My life : a record of events and opinions - Wallace-online.org

'"66 MY LIFEBedfordshire, to which he reph'ed, " I ought to knowit, for I was born there, and my father owned theestate there to which I am heir." I then felt prettysure of my man, and asked him if he remembered,during a very hard frost about fifty years ago, shootinga pair of wild swans at Turvey. " Why, of courseI do," said he. " But how do you know it ?*'Because I was there at the time and saw you shootthem. Do not you remember a thin tall lad whocame up to you and said, 'That was a good shot/and you replied, Oh * ! you can't miss them, they areas big as a barn door " } " No," he said, " I don'tremember you at all, but that is just what I shouldhave said." His delight was great, for his story ofhow he shot the two wild swans was not creditedeven by his own family, and he made me promiseto go to his house after the lecture on the next night,and prove to them that he had not been romancing.When I went, I was duly introduced to his grown-upsons and daughters as one who had been presentat the shooting of the swans, which I had beenthe first to mention. That was a proud moment forthe Rev. H. H. Higgins, and a very pleasant one tomyself.Soon after we came to Turvey a young gentlemanfrom Bedford came to us to learn a little surveying.He was, I think, the son of an auctioneer or estateagent, and was about eighteen or twenty years old.As my brother was occasionally away for severaldays at a time when we sometimes had nothing togo on with, he would amuse himself fishing, of whichhe was very fond. Sometimes I went with him, butI usually preferred walking about the country, thoughI cannot remember that I had at this time any specialinterest in doing so. He often caught some large