Snipe Shooting. 163 



may happen. Fortunate, too, that it is not more than half a mile on — 

 just behind those reeds there, where you killed the 201b. pike in October, 

 You remember it ? " 



" Ay, ay ! we lunched there and exhibited that fish ; but now I am wet, 

 it isn't so cold, and if I keep on walking I shain't mind it," and on we 

 tramped, picking up odd articles for the bag here and there. At length we 

 arrived at the locality we were bound for. It was a rough kind of bield, 

 made of reeds and rushes in which Rag was wont to shelter when he came 

 flight shooting. 



" Here, boy, hurry now ; run over and pull as much dry rotten stuff out 

 of yon hedge as will make a tire ; and Mike do you go and help him while I 

 set out the lunch and get Mr. E. a dry change." A heavy drink of whisky, 

 dry things, and a roaring tire soon set me all to rights again. 



From under a heap of reeds they fished out an iron pot which Mike filled 

 with water and set on the embers so that we might brew some hot toddy, 

 in which Mike's soul delighted. Strong hot toddy was to him the nectar 

 of the gods. Strength, however, was a material element in it, and I am not 

 sure that like Mr. Quilp he would not, if it depended on him, boil his spirit 

 and drink it out of the saucepan unadulterated for choice. 



"Ah," said Rag, as he pitched another armful of fodder on the blaze, 

 "what would that poor devil Slathers have given for a blink of this, 

 Mike ? " 



"Ay, an' a sup o' this, too," said Mike, pouring a strong dram from the 

 bottle into a horn, and swallowing it with a loud " pech." I looked 

 inquisitive. 



"A poor devil of a poacher named Slathers came here one night to 

 do a bit of poaching, and whether he had some beer in him or no, I don't 

 know, but he fell asleep ; it was a most bitter frost that night, and poor 

 Slathers didn't wake up in the morning. He wasn't found for three days, 

 no one chancing to come here." 



It was an eerie desolate kind of spot, and the story somehow made it 

 look more gloomy still. We were not much disposed to move, as the 

 afternoon was getting on, so we sat where we were and chatted, and kept 

 the boy and Mike moving to find fuel, while we smoked and brewed hot 



