244 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 



of the cabin, where he perceived by the situation 

 of the constellations of stars and other phenom- 

 ena of the heavens, with which he was familiar, 

 that it was about an hour before daylight ; and it 

 occurred to him that probably the best way to 

 supply the lacking breakfast was to take his rifle 

 and the few remaining cartridges which he pos- 

 sessed, and go in quest of a deer or other game. 

 Going to the rack on which hung his gun and 

 ammunition he took them down, performed such 

 a hurried toilet as time allowed him, and imme- 

 diately started forth. He narrated to me in great 

 detail the route which he traversed. This led him 

 over a path with which I had become well ac- 

 quainted, as we had often ridden over it together. 

 Few people in this country walk, but this time 

 Castro was on foot ; for even the horse, which is 

 a Mexican's last property to be sacrificed, had been 

 parted with. After passing over some two miles 

 of the trail he arrived at a point_ where, from 

 the bottom of the arroyo, the grassy hills covered 

 with live-oaks rose on either side. Pausing at 

 this spot, the gray of dawn was sufficient for him 

 to distinguish a fine buck feeding on fallen acorns 

 under one of the oaks on the hillside. He was 

 not at all nervous, took very deliberate aim, fired, 

 and the deer fell. He then climbed the ascent, 

 cut the animal's throat, hung the carcass in the 

 nearest tree, disembowelled it, so that it might 



