158 THE HIVE OF THE BEE-HUNTEK. 



with these hiding-places, as suddenly as ghosts vanish 

 at cock-crowing. The hounds come up to the hiding- 

 place, and a fight ensues. The first head intruded into 

 the cat's hole is sure to meet with a warm reception. 

 Claws and teeth do their work. 



Still the staunch hound heeds it not, and either he 

 gets a hold himself, or acts as a bait to draw the cat 

 from its burrow ; thus fastened, the dog, being the most 

 powerful in strength, backs out, dragging his enemy 

 along with him ; and no sooner is the cat's head seen by 

 the rest of the pack, than they pounce upon it, and in a 

 few moments the " nine lives " of the " varmint " are 

 literally chawed-up. 



At one of these burrowings, a huge cat intruded into 

 a hole so small, that an ordinarily large hound could not 

 follow. A little stunted but excellent dog, rejoicing in 

 the name of Ringwood, from his diminutiveness succeed- 

 ed in forcing his way into the hole after the cat ; in an 

 instant a faint scream was heard, and the little fellow 

 gave symptoms of having caught a Tartar. One of the 

 party present stooped down, and running his arm under 

 the dog's body, pressed it forward, until he could feel 

 that the cat had the dog firmly clawed by each shoulder, 

 with his nose in the cat's mouth ; in this situation, by 

 pressing the dog firmly under the chest, the two were 

 drawn from the hole. 



The cat hung on untix he discovered that his victim 

 was surrounded by numerous friends, when he let go 



