2 26 The Chase 



fourth ; and even these, when the deer is strong, 

 and the ground favourable, often fail. 



Sir John Malcolm. 



Hunting the Fox in Persia >^> vi> 



IF we were amused by the field-diversions of the 

 Persians and Arabs, they were equally so with our 

 mode of hunting. The Elchee had brought a few 

 couples of English fox-hounds, intending them as 

 a present to the heir-apparent, Abbas Meerza. 

 With this small pack we had several excellent runs. 

 One morning we killed a fox, after a very hard 

 chase ; and while the rest of the party were exult- 

 ing in their success, cutting off poor reynard's 

 brush, praising the hounds, adding some two feet 

 to a wall their horses had cleared, laughing at those 

 who had got tumbles, and recounting many a hair- 

 breadth escape, I was entertained by listening to 

 an Arab peasant, who, with animated gestures, 

 was narrating to a group of his countrymen all 

 he had seen of this noble hunt. "There went 

 the fox," said he, pointing with a crooked stick 

 to a clump of date trees ; " there he went at a great 

 rate ; I hallooed, and hallooed, but nobody heard 

 me, and I thought he must get away ; but when 

 he was quite out of sight, up came a large spotted 

 dog, and then another and another ; they all had 

 their noses on the ground, and gave tongue, whaw, 

 whaw, whaw, so loud that I was frightened : — 

 away went these devils, who soon found the poor 

 animal ; after them galloped the Faringees, shouting 

 and trying to make a noise louder than the dogs ; 

 no wonder they killed the fox among them ; but it 

 is certainly fine sport." 



Sir John Malcohn 



