THE SHOOTING-YACHT. 225 



the floor of the boat. Small boats are more liable than large ones to 

 sudden movements, as rolling and pitching : and a slight jerk will 

 sometimes cause a gun to explode. 



No sudden surprise should induce a man to forget that he holds 

 in his hand the most dangerous and deadly of weapons, and that the 

 slightest thoughtlessness may cause a fatal accident, which would em- 

 bitter with sorrow the remainder of his days, and probably plunge his 

 dearest relatives in the deepest grief; all of whom perhaps, the 

 moment before, were gay and cheerful, because their lives were 

 unclouded by regret, but bright with the fairest sunshine of happi- 

 ness. I can picture to myself no sharper sting of remorse, than to 

 have hurried a fellow-creature into eternity through incaution. 



An engraving of a modern shooting-yacht, under the most useful 

 form of rig, may be seen at page 215. 



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