48 WILD LIFE ON A NORFOLK ESTUARY 



"butt-darting," too, in winter, and many a little job to be 

 obtained in helping to overhaul yachts; for Breydon was, 

 until recent years, a favourite sailing-place for quite a fleet of 

 them. 



" Charley " Thacker, or " Young Stork " as he was nick- 

 named, to distinguish him from " Breydon Stork," his father, 

 and " Baker Stork," his brother, who divided his time between 

 his oven at home and his punt at Breydon, told me, when 

 chatting recently beside a comfortable fire, that when he was 

 only fourteen years of age, he shot alone with a big gun 

 carrying three-quarters of a pound of shot, and " that went 

 with a plug-breech and a cap," to distinguish it, in his descrip- 

 tion, from the flint-guns that were still in use. 



Let me introduce Thacker, who is a very fair representative 

 of his class. A little, tough-built, wiry fellow, turning grey at 

 sixty-four quiet and law-abiding, smelling strongly of 

 tobacco, but of drink knows when he has had sufficient, and 

 has followed Breydon since he was a child. He had passed 

 through all the stages I have just described, and until 

 recently used a punt-gun ; but as it was " starwashon 

 bizness" taking out a licence, he sold it not so long ago. 

 To-day he is factotum for a gentleman gunner, and during the 

 warmer months devotes his time to eel-babbing, and his 

 leisure in winter to picking. 



He ran over the gamut of the old Breydon gunners, as he 

 well knew them, and some of whom I have recollections of. 

 There was " Poker " Lamb, who gained his nickname un- 

 doubtedly by some fluke or great success at pochard killing; 

 for a name is soon obtained, even on some trivial pretext, 

 and it sticks to a Norfolk man the rest of his life. There 

 were " Breton " Lamb and " Salt-fish " Jex, " Silky " Watson, 

 who had a wealth of silken curls, " Pero " Pestell (still alive), 

 " China " Crickmer, of pugnacious memory ; " Jimmy " Butti- 

 fant, "Old Jack" Bessey, "Pintail" Thomas, his brother 

 " Gabey," " Fiddler " Goodens (still living), and many another 

 who had preceded them. One of the most notorious, and 

 whom I knew well, was " Cadger " Brown, to speak of whom 

 to this day will draw a smile from any Breydoner, for many 

 of his tricks were at their expense. Of him anon. 



Thacker's gossip was a lively description of Breydon men 

 and things. "Silky" Watson he knew from the time he left 



