"My gun vent off quite by haccident, and if your nose is spoilt, can't
you have a vax von?--Come, it ain't so bad!"

"A vax von, indeed!--who vouldn't rather have his own nose than all the
vax vons in the vorld?" replied poor Richard. "I shall never be able to
show my face."

"Vy not?--your face ain't touched, it's on'y your nose!"

"See, if I come out agin in an hurry," continued the wounded sportsman.
"I've paid precious dear for a day's fun. The birds vill die a nat'ral
death for me, I can tell you."

"It vos a terrible blow--certainly," said Spriggs; "but these things
vill happen in the best riggle'ated families!"

"How can that be? there's no piece, in no quiet and respectable families
as I ever seed!"

And with this very paradoxical dictum, Mr. Grubb trudged on, leading
himself by the nose; Spriggs exerting all his eloquence to make him think
lightly of what Grubb considered such a heavy affliction; for after all,
although he had received a terrible contusion, there were no bones
broken: of which Spriggs assured his friend and himself with a great deal
of feeling!

Luckily the shades of evening concealed them from the too scrutinizing
observation of the passengers they encountered on their return, for such
accidents generally excite more ridicule than commiseration.