such an occasion. Then he desired us to watch the manner in which he would stop the flight of some unlucky passer-by, boasted of the distance his gun would carry, and many other conceits.

"D-n that fellow!" said G-, aloud to me in English; "he will ruin our sport with that magpye tongue of his. Such a noisy rascal ought to have been in the rear of the wolves to drive them along with his screeching, instead of being perched where he is."

Fortunately, however, the little wind there was blew directly towards us, and from the direction in which the beaters were advancing, so that the chattering on the outposts could not be heard at any distance in the wood.

Several hours elapsed before the approach of the beaters was distinguishable. In a dense wood such as they were in, and situated on a plain, sound is not heard at a great distance. There is no re echoing, as among the mountains, of the shouting and firing,-none of the enlivening sounds which come pealing along the valleys, and fall with such delight on the ear of the watching hunter. A dull low hum which came down the wind was the sole herald of their advance; while now and then a stray shot from the files on the outskirts of the wood told us that a wolf had been seen, either endeavouring to escape from the wood, or dashing forward to its upper extremity.

It was now mid-day, and the sun shone forth with dazzling brightness, burnishing our gun-barrels in a manner the most unfavourable to a sportsman. Here, however, the Basque barrets which G and I wore were invaluable. Their broad brims completely sheltered our eyes from the sun's rays, while in colour they were scarcely distinguishable from the heath in which we were imbedded. In this respect we had the advantage of our companions, whose Catalan-like caps gave them no shelter whatever.

Everything being prepared for an honourable reception of the enemy, -even the heath twigs being laid gently aside in front, in order to give us a freer range, we now anxiously awaited the result. Gradually the straggling shots of the beaters broke the monotonous bum of their advance, and the raven and wild swan, soaring away from their disturbed retreat, passed screaming over our heads. A breathless silence now reigned along our line; our little Maire even ceased to gabble; our guns were for the last time examined, and new caps placed on the locks, lest the damp might have injured the old ones.

The beaters were now within a mile of us, and close upon the thickest and most dense portion of the forest; one-half of the whole assemblage had now fallen into their line, so that the most daring animal would not venture to break through it. The shots were now following each other in rapid succession, and the most sly wolf could not long remain in the wood. The first which appeared broke away several hundred yards to our right, and from his not having been fired at until he was clear of the wood, he could not have been seen until he had passed through the line of hunters. Three shots were then fired after him by those nearest; but the rascal dashed over the ground untouched, in the direction of the forest to which I have alluded.

Every eye was now on the alert, peering through the wood on all sides the rustling of a leaf, the hopping of a bird were now ob. jects of attention; while every shot that rolled over our heads spoke of "hope deferred."

Suddenly a low whistle, scarcely perceptible, escaped from my friend G―, who, at the same instant as myself had seen three wolves break

us.

into the glade a-head of us. How fervently we desired that our friends to the right and left of us might not see them, and some untimely shout, or ill-directed shot, drive them back into the wood. But we were in luck. Our neighbours were straining their eyes among the branches of the forest; ours alone were fixed on the open space before On the three rascals came, running neck and neck, and just far enough apart to give Gand I a clear shot at the outer pair. Little time was left us to observe them; their long slouching gallop soon brought them up within fifty yards of us; our gun-mozzles were now peeping over the heather tops; and so well had we cal. culated our distance that we fired almost at the same instant. Both of our shots took effect; that of G― most effectually. It had entered the broad chest of the animal, and passing to the heart, he made one tremendous leap into the air, and dropped quite dead. My ball had not told so true. It had shattered the right shoulder of the wolf, which, after a few rolls on the ground, limped off towards the wood. Another ball, however, from my second barrel gave him his quietus before he reached it.

In the mean time a scene of a most extraordinary character had occurred on my right. The third wolf, directly that his companions had fallen, bolted away towards the spot where the Maire was posted, and my companion, who was determined to have a slap at it, fired just as it was passing the tree against which the consequential little fellow was resting. The wolf galloped on unharmed; but at the same instant the little Maire dropped screaming to the ground, where he rolled about, bellowing and kicking in a most extraordinary manner. I felt almost paralysed at the sight; but G―, whom I believed had accidentally shot the Maire, to my utter astonishment, coolly took up his rifle, and resting it on his knee, fired at the escaping wolf. The distance was great, but Purdie performed his duty well; the ball snapped the spine of the animal, and the three wolves lay dead around us.

I now rushed towards the fallen Maire, followed, though with less alacrity, by G Kicking and sprawling, and to all appearance in the last agonies of death, it would have moved a heart of stone to see the poor fellow as he lay on the sward, his spirit to all appearance about to wing its flight. His jokes, the race over the sands, all were forgotten; the sad uncertainty of life was most painfully depicted, and the altered appearance which the merry household, with whom we had passed the preceding evening, would present, when informed of the sad bereavement which they had sustained, flashed before my eyes.

But there are tides in the affairs of men;" there are sudden changes from grief to joy; the cheek this moment wet with a scald ing tear may the next be wreathed with a smile, or the beaming eye become glazed with agony. The Maire was not dead, he was only kilt; and the tears, which I have po doubt were about to flow most plentifully at the untimely fate of our little friend, now welled over amid ir. resistible laughter. For some time neither Gnor I could speak, the wolf-hunt was forgotten, the ringing shots of the hunters were unheard,—all were for the time alike unheeded, and the ludicrous catastrophe of the Maire alone engrossed our attention. My companion's ball had taken effect, not upon the person of his worship, but upon one of his stilts, and had snapped it in twain nearly at half length. Thus deprived of his fair proportions," the Maire dropped instantaneously, utterly unconscious of the nature and extent of the accident which had befallen him. No wonder then, that, stunned by the fall, and his

nerves somewhat unstrung by the suddenness of the shock, the poor fellow should suppose that it was all over with him; while, to add to his confusion, he had bumped his nose against the tree in his descent, and the blood streaming copiously from it, seemed to confirm the idea of his being desperately wounded.

"Je suis mort! je suis mort!" screamed the little hero of the morning, as G― and I, having somewhat regained our composure, were preparing to reduce him to his legitimate stature by unlacing the now useless sangues. "Je suis mort!" continued he, as having drawn his hand across his face, he held the bloody member up before him, "je ne reverrai plus ma famille. Oh, mon Dieu! mon Dieu!" Having at length separated him from his sangues, we placed him on his feet, with his back to the tree, but as his moaning still continued, and he did not even then seem sure of his existence, G― suggested the propri ety of making him swallow a little of the cordial which the gourd swung from his belt contained. This was accordingly accomplished, and had a wonderful effect in calming his nervous system. Gradually the woful expression of his countenance disappeared; limb after limb was stretched out to ascertain the damage which they had received; until, at length, having discovered that a bleeding nose was the only injury which had befallen his person, he began to consider what really had caused him so much alarm.

Leaving him to his meditations, we now bethought us of our wolfhunt; but, alas! alas! it was too late, our sport was over. How many wolves had gone past us,-how many good shots we had lost while attending to the Maire, it was impossible to tell; but never did hunters less regret the interruption of their sport than G and I did on that occasion. The beaters were now coming hard upon us. The crashing of the underwood, as they forced their way through it, was now distinctly heard; but the wolves had long since left the wood. A few foxes and a roebuck were driven towards us; the former-true sportsmen as we were-we allowed to steal away unmolested; of the latter, however, we rendered a good account. Shortly after, the beaters emerged from the forest, and assembled round the place where we had been stationed, all anxious to learn the result of battue. It was some time, however, before the "return of the killed" could be ascertained. Each successful hunter had his particular tale of prowess to relate; while the unfortunates had to account for their want of success by many a plausible story of "broken leg," or "miss fire." At last, however, the truth was elicited. A considerable number of wolves had been seen, some of which had broken through the lines soon after they were roused from their lair; and two, more daring than the rest, were seen to swim the river together. Four, however, besides the three which G and I had killed, were brought in; a greater number than is generally destroyed at such battues. Several roedeer, and not a few foxes, were among the slain; and the beaters declared that they had been close upon a couple of wild boars, which "doubled" upon them, and of course escaped unharmed. Altogether, therefore, we had no reason to be dissatisfied with the first of our wolf-hunts in the Landes.

So early had the hunt commenced, that it was yet mid-day when we were congregated around the spoil. Still it was too late to renew the warfare; the wood, in which most of the animals which had escaped had taken shelter, was at too great a distance for us to beat it

before nightfall. Our hunting therefore was over for the day; but sport of another kind was in store for us.

Almost every one had brought some provisions along with him; and he who had not was cheerfully supplied by his neighbour. No one, however, had forgotten his wine-skin or his brandy-flask; and the sangues being now thrown aside, and the whole party seated in groups under the shade of the pines which grew around, a scene was presented which Wilkie would have given a great deal to witness.

The Landais are never a very abstemious race, and it may be well supposed that on such an exciting occasion as this, all the liquor they carried home was mostly safely stored under their belt. Mirth, of that joyous character of which a successful day's sport is always the harbinger to the hunter, now reigned around. Even the spirits of our little Maire began to revive as the jollity increased; and long before his flask was emptied he could even joke at his late misfortune.

"So you took my sangue for the leg of a wolf." said he to G- -; "pretty mistake you made, indeed! Why, if you had not killed those two wolves, we should have had you taught to shoot before we trusted ourselves again in your company."

Hitherto I had been dubious as to whether G― had "served out" the Maire as he did, intentionally, or by accident; but the "lurking devil" in his eye when the subject was alluded to, was to me perfectly satisfactory," the hit had been no miss," and the practical joke of our race over the sands had been repaid with interest.

Many of the party were now dancing or singing; and, though the absence of the ladies of the Landes rendered the movements of the hunters less picturesque than they might have been, still, the ungainly caperings of so many strangely apparelled individuals to no music but that of their own "sweet voices," was a curious sight, and in keeping with the wildness of the place of revelry.

The spectacle was sufficiently amusing, and might have very satisfactorily wound up the sports of the day, but the ever fertile imagination of my companion had suggested to him a species of entertainment as novel in character as its results were ludicrous. There were few of the party who were not now in that happy state of mind which renders them up to anything :" some of them perhaps a little in advance of this, but one and all of them determined to be as jovial as good liquor and good company could make them.

The sangues, which had been laid aside after the hunt, G― now proposed should be buckled on, and that races should take place; at the same time offering, as a prize to the swiftest, an article in much request among the chasseurs of the south-a handsome powder-flask. Ghad scarcely finished making the proposal before fifty at least of the party were buckling on for the contest. Old and young were eager to join issue, and a scene commenced, the absurdity of which baffles description. I have already said that the sangues were from four to five feet in length; it may therefore be supposed that mounting upon such articles is no easy matter, without having a wall or bench from which to start. The usual mode of managing the affair by the Landais is to sit on the ledge of a window of the second story of their cottage, and there fastening on the stilts, walk away from the place; or a ladder is generally leaning against the walls of the cottage, up which they mount until sufficiently high to effect their object. Here, how. ever, there were none of the usual facilities afforded for mounting; and

every one was put to his wits to discover some method or other to get on his horse. The most active of the party having selected a pine which had a drooping branch, climbed on to it, and managed without much difficulty to effect their object. Several of the elderly ones, and some of the juniors, whose libations had placed their capacity on a level with that of their seniors, were not quite so successful. One heavy fellow, who had raised himself on the branch of a pine close to where we were sitting, had just succeeded in buckling on one of his stilts, when the branch on which he sat gave way. The leg with the stilt on was mechanically thrust out to break the fall, but the result was much the contrary, With only one support, a single stride was all that could be made, but that stride was a most important one; for, unable to deviate from the direction in which the branch broke away, the heavy carcase of the fellow landed in the centre of a group whose advanced state of jollification altogether precluded their joining in the race. So rudely and unexpectedly assaulted, considerable damage was done on the occasion both to heads and wine-skins; and the sufferers, not quite comprehending the cause of the assault, evinced their sense of its effects by heartily pommeling the unlucky wight who rolled among them. Another fellow had, in the hurry of the moment, carried off one of his neighbour's sangues instead of his own, and did not discover the mistake until he had buckled them on, and thinking that all was right, started from his place of mounting. Then he found to his surprise that one stilt was half a foot shorter than the other, and that, accordingly, to balance himself was quite impossible. So away he went staggering and limping, endeavouring to describe a circle, so as to get back to the tree from which he had sprung. But the odds were against his succeeding. The shorter stilt having sunk in the hollow of a decayed tree root, the discrepancy of length became still greater; to recover his equilibrium was impossible, and he measured his length on the ground.

Several incidents equally absurd took place before the competitors were assembled at the starting-post. One of these, as it was somewhat different from the others, is worth mentioning. Two of the hunters had buckled on their sangues, and seemed to all appearance prepared for the race. One of them, however, discovered, or believed that he had discovered, that the strap of one of his sangues, which he had missed before he left the village in the morning, was doing duty on the leg of his neighbour, and he lost not a moment in taxing him with the theft. The charge was rebutted with all the vehemence of voice and gesture which a Gascon, conscious of his innocence, may be supposed to display. It had not, however, the smallest effect on the individual who made the charge. He either knew the man with whom he had to deal, or more probably had taken just that quantity of drink which suffices to make some folks, whether right or wrong, most pertinaciously insist on the correctness of their own opinion. The protestations of the accused fell, therefore, without effect on the ears of his opponent, who would be satisfied with nothing short of the immediate restitution of the article which he claimed, and which he threatened to take by force if not given up to him. This was too much for the hot blood of a Landais to submit to; the accused now no longer protested his innocence, but dared the other to carry his threat into execution. Nothing daunted by this change in the bearing of his adversary, and determined at all hazards to regain possession of his bit of leather, he advanced to seize upon it. The position, however, which his opponent