Introductory. 9 



pervious to the delights of dropping any 

 feathered thing less untamed than the wid- 

 geon from farthest north, took the measure of 

 a stream of pheasants gliding still-winged but 

 at express-train speed across the narrow slit 

 of sky seen between the dense tree - tops 

 above. As he dealt certain death to each 

 of those outstretched heads darting from the 

 dark line of foliage out against the blue of 

 the heavens, only to throw up and drop as 

 if they had dashed into an invisible wall, 

 flight-shooting was forgotten for the moment. 

 So too with J., whose forte is rabbits, — 

 rabbits in thousands, miraculously snapped up 

 from the hip or from any position for which 

 their lightning scurry from hole to hole gives 

 time. He felt far from dull yesterday, when, 

 standing well back from the high hedge, he 

 cracked down the driven partridges whizzing 

 over him like cricket-balls from the bat of 

 Jessop — now in front, now overhead, now with 

 a jump round behind, until his bewildered 

 loader gave up trying to remember how many 

 were down. 



