American Big- Game Hunting 



topped it, a fine buck leaped up from a hol- 

 low a hundred yards off, and turned to look 

 at us for a moment. All the dogs were in- 

 stantly spinning toward him down the grassy 

 slope. He apparently saw those at the right, 

 and, turning, raced away from us in a diag- 

 onal line, so that the left-hand greyhound, 

 which ran cunningly and tried to cut him off, 

 was very soon almost alongside. He saw 

 her, however, — she was a very fast bitch, — 

 just in time, and, wheeling, altered his 

 course to the right. As he reached the edge 

 of the prairie, this alteration nearly brought 

 him in contact with the crossbred, which 

 had obtained a rather poor start, on the ex- 

 treme right of the line. Around went the 

 buck again, evidently panic-struck and puz- 

 zled to the last degree, and started straight 

 off across the prairie, the dogs literally at his 

 heels, and we, urging our horses with whip 

 and spur, but a couple of hundred yards be- 

 hind. For half a mile the pace was tremen- 

 dous, when one of the greyhounds made a 

 spring at his ear, but, failing to make good 

 his hold, was thrown off. However, it halted 

 the buck for a moment, and made him turn 

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