236 EEMINISCENCES OF A HUNTSMAN. 



to approach him as if carelessly, he seemed to come to 

 the conclusion that an encounter would probably take 

 place ; so he left the common and entered a cottage. On 

 this I knocked at the cottage door, called him by name, 

 and told him if he would come out with his gun on 

 the common I would take it from him, for that I had 

 seen him use both dog and gun in shooting game. I 

 was too far off to see what it was he killed, though I 

 saw him stoop to pick it up. He made no reply : 

 so I went to the nearest justice, Mr. Hopkins, and 

 having stated who it was 1 was after, and the facts 

 as to the former summons and warrant, requested 

 that I might be sworn in as a special constable to 

 take him. When I made this application it was 

 chiefly with a view to the former warrant, but Mr. 

 Hopkins objected, as I had a charge against him, 

 though he had no objection to swear in any other 

 man specially, to take him under the charge then 

 made. A man was soon found in the person of my 

 butler, Cratchley. I was perfectly satisfied with this, 

 and told him to call on me and my keepers to aid and 

 assist. I offered also to take the brother of the man 

 if the warrant for him was given me, but this the 

 magistrate declined ; so we only took the man against 

 whom I had the charge of poaching. His brother 

 was by, but did not interfere ; our prisoner, as he 

 very soon was, used a sharp-pointed carving-knife to 

 defend himself, and resisted as much as he could, till 

 he got a broken head, and that settled the affair. 

 This all happened in the afternoon of the day on 

 which the poaching act was committed, when, as we 

 were taking our prisoner away, his mother said he 

 couldn't go Avithout his hat ; she ran in and fetched 

 it, and as she turned it up to put it on his head, he 



