72 TEN YEARS OF GAME-KEEPING 



ing. I have suffered much through the untimely 

 blast of a horn, resulting on at least two occasions 

 in the ruination of most promising drives just as 

 the guns got to their places. Of course, if I could 

 have seen the birds pass over where I knew the 

 guns ought to have been, I should have stopped 

 the beaters. As it was, I could not see ; and being 

 well aware beforehand that I should not be able to 

 see, I had made extra special arrangements that I 

 should drive on immediately the horn sounded. 

 There was plenty of corroborative evidence that 

 the horn had sounded, and the only reason that I 

 could think of to account for no sound of shots was 

 that the birds had turned off. Naturally, the horn- 

 blower blamed everybody but himself. 



There is nothing like really well-organized driving 

 for showing what birds ground carries. It will show 

 a surprising lot of birds on ground upon which 

 those who do not know will tell you there are not 

 any. I remember in the first season of my keeper- 

 ship going over my ground on the afternoon pre- 

 ceding the first day's driving with one of the guns. 

 He appeared dreadfully sceptical at the prospect 

 of getting the forty-brace bag I hinted at. He 

 declared that there could not be any birds, since 

 one covey of nine was all we saw. We got forty- 

 five and a half brace (half being killed by one 

 gun), exclusive of a runner alleged to have been 

 manufactured by a gun who got rid of a big 



