CH. VII.] Ferreting a Bank. 119 



In went the ferret, slowly dragging the line 

 after him till I count two yards gone by the 

 red marks on the line ; then there is a halt 

 for half a minute, then a loud rumbling and 

 the line is pulled fast through my fingers. 

 Jack moves quickly, and the next instant a 

 rabbit is thrown a little way out into the 

 field with its neck broken. Jack says, *' Ferret 

 out," then picks it up, draws the line through 

 the hole, passes the ferret over to me, and 

 we go on to the next, having filled up the 

 entrance of the hole we have just worked. 

 Hole after hole was ferreted much in the 

 same way. Sometimes Jack bagged the 

 bolting rabbit, sometimes the dogs, and now 

 and then one bolted and got into the hedge 

 before it could be caught and went back, but 

 it was little use, for the dogs with Fly at 

 their head were soon after it, and in a few 

 minutes Fly was sure to have it, and would 

 retrieve it back to Jack. 



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