ODESSA AND MISKITCHEE. 49 



if I accepted the lift I should have to pay a con- 

 siderable fare, so I declined as graciously as pos- 

 sible. My friend persisted, and at last I told him 

 frankly that if he gave me a passage to these happy 

 hunting grounds of which he spoke it would have 

 to be a free one, and include a return before night- 

 fall. He consented at once, so without more ado 

 I got into his cart, and drove off with him. 



After a verst or two I began to find my friend 

 was no ' blagueur,' for in a very short time we had 

 bagged several hares and a few quail. His sight 

 was the most marvellous I ever met with. Stand- 

 ing up in his cart, as he drove rapidly over the 

 uplands, he would from time to time pull up 

 suddenly, exclaiming, ' Vot zeits ! ' Lo, a hare ! 

 at the same time pointing to some distant object 

 on the ploughed land or prairie. It was no good 

 my looking, for I could discern nothing, so that I 

 had to dismount and simply trudge for one or two 

 hundred yards in the direction he indicated, until 

 sure enough, from under my very feet, the hare 

 started, until then utterly undiscernible to me. 



And now the object of his morning drive was 

 revealed to me. On a hillside near us was a 

 mighty flock of sheep, tended by a few ragged 

 Tartar lads and one grey-headed shepherd, with 

 the usual retinue of huge mongrel sheepdogs 

 brutes who go for you on every opportunity. 

 Hailing the old shepherd, a bargain was soon 



E 



