GENERAL REMARKS ii 



kill ; and at that corner, in this style, some twenty birds 

 were bagged. For the whole of the rest of the day we had 

 to stand next this terrible man, who never once appeared 

 to see us sit down or jump up, or in any way notice he was 

 regarded as an undesirable neighbour. 



Although the first few of these reckless shots had caused 

 considerable anger, the excitement of having to keep such 

 a very sharp look-out began to please us, until eventually the 

 ludicrous side of the matter so grew on us that before the 

 end of the day we were actually enjoying it. The other 

 guests also drew near and followed the example set, and then 

 anything more laughable than to see the two friends on 

 either side of their host tumbling down when his gun went 

 up and jumping up when his gun went down, could hardly be 

 seen out shooting. Once, however, safely at home, "previous 

 engagements " were always to the fore when further invita- 

 tions arrived from that quarter. 



The inevitable end came at last — it was wonderful it had 

 not come quicker — and our good friend has now retired from 

 the world of sport — not, however, without at last having hit 

 something, only it was a beater, not a hare, and the little 

 mistake (a trifle of some seventy pellets in the poor man's 

 thigh) having cost him about two pounds per pellet, he gave up 

 in disgust at the stupidity of beaters in getting in the way ; and 

 the pheasants at any rate must be condoled with on the loss of 

 a true friend. The moral of all this is, if out with a dangerous 

 man never take your eyes off hivi if he is within shot, and also, 

 go not forth with him twice, for such days as described are but 

 poor fun, and unless short of shooting invitations, the first 

 should always be the last. We cannot refrain from citing two 

 more ludicrous instances of the untrained but too enthusiastic 

 shooter. On the first occasion a keen but not young beginner 

 was driving with a friend in a brougham to a shooting meet ; 

 on nearing the cover many pheasants were to be seen running 

 off the roadside into the ditches, and our novice slipped a 



