Captain Dabber. 5g 



sharp!'' '^Turn him out/' laughed the driver, scornfully. 

 '' That's a good 'un. I 'ain't got one to turn out, Master. 

 I went up to Muster Polecat's in the Marrerbun-road, as 

 you told me, and he ses, ses he, ^ 'Ave you brought the 

 money for the stag ? ' ses he. ' No, I hain't,' ses I. 

 ' Veil, then,' ses he, a turnin' short round on 'is 'eel 

 as he spoke, ' you jest go an' tell your guvner I hain't 

 a goin' to part v^ith my wallable hanimals until I sees 

 the colour of 'is money,' he ses, so with that, Master, I 

 makes the best o' my way to tell ye." Here was a pretty 

 go. The Captain for once was '' done brown," and he 

 did not for a moment know what to do. However, he 

 went back to the assembled sportsmen with the best face 

 he could command. '' Infernal nuisance ! Stag taken sud- 

 denly ill ; suppressed gout — a thing stags were very liable 

 to — excessively sorry ! If he had only have known earlier 

 would have asked his great friend. Lord Lambswool, for 

 one or two from his park. Would give it that idiot. 

 Polecat, for not letting him know earlier, directly he got 

 back to town. The only thing he could think of to wile 

 away the day would be to go and draw for a hare. Was 

 quite sure the farmers about wouldn't mind." The field 

 agreeing, after a good deal of grumbling, the Captain 

 turned short out of the road into the first fallow field he 

 came to, and to the great delight of everyone they had 

 not been in it two minutes when up jumped a banging 

 great hare. 



Away they all went, the hare just skirting a farmhouse. 

 The wily and foreseeing Captain, thinking the tenant might 

 not be best pleased at a stranger coming over his land, 

 gave his farm a wide berth, and with only two of the 

 field got well away. Not so the others, who rode into the 



