3G WARWICK WOODLANDS. 



pose at the utmost, the birds kept rising as it were in- 

 cessantly — ^thirty-five, or, I think, nearly forty, being 

 flushed in less than tweiity minutes, although compara- 

 tively few were killed, partly from the difiieulty of the 

 ground, and partly from their getting up by fours and 

 fives at once. Into the high wood, however, at the last 

 we drove them; and there, till daylight failed us, we did 

 our work like men. By the cold light of the full moon 

 we wended homeward, rejoicing in the possession of 

 twenty-six couple and a half of cock, twelve brace of quail 

 — we found another bevy on our way home and bagged 

 three birds almost by moonlight — five ruffed grouse, and 

 a rabbit. Before our wet clothes were well changed, sup- 

 per was ready, and a good blow-out was followed by sound 

 slumbers and sweet dreams, fairly earned by nine hours 

 of incessant walking. 



DAY THE THIRD. 



So thoroughly was I tired out by the effects of the first 

 day's fagging I had undei'gone in many months, and so 

 sound was the slumber into which I sank the moment my 

 head touched the pillow, that it scarcely seemed as if five 

 minutes had elapsed between my falling into sweet for- 

 ' getfulness, and my starting bolt upright in bed, aroused 

 by the vociferous shout, and ponderous tramping, equal 

 to nothing less than that of a full-grown rhinoceros, with 

 which Tom Draw rushed, long before the sun was up, 

 into my chamber. 



"What's this, what's this now?" he exclaimed; "why 

 the plague am't you up and ready? — why here's the hit- 

 ters mixed, and Archer in the stable this half hour past, 

 and Jem's here with the hounds — and you, you lazy snort- 

 ing Injun, wasting the morning here in bed !" 



My only reply to this most characteristic salutation, was 

 to hurl my pillow slap in his face, and — threatening to fol- 

 low up the missile with the content^; of the water pitcher, 

 which stood temptingly within my reach, if he did not get 

 out incontinently — to jump up and array myself with all 

 due speed; for, when I had collected my bewildered 

 thoughts, I well remembered that we had settled on a 



