DR CARVER.

Otago Witness, Issue 1639, 21 April 1883, Page 14

DR CARVER.

The well-known rifle and pigeon shot, Dr W. F. Carver, has communicated to the New York Press the following report of his experiences in Europe : — " My shooting caused such a sensation in England, that within a few

days I received a command to shoot before the Prince of Wales at Sandringham. There I shot before the Prince and Princess and their family and a large number of guests and they were so well pleased that I had to repeat the performance. Tho Prince is passionately fond of shooting, and took the greatest interest in all I did, keeping the score himself. He even wagered Viscount Mandeville that I would break 100 glass balls in succession, and I won it for him. Talk about the stiffness of royalty ! I never was bo taken aback in my life. The young princes had to borrow rifles, ammunition, and my horses, and they went tearing all over the

beautiful lawn> banging away at everything. It was more like a circus than anything else. The Prince of Wales got a rifle and 700 rounds of ammunition, and when he had to go up to London once Prince George borrowed the rifle, and next time his father wanted to practise he had to send to London for more cartridges. I believe I shot before all the Royal family of England except the Queen. At Alderahot I had a grand reception, and it was a sight to see the masses of soldiers, about 30,000, turn out to the exhibition. After that I went to Germany, and shot before the Emperor and Crown Prince and Princess and a vast crowd of titled people and soldiers. That waß at Potsdam. I waß invited to a chamois hunt. Count Wilczek was our host, and we went to his estate in the mountains. He treated us royally, and we stayed there for over two weeks. I made there what I consider was the best shooting at game I ever did. I was sitting one day at my station when I saw the head of a chamois appear in a crevice or slip between two rocky pinnacles about 200 yards across a ravine. It was not a very large mark, but I fired and struck him fair, and as he jumped I was startled by a sound close to me. I turned, and there was a royal stag just starting on the run. I fired two shots at him, nit him with both, and killed him, and he and the chamois rolled down the opposite sides of the ravine to within 10 feet of one another. I killed altogether 16 chamois and two stags, and was the only one to kill a stag. I next came back to England and made a regular business of exhibition glass-ball shooting, and privately practised pigeon-shooting, as that was what I could make matches at. This I kept up for a year. Last summer I went back to Austria on a little pleasure trip, and when on my way back I stopped at Dresden by request, and gave an exhibition before the King of Saxony. That was on August 22nd, 1882, and is the last exhibition I nave given." In recognition of Dr Carver's wonderful performance the Prince of Walea signified, through Sir D. Probyn, the pleasure with which he had witneßssd bis skill, and sent him a gold horse-shoe scarf pin Btudded with diamonds, and having in the centro the Prince of Wales' feathers, with minute coloured precious stones in the band of the coronet. From the Emperor of Germany he received a diamond ring, with 13 stones set round a large centre atone, and from tho Crown Prince and Prince and Princess a gold scarf pin with the initials "F. V." crossed on the top and studded with gems.