Little Deer
Many of those who have commented on the proposal to acclimatise the elk in Scotland seem to imply that deer of any sort are rare in England. They are, in fact, to be found in considerable quantity in most shires. Even the magnificent red deer are more widely distributed than is usually recognised. One would expect, considering its alluring prominence in the annals, still to have at least occasional acquaintance with venison and the pasty in days of carnal starvation. A considerable number of species of deer, other than red, roe and fallow, are at large, including the Muntjac, or barking deer, of which the late Duke of Bedford had great hopes. I have watched it in the wild and failed to admire it as a thing of beauty, compared at any rate with the dainty, lovely roe. On the other hand, it can provide a venison of incomparable savour. The trouble with deer, of course, is that they range and may be very destructive. The ranging Muntjacs, for example, were reduced to the state of venison at the request of market gardeners whose crops they ravaged, and red deer became officially vermin in New Zealand.
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