"Stop a minute，" broke in Van Koop. "The bet was as to pheasants； the other things don't count.""I think the term used was 'birds，'" I remarked. "But to be frank， when I made it I was thinking of pheasants， as no doubt Sir Junius was also. Therefore， if the counting is correct， there is a dead heat and the wager falls through.""I am sure we all appreciate the view you take of the matter，" said Lord Ragnall， "for it might be argued another way. In these circumstances Sir Junius keeps his ā5 in his pocket. It is unlucky for you， Quatermain，" he added， dropping the "mister，" "that the last high pheasant you shot can't be found. It fell into the lake， you remember， and， I suppose， swam ashore and ran.""Yes，" I replied， "especially as I could have sworn that it was quite dead.""So could I， Quatermain； but the fact remains that it isn't there.""If we had all the pheasants that we think fall dead our bags would be much bigger than they are，" remarked Van Koop， with a look of great relief upon his face， adding in his horrid， patronizing way： "Still， you shot uncommonly well， Quatermain. I'd no idea you would run me so close."I felt inclined to answer， but didn't. Only Lord Ragnall said：
"Mr. Quatermain shot more than well. His performance in the Lake covert was the most brilliant that I have ever seen. When you went in there together， Sir Junius， you were thirty ahead of him， and you fired seventeen more cartridges at the stand."Then， just as we turned to go， something happened. The round-eyed Charles ran puffing into the quadrangle， followed by another man with a dog， who had been specially set to pick my birds， and carrying in his hand a much-bedraggled cock pheasant without a tail.
"I've got him， my lord，" he gasped， for he had run very fast； "the little gent's--I mean that which he killed in the clouds with the last shot he fired. It had gone right down into the mud and stuck there.
Tom and me fished him up with a pole."
Lord Ragnall took the bird and looked at it. It was almost cold， but evidently freshly killed， for the limbs were quite flexible.
"That turns the scale in favour of Mr. Quatermain，" he said， "so， Sir Junius， you had better pay your money and congratulate him， as I do.""I protest，" exclaimed Van Koop， looking very angry and meaner than usual. "How am I to know that this was Mr. Quatermain's pheasant？ The sum involved is more than ā5 and I feel it is my duty to protest.""Because my men say so， Sir Junius； moreover， seeing the height from which the bird fell， their story is obviously true."Then he examined the pheasant further， pointing out that it appeared to have only one wound--a shot through the throat almost exactly at the root of the beak， of which shot there was no mark of exit. "What sized shot were you using， Sir Junius？" he asked.
"No. 4 at the last stand."
"And you were using No. 3， Mr. Quatermain. Now， was any other gun using No. 3？"All shook their heads.
"Jenkins， open that bird's head. I think the shot that killed it will be found in the brain."Jenkins obeyed， using a penknife cleverly enough. Pressed against the bone of the skull he found the shot.
"No. 3 it is， sure enough， my lord，" he said.
"You will agree that settles the matter， Sir Junius，" said Lord Ragnall. "And now， as a bet has been made here it had better be paid.""I have not enough money on me，" said Van Koop sulkily.
"I think your banker is mine，" said Lord Ragnall quietly， "so you can write a cheque in the house. Come in， all of you， it is cold in this wind."So we went into the smoking-room， and Lord Ragnall， who， I could see， was annoyed， instantly fetched a blank cheque from his study and handed it to Van Koop in rather a pointed manner.
He took it， and turning to me， said：
"I remember the capital sum， but how much is the interest？ Sorry to trouble you， but I am not very good at figures.""Then you must have changed a good deal during the last twelve years， Sir Junius，" I could not help saying. "Still， never mind the interest， I shall be quite satisfied with the principal."So he filled up the cheque for ā250 and threw it down on the table before me， saying something about its being a bother to mix up business with pleasure.
I took the draft， saw that it was correct though rather illegible， and proceeded to dry it by waving it in the air. As I did so it came into my mind that I would not touch the money of this successful scamp， won back from him in such a way.
Yielding to a perhaps foolish impulse， I said：
"Lord Ragnall， this cheque is for a debt which years ago I wrote off as lost. At luncheon to-day you were talking of a Cottage Hospital for which you are trying to get up an endowment fund in this neighbourhood， and in answer to a question from you Sir Junius Fortescue said that he had not as yet made any subscription to its fund. Will you allow me to hand you Sir Junius's subscription--to be entered in his name， if you please？" And I passed him the cheque， which was drawn to myself or bearer.
He looked at the amount， and seeing that it was not ā5， but ā250， flushed， then asked：
"What do you say to this act of generosity on the part of Mr.
Quatermain， Sir Junius？"
There was no answer， because Sir Junius had gone. I never saw him again， for years ago the poor man died quite disgraced. His passion for semi-fraudulent speculations reasserted itself， and he became a bankrupt in conditions which caused him to leave the country for America， where he was killed in a railway accident while travelling as an immigrant. I have heard， however， that he was not asked to shoot at Ragnall any more.
The cheque was passed to the credit of the Cottage Hospital， but not， as I had requested， as a subscription from Sir Junius Fortescue. Acouple of years later， indeed， I learned that this sum of money was used to build a little room in that institution to accommodate sick children， which room was named the Allan Quatermain ward.
Now， I have told this story of that December shoot because it was the beginning of my long and close friendship with Ragnall.
When he found that Van Koop had gone away without saying good-bye， Lord Ragnall made no remark. Only he took my hand and shook it.
