n with an exclamation that betokened
both pain and surprise. The water was almost boiling!

"Well," said he, "this is convenient at all events. If we only had a
teapot, we should need no kettle. Here's water on the boil at all
hours!"

"Ha!" ejaculated Karl, as he dipped his fingers into the hot stream;
"this explains the high temperature of the valley, the rich luxuriant
vegetation, the presence of plants of the lower region; I thought that
there was some such cause. See, yonder grow magnolias! How very
interesting! I should not wonder if we meet with palms and bamboos!"

Just at that moment the attention of the party was called away from the
hot spring. A noble buck came bounding up until he was within twenty
yards of the spot, and then halting in his tracks, stood for some
moments gazing at the intruders.

There was no mistaking this creature for any other animal than a stag.
The vast antlers were characteristics that left no room to doubt of his
species. He was about the size of the European stag or red-deer, and
his branching horns were very similar. His colour, too, was reddish
grey with a white mark around the croup, and his form and proportion
were very like to those of the English stag. He was, in fact, the
Asiatic representative of this very species--known to naturalists as the
_Cervus Wallichii_.

At sight of the party around the spring, he exhibited symptoms more of
surprise than of fear. Perhaps they were the first creatures of the
kind his great large eyes had ever glanced upon. He knew not whether
they might prove friendly or hostile.

Simple creature! He was not to remain long in doubt as to that point.
The rifle was brought to bear upon him, and the next moment he was
prostrate upon the ground.

It was Karl who had fired, as Caspar with the double-barrel was standing
at some distance off. All three, however, ran forward to secure the
game, but, to their chagrin, the stag once more rose to his feet and
bounded off among the bushes, with Fritz following at his heels. They
could see that he went upon three legs, and that the fourth--one of the
hind ones--was broken and trailing upon the ground.

The hunters started after, in hopes of still securing the prize; but
after passing through the thicket they had a view of the buck still
bounding along close by the bottom of the cliffs, and as yet far ahead
of the hound. It was near the cliff where the animal had been wounded,
for the hot