250 Hark Away, 



when you were unable to see fifty yards ahead; 

 but the varmint - looking chesnut upon which I 

 was mounted seemed to know his way about, and 

 though I did not feel quite content at the idea of 

 his going the pace through the gloom, I came to 

 the conclusion, before many minutes had elapsed, 

 that it Avas no use attempting to curb his impetu- 

 osity; and so, like a wilful man, he had his way, 

 and carried me pleasantly and safely when I ceased 

 pulling him about, evidently, from his style of going, 

 being thoroughly acquainted with the ups and downs 

 of the Brighton country. 



Keaching the top of a hill, after runoiDg for ten 

 minutes, the scent failed, and the hounds came to a 

 check. However, patience and perseverance being 

 the order of the day, Mr. Dewe got on to the line of 

 the hunted hare, and away we went a rattler, and 

 no mistake, for another twelve or fifteen minutes, 

 when the hounds came to a check on the plough ; 

 but, by diligently puzzling out the line, we contrived 

 to get on better terms with her, every hound in the 

 pack trying his utmost, showing that as well as 

 being able to go at a racing pace when the scent 

 serves them, they can stoop their heads when it 

 fails, and hunt their hare inch by inch. After this 

 we had some slow hunting, which tended to confirm 

 my opinion of the good qualities of this pack, as 

 they persistently tried to puzzle out the devious 

 tracks of the crafty animal, which eventually gave 

 us the slip, a result due to the state of the weather 

 which so effectually put a stop to our sport. Not- 

 withstanding this drawback, I thoroughly enjoyed 

 the two or three smart spins which we had, and 



