"
But Orme made it twenty straight before he came back. Then he caught a
strong right-quarterer, which escaped altogether, apparently very
lightly hit. No one spoke a word of sympathy or exultation, but I caught
the glint of Stevenson's eye. Orme seemed not in the least disturbed.
We were now tied, but luck ran against us both for a time, since out of
the next five I missed three and Orme two, and the odds again were
against me. It stood the same at thirty, and at thirty-five. At forty
the fortune of war once more favored me, for although Orme shot like a
machine, with a grace and beauty of delivery I have never seen
surpassed, he lost one bird stone dead over the line, carried out by a
slant of the rising wind, which blew from left to right across the
field. Five birds farther on, yet another struggled over for him, and at
sixty-five I had him back of me two birds. The interest all along the
line was now intense. Stevenson later told me that they had never seen
such shooting as we were doing. For myself, it did not seem that I could
miss. I doubt not that eventually I must have won, for fate does not so
favor two men at the same hour.
We went on slowly, as such a match must, occasionally pausing to cool
our barrels, and taking full time with the loading.
Pages:
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115