Wild-Geese in Spain 123 



which marshmen rely) seems to indicate a point where intellect 

 and instinct touch ; or perhaps rather a survival of the latter 

 quality which, in modern races, has become obsolete through 

 disuse. Among savage races that faculty of instinct is markedly 

 prominent, indeed the master-force ; luit there it has been acquired 

 (or retained) at the cost of intellect, which is not the case with 

 our Spanish friends — they possess both qualities. But place the 

 best intellects of Madrid, or Paris, or London in such conditions 

 - — in darkness, or fog, or in viewless forest^ — and not one could 

 hold a straight course for lialf-a-mile. Within ten minutes each 

 man would be lost, devoid of all sense of direction. That is 

 part of the price of the higher civilisation — the loss of a faculty 

 which need not clash with any other. Of course where people 

 live with a telephone at their ear, with electric trams and 

 " tubes " close at hand, where a whistle will summon an attendant 

 hansom and two a taxi-meter — or, as Punch suggested, three 

 may bring down an airship — well, in such case, those modern 

 " advantages " may be held to outweigh the loss of a primitive 

 natural faculty. 



Hardly had a tardy light begun to strengthen to the dawn 

 than the soft, soliloquising " Gagga, gagga, gagga," with alterna- 

 tively the raucous "Honk-honk," resounded afar through the 

 o'loom. From seven o'clock onwards oreese were flving close 

 around — so near that the rustling of strono- wincrs sounded almost 

 within arm's-length ; but that opaque fog held unbroken and 

 nothing could be seen. Long before eight I resolved to quit and 

 leave the fowl undisturbed for another morning rather than 

 open fire at so late an hour. Having a compass, I steered a 

 good line to the point where the horses awaited me, a mile away. 



The following morning again broke foggy, though not quite 

 so thick ; still I had onlv five g-eese at eia;lit o'clock, when three 

 packs coming well in, in rapid succession, afforded three gratify- 

 ing doubles. Total, eleven geese. 



Leaving the geese a few mornings' peace, on February 5 

 the authors together occupied that hole at dawn. It proved 

 a brilliant morning with a fine show of geese. As each pack 

 came in, we took it in turns to give the word whether to fire 

 or not. In the negative case, our eyes sank gently below the 

 surface of the earth, and crouching down we heard the rush of 

 wind-splitting pinions pass over and behind — probably to ofier 



