122 HOUND AND HORN 



body of the fox that had carried them so far from 

 kennels, and bafQed them so completely for a while. 

 It was now 7.15, and, though Jack and Billy turned 

 up very soon, swelling with pride at the part they 

 had played in keeping hounds together, their horses 

 had to be made comfortable before we could start for 

 home. From the keeper's wife we got some real oat- 

 cakes or girdle cakes and half a tumblerful of whisky 

 and water before setting out on a fourteen or fifteen 

 mile jog home — twelve and a half miles on the map — 

 and it was fully three hours later before we sighted 

 the stable lantern. 



" I see ye've killed him, sir," said Tom. 



^^ How can you tell in this light, Tom ? " 



'' Well, sir, from the way some o' the hounds is 

 swaggerin', an' I think I saw old Rambler carrying 

 the nose as he went past." 



Curious finishes to outstanding hunts sometimes 

 take place, and once or twice we were like losing 

 our fox altogether, after having killed him fairly. 



On one of the Harwood days we ran a fox out 

 by Wauchope to Cribb's hole, by the Flush to Dyke- 

 raw, and in very fast to Tythehouse, where I viewed 

 him one field before hounds, crawling in front of 

 them. When we got up to them at the mill cauld 

 we found hounds were walking round on the tips 

 of their toes, some bloody, some scraping at the 

 apron of the cauld, all with their hackles up and 

 signs of battle, one tuft of fox fur but no fox. 

 Now what to do ? Could we put the fox into the 

 count, no one having seen him killed or having 

 handled him ? Whipping off some of the boards to 

 let the terrier in disclosed nothing ; and only after 



