WILD SPORT IN BRITTANY. 33 



the fir trees ? Close below it is a small wayside auberge ; you 

 have only to take that beast within sight of the mistletoe-bush 

 hanging over its door, and you'll dispose of him for the rest of 

 the day." 



Thanking him for the hint, I resolved to profit by it, and cut 

 the incumbrance adrift with the least possible delay; so I sig- 

 nalled to Keryfan, and whistling at the same time to my spaniels, 

 two brace of which I had brought with me from England, we 

 entered a long hollow oak and holly cover, and, beating as we 

 went, made our way straight for the knoll ; a course that, appa- 

 rently, seemed to be quite in unison with the views of the 

 garde.-du-bois. Before we arrived at that point, however, the 

 spaniels had flushed some fifteen or twenty cocks, out of which 

 we only managed to bag six ; indeed, the chance of our getting 

 even so many was greatly against the guns, as the garde had 

 brought with him a brace of wild setters, utterly unbroken, and 

 regardless of all control. These, leading the spaniels to riot, 

 ranged madly through the cover about a hundred yards ahead of 

 us. In vain their master swore, kicked them with his heavy 

 sabots, and at length fired after and into 1 them, until they howled 

 with agony; and in vain Keryfan and myself remonstrated 

 loudly, and begged him to couple them up, and take them 

 back to their kennel, as they were only spoiling the sport of 

 the day ; to which he ever replied, with an appeal to the sacred 

 mother, " Curse the mongrels ; they'll be quiet enough shortly, 

 and then they'll find more cocks than all your spaniels would 

 in a week." 



Keryfan at length nudged my elbow and said, " It's no use, 

 Frank, we are only wasting our words ; let us get on to the 

 auberge as fast as we can ; that is our best chance now." 



" Yes," I replied, " or our spaniels will be ruined as well as 

 the sport ; but it's my firm conviction the fellow is more knave 

 than fool, and has brought out these dogs on purpose to save his 



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