WILD SPORT IN BRITTANY. 97 



twenty yards astern, and two couple of hounds close on her 

 haunches, I brought my gun to bear on the leading pig, touched 

 the trigger, and over he went, dead and motionless as a bag of 

 sand ; the other three dashed on one side, and keeping a huge 

 boulder between me and them, evaded my sight ; so my second 

 barrel was reserved for the old brute now close at hand. Seeing 

 the dead pig in her path, and doubtless concluding that I was the 

 cause of the calamity, she charged at once, and with such an im- 

 petus that no time was left me to choose my aim, or even to guard 

 against the chance of killing one of the hounds ; so I fired in her 

 face, and down she came head-foremost at my feet. But the brute 

 was not dead : my balle-mariee had glanced from her forehead, 

 and, merely stunning her for a moment, she struggled on her 

 legs and again came at me with a savage rush. I had just time, 

 however, to back a yard or two, spring up and catch the friendly 

 bough overhead ; then, drawing up my legs, she shot under me 

 and passed instantly forward, with the hounds still at her 

 heels. 



At that moment St. Prix, viewing the single pig, had thrown 

 in a fresh relay ; and these, some two couple or more, forcing 

 the pace, soon brought her to bay under a shelving rock within 

 fifty yards of the cover-edge. Before I could re-load and reach 

 the spot, St. Prix, on foot, was tearing to the scene, his whip 

 in his left hand and his couteau gleaming in the right; and, 

 without pausing an instant or looking out for Vantage-ground, 

 he went straight into the fray, and with one quick, powerful 

 stroke of his weapon, the fierce pig rolled dead at his feet. 



"Not a hound scratched !" was his first joyous exclamation, 

 as I hurried forward to lend him, as I hoped, a hand; "but," 

 he continued, "my teeth chattered when I saw you take that 

 last shot : and how old Balafre escaped destruction will be 

 a mystery to me so long as I live." 



" Well, it was a close shave and a snap shot, I admit ; but 



