

 him back again into the valley from which he had come, where 

 the ground was not nearly so favourable for the dogs as the slope 

 on the other side of us. We heard him tramp past us as he 

 trotted slowly along on the other side of the rocks behind which 

 we were concealed. The next moment he had cleared the rocky 

 ground, and was in full view about thirty yards from us, on a 

 wide expanse of good heather-ground. The dogs saw him too, 

 and getting to our feet, we slipped them. 



With one affrighted glance behind him, away went the stag, 

 at first along the top of the slope, as if anxious to keep above 

 the dogs ; but finding himself hard pressed, he turned his head 

 down the hill, and the race began. Down they went, the dogs 

 close on the stag. Now and then they tried to spring on him, 

 but his strength and quickness always enabled him either to 

 shake them off or to elude them ; indeed after running for some 

 distance he seemed rather to gain on the dogs than to lose ground. 

 Finding this, they seemed more intent upon trying to tire him 

 out than to seize him, and galloped along, keeping somewhat 

 above him, as if to drive him into the burn, where he would 

 come to bay. The stag tried again to ascend the slope, but 

 could not manage it ; his wind began to fail, and he turned 

 straight down, gaining a little on the dogs. Crossing some 

 rather wet ground, they were again up to him, and he only 

 escaped being pulled down by his great strength, which enabled 

 him to shake off the hounds more than once. It was clear that 

 his object was now to gain the burn. All three were evidently 

 beginning to fail, as the chase had already lasted some time. 



Malcolm and I had now reached the burn also, having made 

 for it in a straight line as soon as the dogs were slipped. As 

 luck would have it, deer and hounds all passed us down the 

 stream, the dogs panting, and the deer with his tongue hanging 



