82 



THE HUNTERS ARCADIA. 



porpoise of a brute such as you are describing as 

 * old bull/ do among a lot of full or half-bred 

 greyhounds ? " I will answer, enjoy himself first ; 

 secondly, make himself useful ; since he was never 

 thrown out of the hunt if the others were a mile 

 ahead, for straight on their spoor he would be 

 found toiling, occasionally, it is true, perchance, 

 lying down for a momentary rest, but, for all that, 

 his mellow voice never ceased. 



If, by chance, the greyhounds had over-run 

 their game and were hopping up and down like 

 india-rubber balls in every patch of bush or long- 

 grass in the vicinity to try and regain a sight of it, 

 after a time it might be a long time "old bull" 

 would come up, clap his nose to the lost scent, 

 give two or three of his stentorian howls, to bring 

 his companions about him, the weakest of whom 

 he would possibly nearly knock off their legs with 

 repeated wallops of his cudgel of a tail, and in a few 

 minutes after all were assembled around him, the 

 buck would be turned out of his temporary shelter, 

 and probably having to face the open, got pulled 

 down before going far. 



But before getting into the saddle, and while my 



