Roland gave Edouard a simple little gun which he himself had used as a child.

He had not enough confidence as yet in the boy's prudence to trust him with a double-barrelled gun.

As for the rifle that Sir John had given him the day before, it could only carry cartridges.

It was given into Michel's safe keeping, to be returned to him in case they started a boar for the second part of the hunt.

For this Roland and Sir John were also to change their guns for rifles and hunting knives, pointed as daggers and sharp as razors, which formed part of Sir John's arsenal, and could be suspended from the belt or screwed on the point of the gun like bayonets.
From the beginning of the battue it was easy to see that the hunt would be a good one.