LEAVES FROM A GA^IE BOOK. 145 



reply ; and frosted were we, to be thawed, however, later 

 on, by hearing that Veracity had won, and that " Frosty " 

 was but a special pronunciation of the groom's own 

 devising. 



On the 22nd November came another of the annual bisf 

 days at Balls Park, where I found assembled Hal Phillips, 

 Charles Wodehouse, Mr. Monck (the late M.P. for 

 Gloucester), General Sir Charles Eeid, Harold Finch 

 Hatton, George Bonnor, Sir George Prescott, and Brydges 

 Willy ams. The total bag was 1054, of which 703 were 

 pheasants. During this day an extraordinary bit of luck 

 came my way. Up to lunch time we had had first-rate 

 sport, so much so that I had got rid of over three hundred 

 cartridges. On resuming work, I found my reserve 

 ammunition had in some way missed the cartridge cart, so 

 therefore I was quite cleared out. Sir George Prescott 

 kindly lent me a box of one hundred to go on with. 

 At this moment my host came up to whisper to me that 

 he feared one or two of his guests had not had quite 

 their share of sport, so would I mind taking a stand 

 in the ensuing beat which at the best would yield 



