My First Gun. 9 



ding with old Chiarlie, the drummer of the 

 town band, who was a very great man in my 

 opinion. He would be considered a queer 

 figure for a drummer in these days ; his dress 

 (that is, his full dress) consisted of a long blue 

 frock coat very high in the collar, very short 

 in the waist, tight about the sleeves, and with a 

 general a{3pearance of there not having been 

 quite cloth enough, the whole finished off with 

 brass buttons, not many of them, but rather 

 large, a pair of what had been once white 

 buckskin breeches, bright tan leather gaiters, 

 a large wide napless hat, a rather good-tem- 

 pered-looking face, with a mouth always half 

 open, showing two or three long, ragged, and 

 yellow teeth ; the whole surmounted by a 

 pair of large green spectacles, and you have 

 aid Charlie the drummer. I had almost 

 forgotten one article, upon which he particu- 

 larly prided himself: that was a very wide, 

 well-cleaned white leather band, which en- 

 veloped his neck to support the drum, and 

 which gave him, as a finish to the blue coat, 

 a sort of semi-military appearance. Whenever 

 I had an opportunity I always ''followed the 

 drum," and at last got on speaking terms with 



