SPORTING FRENCHMEN. 21 



" Diable!" said lie, "I have lost my marteau ;■'' and, sure 

 enough, the hammer of the gun had fled off behind, and in 

 my direction ; for be it known that I always get to the 

 rear of a Frenchman. After having narrowly escaped 

 being shot on several occasions, I came to the conclusion 

 that my life was more valuable to me than theirs, and 

 therefore dropped into the rear on their right side. It is 

 frequent to see the results of accidents, — blue marks in 

 the face, a missing finger, or such like; but how they 

 avoid worse I cannot conceive. The same special angel 

 which protects drunkards must keep an eye upon sporting 

 Frenchmen. Both barrels always at full cock, whether 

 climbing a hedo;e or threadino; a wood ; now and then the 

 trigger pulled wdth the gun at the hip, and occasionally 

 both triggers at once. Heaven only knows how they 

 escape. Then the cool complacency, the enviable aplomb 

 air, with which they claim the bird, though, Lord save 

 'em ! their shot were no nearer to it than themselves. No 

 Saxon can imitate it. Once while shooting with a young 

 man, a bird suddenly rose opposite to me and fled straight 

 away. Bang, bang! went my friend's two barrels over his 

 left side, as I distinctly saw, for his gun was across his body, 

 and he pulled the trigger in the hurry of bringing it round. 

 I then fired and killed. " Ah ! bon," said he ; and while I 

 was loading, he quietly w^alked forward and pocketed the 

 bird. "Tenez," cried I ; " c'est a moi." " Mais, non !" said 

 he, "je tirai, moi." " Yes, over that hedge," I said ; "for 

 your gun went off in your hand (as I plainly saw), and 

 the bird was in the air for some seconds afterwards." But 

 he was firm, and had possession. " Where is your wad- 



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