Sautre forester aiiD Uoni /IDoobp ss 



the gorse soon began to shake, and a hound or two were 

 seen outside, and amongst them old Pilot, who now 

 and then took a turn outside, and turned in, lashing his 

 stern, and giving the right token. " Have at him ! " 

 shouted one ; " Get ready ! " said another ; " Hold hard 

 a bit, we shall have him for a hundred ! " shouted the 

 squire. "Then comes a tally-ho," said my father, "and off 

 they go ; every hound out of cover, sterns up, carrying 

 a beautiful head, and horses all in a straight line along 

 the open, with the scent breast high. Reynard making 

 straight for the tongue of the coppice, finds himself cir- 

 cumvented, and fresh hounds being let loose, he makes 

 for Wenlock Walton, as though he was going to give 

 'em an airing on the hill-top. 



" But headed and foiled his first point he forsook, 

 And merrily led them a dance o'er the brook." 



' Some lime-burners coming from work turned him, 

 and leaving Wenlock on the left he made for Tickwood. 

 It was now getting dark, and the ground being awkward 

 one or two were down. The squire swore he would 

 have the varmint out of Tickwood ; and the hounds 

 working well, and old Trumpeter's tongue being heard 

 on the lower side, one challenged the other, and they 

 soon got into line in the hollow, the fox leading. 

 Stragglers got to the scent, and off they went by the 

 burnt houses, where the squire's horse rolled over into 

 a sand-pit. The fox made for the Severn, but turned 

 in the direction of Buildwas, and was run into in the 

 moonlight, among the ivied ruins of the Abbey.' 



How grimly resolute the squire could be in following 

 his quarry is illustrated by the following anecdote, also 

 given by I\Ir John Randall : — 



c 



