256 MR. SPONGE'S SPORTING TOUR. 



just go on as usual, you know," continued he, with a flourish cf 

 his great red hand. 



" As usual ! " exclaimed Sponge, " you don't s'pose one's pen 

 goes of itself." 



" Why no," replied Jack, knocking the ashes off his cigar on 

 to the arabesque-patterned tapestry carpet — " why no, not exactly ; 

 but these things, you know, are a good deal matter of course ; just 

 describe what you saw, you know, and butter Puff well, that's the 

 main point." 



" But you forget," replied Sponge, " I don't know the country, 

 I don't know the people, I don't know anything at all about the 

 run — I never once looked at the houuds." 



" That's nothin'," replied Jack, " there'd be plenty like you in 

 that respect. However," continued he, gathering himself up in 

 his chair as if for an effort, " you can say — let me see what you can 

 say — you can say, ' this splendid pack had a stunning run from 

 Hollyburn Hanger, the property of its truly popular master, Mr. 

 Puffing-ton,' or— stop," said Jack, checking himself, " say, ' the 

 property of its truly popular and sporting master, Mr. Puffington.' 

 The cover's just as much mine as it's his," observed Jack ; "it 

 belongs to old Sir Timothy Tensthemain, who's vegetating at 

 Boulogne-sur-Mer, but Puff says he'll buy it when it comes to the 

 hammer, so we'll flatter him by considering it his already, just as we 

 flatter him by calling him a sportsman — sportsman ! " added Jack, 

 with a sneer. " he's just as much taste for the thing as a cow." 



" Well," said Sponge, looking up, " I've got ' truly popular and 

 sporting master, Mr. Puffington,' " adding, " hadn't we better say 

 something about the meet and the grand spread here before we 

 begin with the run ? " 



"True," replied Jack, after a long-drawn whiff and another 

 adjustment of the end of his cigar ; " say that ' a splendid field of 

 well-appointed sportsmen' — " 



" A splendid field of well-appointed sportsmen," wrote Sponge. 



" * Among whom we recognised several distinguished strangers 

 and members of Lord Scamperdale's hunt.' That means you and 

 I," observed Jack. 



" ' Of Lord Scamperdale's hunt — that means you and I ' " — read 

 Sponge, as he wrote it. 



" But you're not to put in that ; you're not to write ' that 

 means you and I,' my man," observed Jack. 



" Oh, I thought that was part of the sentence," replied 

 Sponge. 



" No, no ; " said Jack, " I meant to say that you and I were 

 the distinguished strangers and members of Lord. Scamperdale's 

 hunt ; but that's between ourselves you know." 



" Good," said Sponge ; " then I'll strike that out," running his 



