Читать книгу The Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen - Rudolf Raspe - Страница 4

_An encounter between the Baron’s nose and a door-post, with its

wonderful effects – Fifty brace of ducks and other fowl destroyed by one

shot – Flogs a fox out of his skin – Leads an old sow home in a new way,

and vanquishes a wild boar._

It was some time before I could obtain a commission in the army, and

for several months I was perfectly at liberty to sport away my time and

money in the most gentleman-like manner. You may easily imagine that I

spent much of both out of town with such gallant fellows as knew how to

make the most of an open forest country. The very recollection of

those amusements gives me fresh spirits, and creates a warm wish for

a repetition of them. One morning I saw, through the windows of my

bed-room, that a large pond not far off was covered with wild ducks. In

an instant I took my gun from the corner, ran down-stairs and out of

the house in such a hurry, that I imprudently struck my face against

the door-post. Fire flew out of my eyes, but it did not prevent my

intention; I soon came within shot, when, levelling my piece, I observed

to my sorrow, that even the flint had sprung from the cock by the

violence of the shock I had just received. There was no time to be lost.

I presently remembered the effect it had on my eyes, therefore opened

the pan, levelled my piece against the wild fowls, and my fist against

one of my eyes. [The Baron’s eyes have retained fire ever since, and

appear particularly illuminated when he relates this anecdote.] A hearty

blow drew sparks again; the shot went off, and I killed fifty brace of

ducks, twenty widgeons, and three couple of teals. Presence of mind is

the soul of manly exercises. If soldiers and sailors owe to it many of

their lucky escapes, hunters and sportsmen are not less beholden to it

for many of their successes. In a noble forest in Russia I met a fine

black fox, whose valuable skin it would have been a pity to tear by ball

or shot. Reynard stood close to a tree. In a twinkling I took out my

ball, and placed a good spike-nail in its room, fired, and hit him so

cleverly that I nailed his brush fast to the tree. I now went up to him,

took out my hanger, gave him a cross-cut over the face, laid hold of my

whip, and fairly flogged him out of his fine skin.

Chance and good luck often correct our mistakes; of this I had a

singular instance soon after, when, in the depth of a forest, I saw a

wild pig and sow running close behind each other. My ball had missed

them, yet the foremost pig only ran away, and the sow stood motionless,

as fixed to the ground. On examining into the matter, I found the latter

one to be an old sow, blind with age, which had taken hold of her pig’s

tail, in order to be led along by filial duty. My ball, having passed

between the two, had cut his leading-string, which the old sow continued

to hold in her mouth; and as her former guide did not draw her on

any longer, she had stopped of course; I therefore laid hold of the

remaining end of the pig’s tail, and led the old beast home without any

further trouble on my part, and without any reluctance or apprehension

on the part of the helpless old animal.

Terrible as these wild sows are, yet more fierce and dangerous are

the boars, one of which I had once the misfortune to meet in a forest,

unprepared for attack or defence. I retired behind an oak-tree just when

the furious animal levelled a side-blow at me, with such force, that his

tusks pierced through the tree, by which means he could neither repeat

the blow nor retire. Ho, ho! thought I, I shall soon have you now! and

immediately I laid hold of a stone, wherewith I hammered and bent his

tusks in such a manner, that he could not retreat by any means, and must

wait my return from the next village, whither I went for ropes and a

cart, to secure him properly, and to carry him off safe and alive, in

which I perfectly succeeded.