Egerton Castle




_The Baron's Quarry_


"Oh, no, I assure you, you are not boring Mr. Marshfield," said this
personage himself in his gentle voice--that curious voice that could flow
on for hours, promulgating profound and startling theories on every
department of human knowledge or conducting paradoxical arguments without
a single inflection or pause of hesitation. "I am, on the contrary, much
interested in your hunting talk. To paraphrase a well-worn quotation
somewhat widely, _nihil humanum a me alienum est_. Even hunting stories
may have their point of biological interest; the philologist sometimes
pricks his ear to the jargon of the chase; moreover, I am not incapable of
appreciating the subject matter itself. This seems to excite some
derision. I admit I am not much of a sportsman to look at, nor, indeed, by
instinct, yet I have had some out-of-the-way experiences in that
line--generally when intent on other pursuits. I doubt, for instance, if
even you, Major Travers, notwithstanding your well-known exploits against
man and beast, notwithstanding that doubtful smile of yours, could match
the strangeness of a certain hunting adventure in which I played an
important part."

The speaker's small, deep-set, black eyes, that never warmed to anything