60 WARWICK WOODLA-\U6. 



"Follow the red dog, Frank !" cried Archer, "and go very 

 slow; there are birds here!" 



And as he spoke, while the dogs v^ere crawling along, 

 catlike, pointing at every step, and then again creeping 

 onward, up skirred two birds under the very nose of the 

 white setter, and crossed quite to the left of Harry. I saw 

 him raise his gun, but that was all; for at the self-same 

 moment one rose to me, and my ear caught the flap of yet 

 another to my right; five barrels were discharged so , 

 quickly, that they made but three reports; I cut my bird 

 well down, and looking quickly to the left, saw nothing 

 but a stream of feathers drifting along the wind. At the 

 same time, old Tom shouted on the right, 



"I have killed two, by George! What have you done, 

 boys?" 



"Two, I !" said Archer. ''Wait, Frank, don't you begin 

 to load till one of us is ready ; there'll be another cock up, 

 like enough. Keep your barrel; I'll be ready in a jiffy!" 



And well it was that I obeyed him, for at the squeak of 

 the card, in its descent down his barrel, another bird did 

 rise, and was making off for the open alders, wheii my 

 whole charge riddled him; and instantly at the report 

 three more flapped up, and of course went off unharmed; 

 but we marked them, one by one, down in the grass at the 

 wood edge. Harry loaded again. We set off to pick up 

 our dead birds. Shot drew, as I thought, on my first, and 

 pointed dead within a yard of where he fell. I walked 

 up carelessly, with my gun under my arm, and was act- 

 ually stooping to bag him, as I thought, when whiz! one 

 rose almost in my face; and, bothered by seeing us all 

 around him, towered straight up into the air. Taken 

 completely by surprise, I blazed away in a hurry, and 

 missed clean: but not five yards did he go, before Tom 

 cut him down. 



''Aha, boy I whose eye's wiped now ?" 



"Mine, Tom, very fairly ; but can that be the same cock 

 I knocked down, Archer?" 



"Not a bit of it; I saw your's fall dead as a stone; he 

 lies half a yard farther in that tussoc." 



"How the deuce did you see him? Why. you were 

 shooting your own at the same moment." 



"All knack, Frank ; I marked both my own and yours, 

 and one of Tom's besides. Are you ready I Hold up. 



