50 The Hunting Field With Horse and Hound 



(Here Jim assumed the air of a bloated land-owner with no 

 end of money) . " 'Can meet you,' said he. 'All right, I bet yer 

 my year's wages gin yourn you han't go no fox dog nohow, put 

 up or shut up, and what's mo', dun you go fooling around 

 Marster Thorpe's dogs, with none of yo' ole tricks, or I fills 

 you so full o' lead, j^ou sink on dry land.' " 



"Did you have a gun with you, Jim?" asked the Colonel, 

 looking serious. 



"Deed I did, Sah. Ole Rastus play no salt meat game on 

 dis nigger, no, Sah." 



Tliis referred to a trick laid to Rastus, but never proved; 

 i. e., that he put a lot of corn beef in the woods for Col. 

 Thorpe's homids to find and gorge themselves on, so they 

 couldn't run, keeping the Sacket hounds in leash until the meat 

 was devoured. Of course, the Sacket hounds took all the 

 honours. The incident stirred up a lot of bile and rile in the 

 blood of both families, and although Col. Thorpe had married 

 Col. Sacket's sister, the sore had never quite healed over to the 

 present day. 



Jim's carrying a gun was strictly against the rule, and on 

 any other occasion, he would probably have received a severe 

 reprimand, and had the gun taken away from him, but the Col- 

 onel was so anxious to hear about the "glory of old Ginger" 

 that he let it pass. 



"Where did you throw in?" asked the Colonel, who evi- 

 dently wanted to get Jim on to the trail without further ado. 



Then Jim told how he crossed this field, and that, and 

 finally where they took the hounds to uncouple them. 



"Yes, excellent j^lace!" cried the Colonel, shifting his seat 

 on the arm chair, as if he were now settling himself in his saddle 

 for a burst of speed when the hounds should jump their fox, 

 and the heavenly music should come to fill the wood, and like- 

 wise his heart. 



"Then," said Jim, "we hadn't long ter wait." "That's old 



