STALKING GAME. I 13 



seen through under favourable circumstances, but at other times appears quite as 

 opaque as the first-named cover. 



Of these two kinds, the imperfect cover is by far the more subtle in its uses. 



In some sombre, old-fashioned London houses and in many old inns, hotels, 

 and offices there is a device over the lower parts of the windows of the ground floor 

 constructed of horsehair, wickerwork, or other material. This serves to screen the 

 interior of the room from the inquisitive researches of the errand-boy and other 

 gentlemen of leisure. I am not aware of the correct title by which these devices 

 are known, but they must be familiar things to most of my readers. 



Their uses are to permit the occupants of rooms to see out of the windows, 

 whilst denying to the passers-by in the streets the privilege of gazing in. Nowadays 

 these devices are largely superseded by muslin curtains and other less-forbidding 

 excluders. I remember as a small boy I used to ponder on the merits of one such 

 mar\^ellous device, and wonder at its ingenuity. I used to try to puzzle out how it 

 came about that from the inside of a certain room the excluder looked transparent, 

 though things seen through it often appeared rather indistinct, while from outside in 

 the street the excluder appeared perfectly opaque. When I went close to the 

 window and looked very closely through this screen, objects no longer appeared 

 indistinct, but quite clear, whereas the farther I went towards the other side of the 

 room the more difficult was it to see things plainly. " Distance," then, made the screen 

 sight-proof, or, at any rate, increased the difficulty of seeing through it. However, 

 there was another point over which my childish mind pondered long. That was, why 

 from the area railings (a distance of but a few yards from the window) should the 

 interior of the room be invisible, when from the back of the room (representing a 

 greater distance from the window) the area railings were quite visible, though 

 somewhat indistinct. This problem afforded reflection for considerable periods 

 during my temporary visits to the house that possessed this wonderful window. 

 The problem was finally solved one night when I happened to be outside in the 

 area when the gas inside the room had been lit, but the shutters had not as yet 

 been closed. To my delight 1 found that I could see quite clearly into the room. 

 So this, then, was the solution of the second problem — namely, light — or, as I 

 presently understood, the relative amount of light inside and outside the room. 

 Whoever stood on the lighter side of the window was visible, whereas whoever 

 stood on the darker was invisible. But my readers will be getting bored with the 

 musings of a small child. SuHice it to say that a complete understanding of these 

 two principles, namely, (i.) light and shadow, and (ii.) distance, practically sums up 

 the art of using imperfect cover. 



Q 



