13 AUGUST 1881, Page 21

A Handbook of Deer-Stalking. By Alexander Macrae. (Blackwood and Sons.)—No

book on this subject could come with a better re- commendation than that which so experienced a veteran in the art as Mr. Horatio Ross gives to the volume before us. "I am sure," he says, "that every old stalker will read it with delight, and every beginner with advantage." We are glad to see that Mr. Ross pro- nounces very strongly against driving deer to passes,—" a most Cockney-like, unsportsmanlike proceeding." But why "Cockney- like ?" It is the amusement of Princes. Cockneys are far better sportsmen. As to Express rifles, Mr. Ross says, "I am afraid they have led to much abuse, and I may add cruelty." Men try very long shots with them—the maximum, thinks Mr. Ross, should be 150 yards—and they shoot repeatedly. He saw a sportsman, so called, fire eight consecutive shots at a stag galloping. As to Mr. 31acrae's book, the reader must judge it for himself. It is plain, straight- forward, and practical, with a fresh touch of interest from the Gaelic. English in which it is written.