I subsequently heard that Charlie went to his post with a fixed determination to shoot anything of yellow colour that came near him.  His station was next to that of Dr. Krumm; but of course they were invisible to each other.  The horns of the beaters sounded a warning; the gunners cocked their guns and stood on the alert; in the perfect silence each one waited for the first glimmer of a brown hide down the long green glades of young fir.  Then, according to Charlie’s account, by went two or three deer like lightning—­all of them does.  A buck came last, but swerved just as he came in sight, and backed and made straight for the line of beaters.  Two more does, and then an absolute blank.  One or two shots had been heard at a distance; either some of the more distant stations had been more fortunate, or one or other of the beaters had tried his luck.  Suddenly there was a shot fired close to Charlie; he knew it must have been the doctor.  In about a minute afterward he saw some pale-yellow object slowly worming its way through the ferns; and here, at length, he made sure he was going to get his yellow fox.  But just as the animal came within fair distance, it turned over, made a struggle or two, and lay still.  Charlie rushed along to the spot:  it was, indeed, a yellow fox, shot in the head, and now as dead as a door-nail.

What was he to do?  Let Dr. Krumm take home this prize to Franziska, after he had had such a chance in the afternoon?  Never!  Charlie fired a barrel into the air, and then calmly awaited the coming up of the beaters and the drawing together of the sportsmen.

Dr. Krumm, being at the next station, was the first to arrive.  He found Charlie standing by the side of the slain fox.

“Ha!” he said, his spectacles fairly gleaming with delight, “you have shotted him!  You have killed him!  That is very good—­that is excellent!  Now you will present the skin to Miss Franziska, if you do not wish to take it to England.”

“Oh no!” said Charlie, with a lordly indifference.  “I don’t care about it.  Franziska may have it.”

Charlie pulled me aside, and said, with a solemn wink: 

“Can you keep a secret?”

“My wife and I can keep a secret.  I am not allowed to have any for myself.”

“Listen,” said the unabashed young man; “Krumm shot that fox.  Mind you don’t say a word.  I must have the skin to present to Franziska.”

I stared at him; I had never known him guilty of a dishonest action.  But when you do get a decent young English fellow condescending to do anything shabby, be sure it is a girl who is the cause.  I said nothing, of course; and in the evening a trap came for us, and we drove back to Huferschingen.

Tita clapped her hands with delight; for Charlie was a favourite of hers, and now he was returning like a hero, with a sprig of fir in his cap to show that he had killed a buck.

“And here, Miss Franziska,” he said, quite gaily, “here is a yellow fox for you.  I was told that you wanted the skin of one.”