Our  plan  was  soon  made.  I  was  to  stalk  him  with  the  rifle,  while
Donald,  with  my  gun  and  Bran,  was  to  get  round,  out  of  sight,  to  the
pass  by  which  die  deer  was  likely  to  leave  the  valley.  My  task  was
apparently  very  easy.  After  getting  down  behind  the  rock,  I  had
scarcely  to  stoop  my  head,  but  to  walk  up  within  shot,  so  favourable
was  the  ground  and  the  wind.  I  walked  cautiously,  however,  and  slow,
to  give  Donald  time  to  reach  the  pass.  I  was  now  within  three  hundred
yards  of  him,  when,  as  I  leant  against  a  slab  of  stone,  all  hid  below  my
eyes,  I  saw  him  give  a  sudden  start,  stop  feeding,  and  look  round  sus-
piciously. What  a  noble  beast !  what  a  stretch  of  antler !  with  a  mane
like  a  lion  !  He  stood  for  a  minute  or  two,  snuffing  every  breath.  I
could  not  guess  the  cause  of  his  alarm ;  it  was  not  myself ;  the  light
wind  blew  fair  down  from  him  upon  me.  I  knew  Donald  would  give
him  no  inkling  of  his  whereabouts.  He  presently  began  to  move,  and
came  at  a  slow  trot  directly  towards  me.  My  pulse  beat  high.  Another
hundred  yards  forward,  and  he  is  mine !  But  it  was  not  so  to  be.  He
took  the  top  of  a  steep  bank  which  commanded  ray  position,  and  he  saw
me  in  an  instant,  and  was  off,  at  the  speed  of  twenty  miles  an  hour,  to
a  pass  wide  from  that  where  Donald  was  hid.     While  clattering  up  the

VOL.  LXXVII.  NO.  CLIII.  G  hill,


82  Highland  Sport.
