188 THE MASTER OF THE HOUNDS. 



" Now, then," shouted Bob Conyers, as he caught sight ot 

 the pack streaming away, " come on, you thrusting scoundrels, 

 — now's your time — let 'em go — no more hold hards to day ; " 

 and down rattled the first division of light cavalry, charging 

 their fences with long pent-up impatience. The hounds, how- 

 ever, having got the start, seemed resolved to keep it, and the 

 brook being brim full and over after a heavy night's rain, the 

 casualties which occurred there were rather more numerous 

 than usual, there being multi, instead oi ^'rari nxxntes in gurgite 

 vasto^^ few who rode at it escaping without a ducking. The 

 Captain and Coventry took their plunge as usual ; some rode at 

 it fast, others walked their horses into the stream, the banks of 

 which could not be discerned ; but all landed safely on the 

 other side, and again set to work to catch the hounds, which 

 few were destined to see any more that day. The forest was 

 reached ; but the fox, disdaining its protection, passed through 

 one corner of it, and boldly faced the open, into the neighbour- 

 ing hunt, taking their huntsman entirely out of his reckoning, 

 as to the point he contemplated reaching, and everything now 

 depending on the staunchness of the pack. 



Will Beauchamp interfered as little as possible in two or 

 three checks which occurred, and five '^r six miles of new 

 country had now been crossed at a gocvi *xunting pace after 

 leaving the forest. 



" Where," exclaimed Conyers, " can the fox be travelling to, 

 Will ? he must be out of his latitude as well as ourselves ; 

 although as to longitude, confound him ! he still seems holding 

 on straight enough." 



" He has run me out of my geography, Bob ; although there 

 is, I believe, a strong covert somewhere in the direction he is 



now going, belonging to the H Hunt, which I conclude is 



his point." 



" Ah ! well, this proves what a good fox can do, when he 

 has a fair start and is not hurried over the first five miles. 

 Your bursts of twenty or thirty minutes are all very well some- 

 kimes, but give me a good hunting run like this ; look, there is 

 a likely covert, just a few fields ahead — please the pigs, we 

 don't change there." 



"No, no, we shall book him yet. Now, Charley, to the 

 fiirther end of it, and mind you don't halloa a fresh fox." 



Here the hounds, for the first time, got up with their game, 

 and gave him such a rattling, that he broke away again, 

 running for some open downs above the vale. For two milea 



