188 HORSES AND HOUNDS. 



a sheep-fold, where the hounds for a moment or two threw up. 

 Observing a shepherd at a short distance, I despatched the 

 whipper-in to know whether he had seen the fox, and what had 

 happened, in the mean time allowing the hounds to have their 

 own way. Something I could see was amiss. The whipper-in 

 galloped back, and told me the shepherd had seen the fox, which 

 had come very near to where he was, with a rabbit in his mouth. 

 *' A rabbit in his mouth, Jim 1 nonsense." — " 'Tis true enough, sir; 

 the shepherd showed me the rabbit, which he took away from 

 him." — "We will hear more of this presently — which way went 

 the foxf " Forward, sir." The check was explained, and holding 

 the hounds about a hundred yards in advance, they settled down 

 again to the scent, and dashed through the turnip field. Jim 

 now came up, and gave me the shepherd's story about the rabbit. 

 He said he saw the fox coming through the turnips towards 

 where he was standing with something in his mouth. The 

 turnips being high, he was not seen by Mr. Slyboots (whose 

 attention was most likely directed to what was passing in his 

 rear) ; that upon the fox coming nearer to him, he first threw 

 his crook at him, but he would not drop the rabbit : he then 

 set his dog after him ; the fox, showing fight, dropped the 

 rabbit, which therefore fell to the shepherd's lot. This accounted 

 for our hounds coming to a sudden check where the dog had 

 hustled the fox. Nothing will so soon baffle a good pack of 

 hounds as such an occurrence ; they at once detect that some- 

 thing is wrong, and will not go on with the scent where a dog 

 has been chasing the fox. Many such cases have happened to 

 me, and I always hold the hounds on until they take to the line 

 again freely. 



Jim's story about the shepherd and rabbit bothered me not a 

 little. " Can all this be true, Jim ?" I said. " O yes, sir, I sup- 

 pose it is : it looks all right, but the foxes must be cool hands 

 in this part of the world to carry their dinner about with 'em 

 in that brazen sort of a way. I don't half like this gentleman 

 we're after, sir ; he'll beat us, I am afraid, yet ; but there is one 

 thing in our favour, he don't seem much in a hurry at present, 

 and lucky for us, as we can't make more than a canter of it, 

 over these glass bottles." " Never mind, Jim, we will take it 

 patiently a little longer, until we are off these heavy ploughed 

 lands ; and as I see some hills in the distance straight before 

 us, I think we shall mend our pace when we reach them." 



Our fox was a traveller, and kept steadily on over a large 

 tract of land, small woods or hedgerows intervening occasionally, 

 until, to my great delight, we had left the glass bottles, as Jim 

 called them, behind us, and came right upon the open down. 



