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Show 292 KILL A STAG OF EXTRAORDINARY SIZE. couch. The manner in which we passed these nights was not calculated to afford any very refreshing sleep ; for, to be ready, in case of an alarm, we could never venture to undress, but lay down in a buffalo skin and a blanket, and the same to cover us, with our loaded guns under the blanket to keep them dry. We were pretty safe from a surprise, two persons always keeping watch, relieved every two hours. On the 19th of September we set out early : a fog rose from the river, and we sat wrapped up in our cloaks, quite benumbed with cold, while the whistling cry of the elks was heard all around us. Five females of this species, followed by a proud stag, swam through the river before us; we fired too soon, on which the stag turned round; the animals came near us, and thereby afforded an opportunity to fire with effect; one of the animals was wounded, but proceeded on its way, and we did not get possession of it. At the moment, when the other animals sought to reach the bank, another noble stag appeared, which stopped at the distance of fifty paces, and uttered a loud cry. I quickly threw off my cloak, and took my rifle; but at that moment my pilot, Morrin, fired his long piece, and the stag fell. We immediately lay to, ascended the steep bank, and were astonished at finding a most magnificent stag of twenty antlers stretched on the ground. I immediately took the measure of the gigantic animal, and found the horns, from the head to the point of the uppermost antler, in a straight line, four feet one inch; the weight of both horns, sawn off at the head, was twenty-six pounds. The colour of the stag in this autumnal season was very beautiful: the whole body of a pale yellowish brown; the head, neck, the under side of the belly and extremities, a dark blackish-brown, which looked very handsome, especially at a distance. We soon had an excellent fire in the thick forest, which revived our chilled limbs. Breakfast was quickly got ready, and the enjoyment of it was much enhanced by our success. The stag was cut up, and the beautiful skin prepared entire for the zoological collection,* which gave us full employment till dinner-time. Meantime our beds and other baggage, which had been wetted by the rain, were dried, the sun shining pretty bright. When our work was finished, the boat was again loaded, and we put off from the bank. After the shot we had fired, the cry or whistle of the elks had ceased; but we saw several of those animals, and also buffaloes, flying in different directions. A little lower down we saw the fine deer killed by Dreidoppel, hanging on the drift-wood, but the stream carried us too rapidly for us to think of taking it. We often saw the black water-hen {Fulica Americana) and the magpie; and wounded some buffaloes, but did not stop to take them, because they did not immediately fall. Soon after four in the afternoon, the stags began again to whistle, and, amidst this strange concert, we came, after five o'clock, to the place where we had fastened to a tree in the forest * Unfortunately, this fine skin, which, with much trouble, I got up to Fort Clarke, was lost when the Assiniboin steamer was burnt in the summer of 1834. |
