130 AMID THE HIGH HILLS 
the fence, at that season of the year stags have a 
wonderful way of getting through a fence if they 
want to do so. If he was mortally wounded after 
he got outside he would be sure to go back to the 
place where he was born and knew he was safe, and 
depend upon it he would find his way back through 
the fence where he got out. One can never be 
sure, but on the whole I think he is the stag you 
shot. You see the only way he could have gone 
that day without our seeing him was out of sight 
round that hill in the direction of the fenced-in 
part of the forest. I am sure he was mortally 
wounded, he had seen us ; and after seeing us, 
being wounded, he would go straight on, as you 
know, so long as his strength would carry him and 
he would go straight to his old home. They're 
wonderful in that way, deer are : I shall never 
forget how I was taught that years ago when I 
was out with the young chief at X." 
I asked the stalker to tell me the story, which 
1 give in his own words : " About twelve years 
ago, when I was a gillie at X, I was out one day 
with the chief's son late on in the season, about 
the end of the first week in October. About 
2 o'clock in the afternoon we saw a Royal stag 
and some hinds above the black shed, between 
