4 OCTOBER 2008, Page 24

Bad gun

Sir: It made me wonder, after reading Charles Moore’s anecdote about a shooting accident where the perpetrator denied shooting one of his party (The Spectator’s Notes, 13 September), if such a reaction isn’t endemic. The very same thing happened to me in France on a pheasant shoot years ago. One of the party shot me in the shoulder from three metres away; all of the rest of the guns witnessed the event. The gun responsible went into immediate denial mode, saying I had shot myself. He continued to deny it and was one of the few who went to the luncheon afterwards. The majority were too disgusted and chose to go home.

Peter B. Martin

Belvèze, France