Fifteen years in a childhood paradise

easy to pull the trigger accurately with them on. I'll do the same, thanks for that tip."

Meanwhile, the first hunting guests arrived. They were: Onkel Werner, Onkel Wilhelm Forstmann from Porthof, Mutter's cousin, Mr. Czapski, a Polish property owner from the neighbourhood, Herr and Frau Iffland, also neighbours, and five others, among them another woman hunter. They all came with their own coaches.

After a quick welcome, Vater divided the shooters, including us, into three groups. We were all driven to a different starting point, where about 20 men and older boys, all workers from our farm, had been assembled. Our game keeper was in charge of the total operation. He assigned a foreman to each group. When I arrived with the group of four other shooters, the foreman looked on his watch. At a pre-arranged time he said to two of our workers: "Start walking, you in this direction," and pointing to the opposite side, "and you walk there."

After each of these men had reached a little marker, about 100 meters away, he told the next two men: "You follow these."

At this point, Herr Iffland, whom I had accompanied many times before, said to me: "Now remember, when we all turn towards the centre, which is going to be this direction, you never shoot to your side. That's where the beaters and the shooters are. You shoot only towards the centre, or behind you. And when you see people coming from the opposite direction, you only shoot behind you. We don't want to shoot any people, do we?"

He needn't have told me that again, as I had been with him before, but I didn't say anything, just nodded that I had understood him.

It was his turn now to follow the two beaters. Then came four more beaters, before the foreman nodded to me:

"Your turn now. Good luck!" I marched behind the fellow in front of me, aware that I must not walk too fast or too slowly, as the distance between us had to be maintained. The bag with the ammunition hung over one shoulder, the shot gun over the other. My fingers were as warm as toast. I could see clearly the man in front of me, but the second man was already hidden by fog, which had come over from the lake.

After walking for a while I heard shouting from the front: "Stop!" That meant the first man from our group had met up with the first man from the other group, and the circle was complete. Now we only had to wait for the signal to walk towards the centre. I had plenty of time to load the gun, always pointing it downwards, as I had learnt. Looking around me I could see some rabbit holes not far from where I was standing. I shouted to my neighbour: "Do you think we'll get some rabbits here?"

"Wait, till we get the signal to start, then I'll make a noise. You just get your gun ready to shoot."

The signal came sooner than I expected. From right and left I heard the

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