THE MARQUIS' SHOT.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3612, 8 February 1883, Page 4

THE MARQUIS' SHOT.

(San Francisco Argonaut.)

There is a good story told of the Marquis of "Waterford (Lord Charles Beresford's uncle) and the way he served a young fellow whose indifference to the lives and limbs of other people when out shooting , with them hid gained for him somewhat of a reputation. The young man, though he ought to have been deprived of his gun license by special Act of Parliament, was the son of a duke of such high standiiiLr in the political ■world tliut uobocry ventured mure than ;i mild remonstrance with him for his carelessness, and while few cared to join a shooting party of which he made one, his position got him invited where men of more caution but less blood would have been excluded. It so happened that one October both the ITarquis and Lord Joceline Clinton —the young man in question—found themselves staying , for the shooting at "Woltcrton Park, Lord Orford's place in Norfolk. There was a large party staying at the house, and more than one fortuitous escape from Lord Joceline's reckless gun was the nightly topic over brandy and soda and bird's-eye in the smoking-room. Several of the men had already been grazed on one or two occasions by shots fired at close quarters, and who had been his nearest neighbor one morning had one of his whiskers and eyebrows singed off by a flash from a muzzle heedlessly placed within an inch of his cheek. Lord Joceline paid small heed to the remarks he heard, and laughingly treated all that was said as a joke. But Lord Waterford smoked his pipe in silence, only joining in the talk so far as to confide to a friend who sat near his determination to put an end to the young man's exploits should it come in Ids way to do so. It is said that Lord Joceline overheard the remark, but said nothing. At all events, next day the party went out as usual, and as chance "would have it, when shooting an outlying cover, Lord "Waterford and Lord Joceline stood about ten feet apart. In the midst of an exciting Imliitc a rabbit darted out of the bushes and ran between the two. Lord Joceline, disregarding all orders to.the contrary, levelled and fired at it. The rabbit, got safely away, but adozen of the shot intended for it lodged in Lord Waterford , s legs. His back happened to be.turned at the moment, but wheeling round without a sign of pain ere the reverberation of the shot had died away, he called out, in a loud tone, '' "Whoever fired that List .shot, hold up his hand!" Lord Joeeline, in the bravado of the moment, held up Ids hand with a laugh. Hardly, had he done so when Lord Waterford raised his giin and let him have the contents of one barrel in his palm. Fortunately it was a defective cartridge, from, which much of the shot had fallen, else it would have been, a bad day for Lord Jpceliue. As it was he carried away enough leaden pellets among his finger joints to, make a sadder and a ■wiser man of him, and cure him effectively of the peeiilarity that had made him a terror in the shooting field. No one after that had ever cause to.conrplaiu against him.