WILD SPORT IN BRITTANY. 139 



CHAPTER XIII. 



THE meet on the present occasion was nominally at Pencoet, a 

 desolate farm-house situated on a spur of the Montagnes Noires, 

 in the direction of Chateaulin, but really was intended for the long 

 chain of covers lying on the south-western side of that hilly region, 

 which has been appropriately called the " Backbone of Brittany." 

 These covers, consisting chiefly of oak, hazel, chestnut, and black 

 pine trees, occupy for many leagues the hollow valleys of that 

 district : and the nearest of them being at least a league beyond 

 the farm-house, the hunting ground was not reached by the hounds 

 till long after the appointed hour ; while the " field," after the 

 orgies of the previous night, were yet more unpunctual. 



Shafto alone had left Gourin at break of day ; it having been 

 arranged between him and St. Prix that he should bring six 

 couple of his hounds to join the Louve tier's pack, the latter 

 consisting also of a like number : but it was past ten o'clock ere 

 the allied forces met at Gwernez, the precipitous cover they were 

 appointed to attack first. The din of war had so disturbed the 

 wild tenants of Laz and Kcenig, during the past two days, that 

 it was confidently expected many of the survivors, especially the 

 oldest and the craftiest, would cross the mountain range during 

 the night and seek the quiet and secluded haunts of this cover ; 

 and the report of the piqueurs fully confirmed this expectation. 

 The heavy showers of the last few days had so moistened the 



