Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1890-11-29
CHAPTER XXI.
THE END OF THE MATCH.

They began the afternoon with severa
small drives. but on the whole the birds did
very badly They broke back, went Oh %
one side or the other, and generally misbe
haved themselves In the first drive the
colonel and Edward Cossey got n bird each.
In the second drive the latter got three birds,
Bring five shots, and his Antagonist only got
q hare and pheasant that jumped out of a
ditch, neither OF which, of course, counted
anything Only one brace OF birds came bis
way at all. but II the truth must be told, he
was talking to tsa at the moment. and did
not see them till too late
Then came longer drive when the birds
were pretty plentiful The colonel got one.
low flying Frenchman. which he killed a.
he topped the fence, and after that for the
life of him he could not touch a feather.
Every sportsman knows what a fatal thing
1t is 10 begin to miss and then get nervous,
and that was what happened 20 the colonel
Continually there became distant cries OF
"Marki mark overir followed by the ap-
partition of half dozen brown balls showing
clear against the gray autumn sky, and
sweeping down toward him light lightning.
Whzz in front, overhead, and behind: bang.
bang, bang-again with the second gun, and
they were away-vanished, gone, leaving
nothing but memory behind them
The colonel swore beneath his breath, and
Ida, kneeling at his side, sighed audibly. but
1t was no use, and presently the drive was
done, and there he was with one wretched
French partridge TO show for It,
Ida said nothing, but she looked volumes,
and II ever a man felt kumiliated Harold
Quaritch was that man. She had set her
heart upon his winning the match, and he
was making an exhibition OF himself that
might have caused a school boy 20 blush.
Only Edward Cossey smiled grimly as he
told bis bearer TO give the two and half
brace which he had shot TO George
Last drive this next, gentlemen said
that universal functionary a. he surveyed
the eolonel's one Frenchman, and then,
CHANGING sadly at the tell tale pile OF empty
cartridge cases. added you'll have 10
shoot up. colonel, this time, IL you are going
10 win them gloves for Miss Ida Mr. Cos
sey has knocked up four brace and half.
and you have only got a brace Look you
here, sir, he went on in a portentous whisper,
keep torrard OF them, well forrard, DIRE
ahead and down they'll come You're q
better shot than he Is long way. You
could give aim birds, sir. that you could,
and beat him.
Harold said nothing. He was soreiy
tempted TO make excuses, a. any man would
have been, and he might with truth have
urged that he was not accustomed to part
ridge driving, and that one Of the guns was
new 10 him But he resisted manfully, and
said never a word
George placed the two guns and then went
or 10 join ths bcaterS IL was capital spot
for drive. for on each side were young
larch plantations, sloping down toward them
IKE V, the guns being at the narrow end
and level with the ends OF the plantations.
which were at this spot about hundred and
twenty yaris apart In front was a large
stretch OF open fields. lying In such fashion
that the birds we're bound 70 fly straight over
the guns and between the gap at ths end Of
the v shaped covers
They had 10 wait a long while, for the heat
was OF considerable extent, and this they did
in silence, till presently couple OF single
birds appeared coming down the wind like
lightning. for a stiffish breeze had sprung
up. One went TO the left over Edward
CoSsayis head. and he shot 1t very neatly,
but the other. catching sight OF Harold's hat
beneath the fence, which was not a very
high one, swerved and crossed, an almost
impossible shot, nearer sixty than fifty yards
/.