THE SPORTING WORLD. 145 



not give a chance of hitting ; but, with the 

 crack shot, if birds get up within ordinary gun 

 range, a brace of them may be as surely con- 

 sidered in the bag as if already there. 



There is one leading characteristic in the 

 pursuit of the shot which it is pleasurable to 

 state, Though I must hold it very far behind 

 hunting or racing in the public good it does, at 

 all events it neither does harm in itself or leads 

 to any. A pretty good character to give any 

 fashionable pursuit. 



I know what hypercritics and cynics will 

 say ; they will affirm what is quite true, it 

 leads to the strict preservation of game, and 

 that leads to affrays between gamekeepers and 

 poachers, which often end in outrage and sometimes 

 death, more frequently in imprisonment or trans- 

 portation. **What!" exclaim these very philan- 

 thropic persons, "imprison a man, (which is the 

 mildest punishment that awaits the poacher) tear 

 him away from his family '^ (I quote words 



