316 HUNTING. 



plan for his manoeuvre, and moreover, it was at night-time, 

 which rendered his success the more remarkable : 



We found (he says) about 5 P.M. in a long weir-pool, some two 

 miles above the inn at Woodford Bridge, where we were quartered 

 for the night. Rattled him well for an hour ; then called off, there 

 being little chance of killing so late in the day. But, feeling sure 

 he would go down stream to some heavy water below, I decided to 

 try a dodge with him and keep him up, if possible. So, collecting 

 five or six lanterns, I lighted and hung them at dusk under the 

 arches of the bridge. Then stationed two men, one on each side 

 of the river, to thrash the water with long poles just above the 

 bridge, and, to crown all, Mr. Frank Cockburn and I lighted a big 

 bonfire which, while we cracked whips and blew horns, we kept 

 going till daylight. At 4 A.M. we began to draw for him up stream, 

 and on crossing the very first hedge above the bonfire, away went 

 the hounds in full cry. Then old Benedict's roar soon told us the 

 otter was found, and the fun was on in earnest. He then landed, 

 and crossing many acres of fern, gained a large cover, up which 

 he went and down again through another cover ; but before he 

 could reach the river by thirty yards, they rolled him over within 

 a short distance of our night's quarters an old dog-otter. 



The trail, when an old otter has a point to make, will not 

 unfrequently extend to a distance of eight or ten miles, and 

 that too across country, if his point happens to be on another 

 river. Mr. Collier's experience of this erratic habit is very 

 pleasantly told in the following letter : 



I have had some extraordinary sport this season (1884), such 

 as I never saw, or can ever expect to see again. The trail hunting 

 has been something wonderful. My first meet was on the Culme, 

 near Collompton ; there took a trail, and at the end of ten miles 

 up stream, found ; had three hours and a quarter, and killed. Last 

 June, in response to an invitation from the Hon. G. Lascelles, I took 

 ten couple of hounds into Hampshire to draw the streams in the 

 New Forest, making Brockenhurst my head-quarters. Monday, 

 1 6th, we met at Beaulieu at 7 A.M. After drawing up stream about 

 half a mile, we struck on a trail, which the hounds carried on at a 

 rattling pace for miles through this wild country. The otter now 

 began to twist and turn a good deal ; but every inch was hunted 



