MEETING WITH POACHERS. 245 



for we were close to each other, and neither Berger nor 

 myself took any pains to step lightly. But not sus- 

 pecting danger, and walking slowly on in a sort of 

 reverie, his ear must have been less alive than ordi- 

 narily to a passing sound. Though the path he had 

 taken along the mountain-top was much shorter than 

 ours, he had proceeded very leisurely, which accounted 

 for our reaching the same point at almost the very 

 same moment of time. 



"We won't return the usual way/' said Berger; 

 " let us go round by the fields, where we shall be sure 

 to meet no one." 



"Why? "I asked. 



" Only look what a state we are in ! how your 

 clothes are torn, and mine too ! If any person were 

 to meet us, they would be sure to suspect something 

 had happened, by our coming from the mountain 

 thus early. We have no pole either, a stick of some 

 sort we must have ; wait a moment and I '11 cut one 

 for each of us. There," he continued, after trimming 

 a couple he had procured from a fence, "there, that's 

 better than nothing in our hands : I would not be 

 seen in this plight for anything ; it is bad enough to 

 have had to retreat before those rascals, but for it to 

 be known, and for the people to know who it was and 

 to talk of it, that 's enough to drive one wild." 



We came to a stream, and passing through it bare- 

 footed, sat down on the bank to mend our things. 

 Needle and thread we had none ; so I divided the twist 

 of a piece of string, and making holes in the torn 



