AMENITIES OF SPORT 15 



many of its fading leaves from the shaking my laughter occa- 

 sioned. They had not fired many shots Claxton missed every- 

 thing when out came a half-dressed foreman on a pony, and, 

 after him, from different cottages, up came several labourers, all 

 clustering around and abusing the sportsmen. My brother was 

 an awkward customer for a foe to handle ; so I guessed that he 

 would care for Claxton's safety as well as his own. At first, mine 

 was but a bird's-eye view of it ; but the wrangling, threatening, 

 and fun came nearer. At last, I heard threats among the men 

 of seizing my brother ; on which, Claxton, who pretended to be 

 a foreigner, and not to speak English, and was a very funny- 

 looking little punchy fellow, put himself into the best-acted rage 

 I ever saw, and, brandishing his gun, and screaming with anger, 

 let out a sort of language pronounced as I spell it " Touchee 

 mon ami ! ha ! who Got for dam say ? Touchee mon ami ! 

 moil Dieu ! You sare who vat vos it, you sare? [To the 

 foreman.] You tooche mon ami, I shootee a vous, an blow 

 you a hello ! " This was attended with such an appearance of 

 frenzy, that I am convinced the foreman and his labourers all 

 looked on themselves as good as dead. At last they came into 

 the field where I was ; and their shots for they still beat on, 

 and fired at everything, in or out of distance rattled into my 

 elm-tree, and once or twice I hid my face behind its stem to 

 avoid being hit, dreading, too, every moment that Claxon would 

 see me, when, for fun, he would have been sure, even at the risk 

 of spoiling the day, to have pulled me into it. However, no one 

 saw me ; and my brother, finding that the fray was nearly over, 

 set to work beating the last field very closely ; the foreman and 

 his pony cutting across him, and, without actually touching him, 

 impeding his way. Presently the poor pony got such a kick on 

 the girths, from my brother, as sent him swerving for twenty 

 yards, and very nearly spilt his rider. The lane was then gained, 

 and the sportsmen crossed into our manor. In the lane, and 

 close to my ambush, the foreman ordered two of his men to 

 follow the offenders, who would soon, he said, be taken to by 

 us, and learn, if possible, their names. The coast clear, I left 



