enjoyed much opportunity of
shooting. It is true that Harry had once or twice borrowed the
fowling-piece of the senior clerk, and had sallied forth with a beating
heart to pursue the grouse which are found in the belt of woodland
skirting the Assiniboine River near to Fort Garry. But these
expeditions were of rare occurrence, and they had not sufficed to rub
off much of the bounding excitement with which he loaded and fired at
anything and everything that came within range of his gun. Charley, on
the other hand, had never fired a shot before, except out of an old
horse-pistol; having up to this period been busily engaged at school,
except during the holidays, which he always spent in the society of his
sister Kate, whose tastes were not such as were likely to induce him to
take up the gun, even if he had possessed such a weapon. Just before
leaving Red River, his father presented him with his own gun, remarking,
as he did so, with a sigh, that _his_ day was past now; and adding, that
the gun was a good one for shot or ball, and if he (Charley) brought
down _half_ as much game with it as he (Mr Kennedy) had brought down in
the course of his life, he might consider himself a crack shot
undoubtedly.

It was not surprising, therefore, that the two friends went nearly mad
with excitation when the whole flock of gulls rose into the air like a
white cloud, and sailed in endless circles and gyrations above and
around their heads--flying so close at times that they might almost have
been caught by the hand. Neither was it surprising that innumerable
shots were fired, by both sportsmen, without a single bird being a whit
the worse for it, or themselves much the better; the energetic efforts
made to hit being rendered abortive by the very eagerness which caused
them to miss. And this was the less extraordinary, too, when it is
remembered that Harry in his haste loaded several times without shot,
and Charley rendered the right barrel of his gun _hors de combat_ at
last, by ramming down a charge of shot and omitting powder altogether,
whereby he snapped and primed, and snapped and primed again, till he
grew desperate, and then suspicious of the true cause, which he finally
rectified with much difficulty.

Frequently the gulls flew straight over the heads of the youths,--which
produced peculiar consequences, as in such cases they took aim while the
birds were approaching; but being somewhat slow at taking aim, the gulls
were