he sight, as you may imagine, didn't fill me with joy. From the bulges
in my black visitors' bag I gathered that the ducks had preceded the
hare; and even as I looked, the gentleman with the damper relaxed his
well-meant efforts, and thrust it, too, into the bag. Then they put down
the bag and dived into the tent, and I heard rustlings and low-toned
remarks that breathed satisfaction. I reckoned it was time to step in.

"Luckily, my gun was outside the tent--indeed I never leave it inside,
but have a special hiding-place for it under a handy log, for fear of
stray marauders overhauling my possessions. A gun is a pretty tempting
thing to most men, and since my duck-shooting failure I had treated
myself to a new double-barrel--a beauty.

"I crept to the log, drew out both guns, and then retired to the
bushes--a little uncertain, to tell the truth, what to do, for I hadn't
any particular wish to murder my dusky callers; and at the same time,
had to remember that they were two to one, and would be unhampered by
any feeling of chivalry, if we did come to blows. I made up my mind to
try to scare them--and suddenly I raised the most horrible, terrifying,
unearthly yell I could think of, and at the same time fired both barrels
of one gun quickly in the air!

"The effect was instantaneous. There was one howl of horror, and the
black fellows darted out of the tent! They almost cannoned into me--and
you know I must look a rum chap in these furry clothes and cap, with my
grandfatherly white beard! At all events, they seemed to think me so,
for at sight of me they both yelled in terror, and bolted away as fast
as their legs could carry them. I cheered the parting guests by howling
still more heartily, and firing my two remaining barrels over their
heads as they ran. They went as swiftly as a motor-car disappears from
view--I believe they reckoned they'd seen the bunyip. I haven't seen a
trace of them since.

"They'd had a fine time inside the tent. Everything I possessed had been
investigated, and one or two books badly torn--the wretches!" said the
Hermit ruefully. "My clothes (I've a few garments beside these beauties,
Miss Norah) had been pulled about, my few papers scattered wildly, and
even my bunk stripped of blankets, which lay rolled up ready to be
carried away. There wasn't a single one of my poor possessions that had
escaped notice, except, of course, my watch and money, which I keep
carefully buried. The tent was a rem