Poachers 



213 



' 'e was verra gud to me when I was bad, and as long- 

 as there's a hare or a burrd on the estate 'e shanna 

 want for them ! ' But he was made almost too much 

 of at the hall, where one of the young ladies was his 

 devoted friend. She was extremely fond of a joke r 

 and would worm out of Andrew where on a certain 

 night he was going to poach, then she would tell the 

 keeper, and then make the muddle still greater by ex- 

 plaining to Andrew what she had done, and advising 

 him to take a new direction. For his part, he seemed 

 to have a kind of proprietarial pride in the fields. 

 On going his rounds he would mend a broken fence or 

 gate, t>r clear off the weeds that threatened to choke a 

 youngtree. So fardidthis go that he resented the intru- 

 sion of other poachers as vigorously as if he were the 

 owner. The poor harmless fellow died at a green old 

 age, and it is to the credit of those among whom he 

 lived that never once was he inside a gaol. Not that 

 he considered that a piece of good luck ; for it came 

 about in this way. The keeper was well aware from 

 his experience that his master never would prosecute 

 Andrew, so whenever he got hold of him among the 

 covers or preserves his plan was simply to take off his 

 coat and give the poacher a sound thrashing. As long 

 as the latter retained his vigour he thought this an 

 easy way of getting off, especially if, as sometimes 

 happened, he had not very much the worst of the en- 

 counter ; but he grew feeble as he advanced in years, 

 and the other, who was younger, had so decidedly 



