SANDY^S STORY 125 



when I tell you that our race appears to be almost 

 extinct about these woods. 



After this tragical event I lost no time, but 

 went to the farthest covert belonging to this estate, 

 and nearly surrounded by Lord Elcho's country. 

 I hoped to be there as far as possible from danger, 

 and thought myself secure, as the outside covert 

 was kept quiet, and scarcely disturbed even by the 

 hounds of the Duke in whose hunt it is retained. 

 It is suspected that the keeper kills all of us foxes 

 that he can in that part, because no hounds hunt it 

 enough. He says that all the foxes in Lord 

 Elcho's country come there to be quiet. Be that 

 as it may, the last time the hounds found me there 

 they had before drawn all the other woods, and 

 only found one fox, and that a mangy one. I was 

 disturbed first by hearing old Will cheering his 

 hounds, as if he had just seen a fox, giving his cheer 

 thus, " Hooi-here, here, here ! " which, in any other 

 country, would pass for a view-halloo. 



After hstening and expecting to hear the hounds 

 in full cry, I found it was only his customary cry in 

 drawing a whin covert, particularly when he wished 

 his hounds to get into it. I noticed that they did 

 not attend to the halloo so readily when a fox was 

 really seen. Notwithstanding this, they understood 



