44 HUNTING. 



he must remain whatever may happen ; and there he does 

 stay, till he is soaked to the skin. A keen wind rises, and 

 sends a chill through his weather-beaten frame. What shall he 

 do ? He certainly can eat his crust of bread. He will. One 

 bite is all he can take. Two magpies and a jay are flitting 

 about over the centre of the western slope of the ravine. His 

 heart throbs until he fears that the deer will hear its pulsations, 

 for he knows that something is moving. 



The birds fly from tree to tree southwards, chattering to 

 one another. 



There is a pause : the sound of the birds ceases. He 

 strains his eyes in all directions, but can see nothing. The 

 crust of bread is again produced, now well sodden and coat 

 stained, yet his palate is not insulted by its condition and 

 miscellaneous flavour. He is evidently superior to the ordi- 

 nary trials of life. His patience is inexhaustible, but he has 

 fears that he will not ' harbour ' a stag this morning. 



Presently, he observes that the magpies are once more on 

 the alert, this time flitting straight up the ravine. What can 

 this mean ? There is no feeding ground that way. He feels 

 sure that if the deer are on foot, they will come back. 



But they don't, and the birds take wing up the western 

 slope of the ravine, until lost to view. This seems to denote 

 that the deer will take the open, and come by a circuitous 

 route to the feeding ground. And surely enough, there they 

 come over the moorland, but sinking behind a ridge are in a 

 moment completely hidden. The harbourer sees no more of 

 them. Presently he hears a human voice coming from the 

 direction of the feeding ground. It is the voice of a boy 

 driving a horse. If the tree on which our friend is sitting 

 were struck by lightning, he could not have been more be- 

 wildered. 



' What brings he here this time o' the morning, I wonder ? ' 

 falls involuntarily from his lips. But he knows better than to 

 descend from his perch for the purpose of inquiring. 



He is keeping his eyes fixed upon the point where he last 



