over—away went ducks and geese and swans
scared by the sound; and the double bang!
bang! of our guns served only as a parting
salute. Pietro, who had been sculling the
dingey with all caution, muttered between his
teeth a complimentary word to the fishermen;
but, suddenly brightening up, suggested to the
Major the propriety of buying some fresh fish
for breakfast; accordingly, the dingey visited
the dirty fishing-boat, and opened treaty with
its dirtier proprietor. The price first asked
was about double that eventually taken, and
the fish (probably red mullet) having been
thrown into the dingey, and the money thrown
back into the fishing boat, and Pietro, having
taken especial care not to let the boats touch
each other, and thereby incur for us the
penalty of quarantine, on the information of
the Guardiano, sculled us back to breakfast.
I pity these fishermen. They live in a
perpetual quarantine as regards any shore but
their own. They come into Corfu Bay,
transfer their fish to another boat which
takes the cargo to market; and, if they
remain there an hour, their vessel is made to
bear the dreaded yellow flag, and is
carefully avoided by all other craft. Their life
seems wholly to be passed in the vessels,
on the Albanian coast, with their nets;
and, should repairs compel them to abide
awhile upon the islands among their fellow
men, it is only after a fortnight's imprisonment
in the Lazaretto.

Breakfast over; cigars lighted; powder-
flasks, shot-belts, and percussion-caps ready;
guns duly loaded, dogs (three spaniels and a
retriever) brought out from the fore-hatchway;
and the Guardiano's paper cigar
manufactured and lighted, that he might start on
good terms with himself, for what he feared
would be a heavy day's work, we stepped
into the boat; and at about nine o'clock
found ourselves grounding on the Albanian
shore, a little below the Aga's Castle. Peter
received his directions as to the creek up
which he was to bring lunch, and pushed off
again. The shore was low and swampy, and
piles of firewood were heaped up along it,
under the guardianship of a wretched-looking
Turkish soldier, in a dirty yellow jacket with
black braid, who was appended to an
enormously long gun and (of course) a pipe. He
exchanged nods with the Guardiano. The
Major led our way, I following with Silvertop;
—Silvertop, clad in a dapper shooting
costume of faultless cut, and one conglomerate
of pockets. We passed under the
walls of the old Castle, and entered upon a
wild, marshy, reedy tract, which stretched
some little way before us, and was intersected
by numerous creeks. "We shall find snipe
here," said the Major; and as he spoke, snipes
rose to confirm his opinion. The sport once
begun went on in earnest, and the snipes got
up in front, and on the right and left, in
a manner and in a number that entirely
astounded me. We gradually advanced,
extending our line of beating; and before we
had passed the swampy tract of ground, had
bagged enough snipe to make a Lincolnshire
fen poacher open his eyes for ever. Silvertop
at length found himself separated from
our party by an uninviting swamp, and, not
yet become reckless about his apparel,
wandered on seeking for a firmer passage. At
length he reached a spot where the creek
widened into a small lagoon, fringed with
tall rushes and reeds; he pushed them aside,
and stared when he saw the whole surface of
the lagoon literally alive with teal, widgeon,
and every kind of wild duck. Hundreds
of these birds were gathered on this their
favourite feeding-ground; and Silvertop was
somewhat nonplussed at the spectacle, when
he looked up and saw the sun shining
above him, as it might do on an English
summer's day; the only trace of winter
visible being the snowy peaks of the Pindus
chain, glistening from very far away through
a gap in the adjacent hills. Luckily some
of the birds were scared; and as they flew
over Silvertop's head he secured a couple;
and after some splashing in the mud,
succeeded in carrying off his trophies, and
rejoining us, his friends. We had quitted
the snipe country for the present, and now
entered upon a wood, pursuing a sort of
green lane which ran through it, full of ruts
and holes, and very like an English woodland
path. The wood on each side was pretty
thick with trees, and between them was the
most wonderful underwood. It looked as
though the strongest thorns, brambles, and
briars, had been suffered to grow and entwine
themselves at will and undisturbed since the
Creation; only a bill-hook could make means
of passage through the tangled wall. The
spaniels crept in here and there; and, after
several unsuccessful attempts, re-appeared in
the lane. "Mark cock!" shouted the Major,
and a woodcock came out above the brambles,
speeding down the lane. I secured him for
my bag. The woodcocks seemed as much
inclined to play at follow-my-leader as the
snipes had been; and for a couple of hours
sport was found for the English guns. We
reached the extremity of the wood, and then
beat back again down the side towards the
sea, still gathering woodcocks, but occasionally
losing a bird among the brushwood. A hare
also made its appearance, and Silvertop made
that his own. Having again reached the
open ground, we followed the windings of a
creek; till under the bank was seen the
dingey, with Pietro waiting.

The hour of lunch had arrived, and the
morning's work rendered it very welcome,
while the wet which we had sustained about
the legs made a draught of weak brandy-and-
water both advisable and pleasant. The
Guardiano, who had been following us all the
morning at the distance of about half-a-mile
in the rear, came in for his share; and having
received it, retired into the same state of