WARD GRUMBLES AT OUR INACTION. 191 



intense horror and to Mrs. Pe} r ton's infinite amuse- 

 ment. But this rose-water sort of thing could not 

 go on, at least so thought one of the party. 



" Beally, this will never do ! " exclaimed Ward, 

 as one fine scenting morning we smoked the morning 

 pipe on the fir brae " never do at all. Some 

 thirty brace of grouse in the best part of a week ; 

 the north beats not even touched, and the birds 

 daily becoming wilder." 



"What of that, thou forlorn Hope," Major 

 Duncan laughingly said ; " there is wide time to 

 kill half the grouse in the country, if you keep 

 cool and haud straicht, as Archie advises ; besides, 

 we can't leave our friends quite alone." 



" Nonsense, Major. My aunt, and girls too, for 

 that matter, would be miserable, if they suspected 

 that the shooting was going to pigs and whistles 

 on their account ; they would go off at once, I can 

 assure you." 



"Well, well, I suppose you must temporise; and 

 pray manage it with your gentle diplomacy." 



" Oh, YOU need not laugh, Abbott," said Ward, 

 on seeing me smile ; "I can arrange it all easily, 

 and with perfect fair play to them, too. Why, look 

 at their resources pony-phaeton, kilted Jehu, lovely 



