82 WARWICK WOODLANDS. 



And, as he spoke, he moved a yard or two in front of us, and 

 under his very feet, positively startling me by their noisy flutter, 

 up sprang the gallant bevy : fifteen or sixteen well grown birds, 

 crowding and jostling one against the other. Tom Draw's gun, 

 as I well believe, was at his shoulder when they rose ; at least 

 his first shot was discharged before they had flown half a rood, 

 and of course harmlessly: the charge must have been driven 

 through them like a single ball ; his second barrel instant'y 

 succeeded, and down came two birds, caught in the act of 

 crossing. I am myself a quick shot, too quick if anything, yet 

 my first barrel was exploded a moment after Tom Draw's 

 second ; the other followed, and I had the satisfaction of 

 bringing both my birds down handsomely ; then up went 

 Harry's piece the bevy being now twenty or twenty-five yards 

 distant cocking it as it rose, he pulled the trigger almost before 

 it touched his shoulder, so rapid was the movement ; and, 

 though he lowered the stock a little to cock the second barrel, 

 a moment scarcely passed between the two reports, and almost 

 on the instant two quail were fluttering out their lives among 

 the bog grass. 



Dropping his butt, without a word, or even a glance to the 

 dogs, he quietly went on to load ; nor indeed was it needed : at 

 the first shot they dropped into the grass, and there they lay 

 as motionless as if they had been dead, with their heads 

 crouched between their paws ; nor did they stir thence till the 

 tick of the gun-locks announced that we again were ready. 

 Then lifting up their heads, and rising on their fore-feet, they 

 sat half erect, eagerly waiting for the signal. 



" Hold up, good lads !" and on they drew, and in an instant 

 pointed on two several birds. " Fetch !" and each brought his 

 burthen to our feet ; six birds were bagged at that rise, and thus 

 before eleven o'clock we had picked up a dozen cock, and within 

 one of the same number of fine quail, with only two shots 

 missed. The poor remainder of the bevy had dropped, singly, 

 and scattered, in the red bushes, whither we instantly pursued 

 them, and where we got six more, making a total of seventeen 

 birds bagged out of a bevy, twenty strong at first. 



One towered bird of Harry's, certainly killed dead, we could 

 not with all our efforts bring to bag ; one bird Tom Draw missed 

 clean, and the remaining one we could not find again ; another 

 dram of whiskey, and into Seer's great swamp we started : a 

 large piece of woodland, with every kind of lying. At one end 



