DEVON AND SOMERSET. 311 



the surface is a dark and dismal green with 

 grass a foot high it is time to go steady and 

 collect vour horse. Then comes a maze of 

 ancient peat cuttings or an acre of natural 

 swamp, and here time must be given, or the 

 best horse ever foaled will be down on his 

 knees and nose, and will have a struggle to 

 regain his footing. After a prolonged tufting, 

 and wiien fresh hounds have been taken out 

 once or oftener to the huntsman's assistance, 

 stray tufters are apt to turn up at odd times 

 throughout the day's chase. Very possibly they 

 may be running a deer on their own account, 

 and often a blank dav has been averted by the 

 unexpected performance of some tufter that 

 had been lost sight of for awhile, onlv to turn 

 up with a warrantable deer before him, which 

 he had been pursuing steadilv all by himself 

 from one retreat to another, through the deep 

 green sylvan fastnesses whence he had at length 

 stolen away to the open hill, only to find himself 

 observed by the whole field, and a few minutes 

 later to hear the whimpering scream of the 

 pack as they open on his foil. In hind 

 hunting and especially in rough weather when 

 perhaps the greater part of the first draft of 

 tufters have been lost, it is no uncommon 

 practice to take out fresh hounds and ride to 

 the nearest high ground, where before long 

 some hunted hind is almost sure to heave in 



