The Bloodhound. 19 



and a half of hounds, and, with fifteen minutes' law 

 to the quarry. Now that the snow had ceased, the 

 pack quickly went along the right line down the hill 

 and over the first fence. In the middle of the second 

 field, some quarter of a mile from the start, Danger 

 seemed at a loss, and, turning back to his owner who 

 was following as fast as the deep snow would admit, 

 somewhat disconcerted the other hounds, as they 

 turned round to the voice of Mr. Pegler, who called 

 his hound up. Higher up the field Beeswing 

 appeared to be the one that struck the scent again, 

 her voice attracting her kennel companions, who 

 rattled along the correct track up to a hedge which 

 lay to the left. The quarry had skirted this 

 boundary line, and made his way down hill to a couple 

 of hay stacks, or, at any rate, stacks of some kind. 

 He had doubled along the road here, but hounds 

 found him without the slightest difficulty. 



As all hunting and shooting men know, scent is 

 one of the mysteries of nature. Here we were out 

 on a day when one might reasonably expect that 

 hounds would be unable to run a hundred yards with- 

 out a check. Still, all these bloodhounds, with their 

 quarry given from seven to fifteen minutes' start, hit 

 the line, and took it along at a " racing pace/' it may 

 be called, when the ten or eight inches of snow are 

 taken into consideration. The keen north wind, too, 



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