KREUTH. 107 



" But how low down they were ! Who would have 

 thought of meeting them here ?" 



" Ay, who indeed ?" answered Berger. " I came 

 nearly as far as this when I went through the bushes ; 

 I thought it was far enough. Had I but gone a little 

 further, they would both have gone upwards, and have 

 come out, as I said, where you were standing. You 

 might then have brought down both." 



" If we had gone toward the Klause today, do you 

 think we should have seen anything?" I asked. 



" Yes," he replied, " for some capital places are there. 

 If we had seen no chamois, we might still have met with 

 deer. The number of stags there formerly was asto- 

 nishing. Even now, after so many have been killed, 

 fifty were shot quite lately. The order was given to 

 destroy them, so the under-gamekeepers shot all they 

 could find." 



" But what a pity to exterminate them in that way !" 



" Pity, indeed, for they do no harm to anybody, — 

 there is nothing for them to destroy. But you see it is 

 close to the frontier, and poaching now is carried on so 

 audaciously that we have no alternative but to shoot 

 everything." 



" Had you ever an adventure with any of the poachers 

 there?" I asked. 



" Oh, yes," said he ; " and once in particular I acted 

 foolishly enough ; I went to a hut, and finding the door 

 fastened on the inside, suspected there were some fel- 

 lows inside. Foolhardy as I was, I went to the back 

 window and tried to get in there. I had got my shoul- 

 ders through, when what should I see through the door 

 that divided the hut but a band of poachers who had 

 taken shelter there? Back I squeezed myself quick 

 enough, you may be sure. The fellows saw me too, but 

 I was off and behind a tree just in time." 



