CHAPTER THE LAST. 397 



horse set off at full gallop down the hill. Meier, who 

 was a little behind, seeing the impossibility of over- 

 taking him, levelled his rifle and shot him right through 

 the middle of the back. The man rolled out of the 

 cart quite dead. 



"This circumstance, as you may suppose, called 

 forth feelings of deadliest hate. All the poacher's 

 friends were mad with rage at their comrade's death. 

 Month after month this state of excitement lasted, and 

 time did not seem to abate their fury in the least. 

 They only waited for an opportunity to take their 

 revenge. 



" It was perhaps a year, or may be a year and a half, 

 after Meier had shot the poacher, that he and Probst 

 and Fuchs caught a couple of peasants out stalking 

 on the Schuss Kogel ; and having taken away their 

 rifles, and bound their hands behind them, marched 

 both off to the Justice at Miesbach. On their way 

 (it was a most incautious thing to do, and I cannot 

 conceive how they could act so) on their way they 

 stopped to rest on some moss in the wood. It was 

 a glade-like place, some few yards in extent, with trees 

 ah 1 round. They were sitting here with their prison- 

 ers, their rifles beside them, when suddenly a band 

 of armed men rushed out of the wood : they had fol- 

 lowed the keepers through the forest, and had stalked 

 close up to them unobserved. What could three men 

 do against such a number, attacked too as they were 

 quite unawares ? The poachers beat them dreadfully, 

 and only left them when they thought all were killed. 



