The Hunters Go In Pairs, The Foremost
Man Carrying In One Hand The Horns And Part Of The Skin Of
The head of a
deer and in the other a small bundle of twigs against which he from time
to
Time rubs the horns, imitating the gestures peculiar to the animal.
His comrade follows, treading exactly in his footsteps and holding the
guns of both in a horizontal position so that the muzzles project under
the arms of him who carries the head. Both hunters have a fillet of white
skin round their foreheads and the foremost has a strip of the same kind
round his wrists. They approach the herd by degrees, raising their legs
very slowly but setting them down somewhat suddenly after the manner of a
deer, and always taking care to lift their right or left feet
simultaneously. If any of the herd leave off feeding to gaze upon this
extraordinary phenomenon it instantly stops and the head begins to play
its part by licking its shoulders and performing other necessary
movements. In this way the hunters attain the very centre of the herd
without exciting suspicion and have leisure to single out the fattest.
The hindmost man then pushes forward his comrade's gun, the head is
dropped, and they both fire nearly at the same instant. The herd scampers
off, the hunters trot after them; in a short time the poor animals halt
to ascertain the cause of their terror, their foes stop at the same
instant and, having loaded as they ran, greet the gazers with a second
fatal discharge.
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