SHOOTING 15 



several pheasants were burnt in effigy on a bonfire 

 lighted for the purpose; and a great cry of relief 

 rose to heaven from the local Cottage Hospital, 

 which had long been filled to overflowing with 

 the victims of Colonel Vipont's misguided zeal. 



One of the commonest sources of danger out 

 shooting is the popular delusion that a hearty 

 luncheon, in which alcohol plays no insignificant 

 a part, exercises a beneficial and steadying effect 

 upon a man's aim. A Virginian friend of mine 

 told me that he had entirely renounced the use 

 of spirits while coon-hunting, as he found that 

 they caused him to become torpid and somnolent, 

 and greatly increased his natural inclination (as 

 he picturesquely put it) to " hug a fence." 



Lord Burlingham, on the other hand, used 

 frequently to assure me that he attributed his 

 remarkable proficiency with the fowling-piece 

 entirely to the fact that his loader was always 

 provided with a flask of rare old brandy, with 

 which he liberally dosed his noble master when- 

 ever the latter' s energies showed signs of flagging. 

 The result of this was that towards the end of a 

 day's sport his lordship had usually reached 

 that happy condition of mind in which a man 

 sees everything trebled; each pheasant that 

 rocketed over his head seemed to him to be 



