A Sportsman at Large 161 



guests of mine at "La Villa Leontine," Monte Carlo, for 

 Bizzy and I to repair to La Salle des Bains, at the Condamine, 

 there to indulge in a plunge in the salt-water swimming bath, 

 which though of very limited surface area, was quite twelve 

 feet deep. 



On one occasion my auburn-haired friend was the first 

 to indulge in his " header." As he regained the steps he 

 scrambled out hurriedly with his hand clapped closely to the 

 spot usually occupied by the counterfeit presentment of the 

 human optic. 



" Cockie ! Cockie ! " he wailed miserably. " I've lost my 

 eye ! " 



" All right, Biz. Keep your hair on. I'll soon retrieve it." 

 So saying, I approached the bath and looked down into 

 its crystal- clear depths. There lay the derelict eye on the 

 tiled bottom, staring up at me with such a comical expression 

 that I burst out laughing, and called its owner to share my 

 merriment. He had been quite disgruntled, but the humour 

 of the situation proving irresistible, he joined heartily in my 

 mirth. 



" Go on, Cockie ; get it quick, there's a good chap ! " 

 Down, down, I went, and soon had that dreadful staring 

 eye safely clutched. When I returned it to its owner, he 

 popped it into the vacant socket with incredible rapidity. 

 Evidently practice had made perfect. 



It was during one of my later visits to the Riviera that 

 friend Day introduced me to one Baron Brebner, an Austrian 

 Minister of rank, who had been deputed by his chief, the 

 distinguished and highly intellectual diplomat, M. Ch. de 

 Kalay (at that time Governor of Bosnia- Herzgovina and 

 Minister of the Interior at Vienna), to make the acquaintance 

 of the leading lights of the shooting world, and to invite 

 them, in the name of the Austrian Government, to a great 

 International concourse which was to be held the following 

 autumn at Ilidji, near Sarajevo (where you will remember 

 in July, 1914, the first spark was laid to the fuse which was 

 to ignite the fires of Armageddon) . The Baron was a charming 



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