The Horse, as Comrade and Friend 



are following, and, in the head-long rush, the 

 leaders clear the depression in most magnifi- 

 cent leaps. What the leader jumps over, all 

 the rest jump over. There must be forty 

 or fifty at least ; and, as the bulk of the herd 

 come on and leap together, you get that weird 

 effect of the arch against the sky with the 

 dayhght showing below. In three seconds it 

 is over, and the faint and fainter snapping is all 

 that remains. 



Disciple was quite interested, and gave a 

 snort as they vanished. The very moment 

 he saw them, his nerve tension was released, 

 for he instantljT^ realised that they were not of 

 the kind to hurt horses. How this knowledge 

 so suddenly came to him wants a little thinking 

 over, for he had never seen deer before in his 

 life. Clearly the information was instinctive 

 and detailed, for it was quite definite and 

 dependable as far as he was concerned. 



The transition from this interruption to the 

 resumption of the quest is not immediate. 

 You do not prompt him. He is still standing 

 on the spot where he so suddenly pulled up. 

 He sniffs in the air, as though a waft of the 

 scent of the deer has come to him, and he is still 

 intently listening, his eyes fixed on the place 

 where he last saw them. Then he moves a 

 few paces forward, as though to follow them, 

 and stops again, ears pricked, still listening. 

 He gives a snort and a little bound, and, with 



130 



