POACHING AGAIN. 363 



I took them to my house, and asked them to 

 sit down and make themselves as comfortable 

 as they could, giving them a bit of supper and 

 a pipe of tobacco, and telling them to cheer 

 up as we would make as good a job as we 

 could out of a bad one. 



"Well, keeper," they would say. "Don't 

 hurt us more than you can help. 



" No, lads," I used to reply. " I shan't be 

 hard on you/' I invariably stuck to my word, 

 too ; no matter how much I might have been 

 prejudiced against any man, I always aimed 

 to give him fair play. 



When poachers are brought before the 

 Bench, and their case comes on, don't, if you 

 are a witness, try to paint the affair as black 

 as Satan in order to get them a long term of 

 imprisonment ; just tell the truth without any 

 colouring, for the prisoners have tlieir eyes 

 and ears open, and they will twig it in a 

 moment if you are trying to send them to the 

 devil. You will get no credit, either way, 

 from trying to colour your case, for the 

 magistrates will see through you and will ease 



