THE CHASE OF THE HIND. 179 



the vanity of human wishes ! We become suddenly 

 aware that hounds are not running so fast as they 

 were ; and that we may be at no loss for a reason, a 

 storm of sleet, backed by a heavy squall, sweeps into 

 our faces, almost blinding us. "I depended it would 

 come," murmurs Arthur, as he pulls up to a trot and 

 watches the hounds now puzzling the line slowly over 

 the fence that divides the sound heather of Porlock 

 Common from the wet ground where Chalk Water has 

 its source. Still they can carry it on to the stream itself, 

 where at last they are brought to a real check. There 

 is a floodgate a little above, but Arthur is for some 

 reason disposed to cast down. " Best make it good 

 upward first," observes one of the field to himself, but 

 Arthur casts steadily down. A little way down there is 

 a hurdle across the stream with a bank fence running 

 down to it; it is nothing to stop a deer, and some 

 hounds have already cast down below it, but ** Bar- 

 rister" is very busy by the fence, and though he 

 cannot acknowledge the scent he will not leave the 

 spot. Arthur calls the rest back and casts up under 

 the fence, and presently they hit the line, but can 

 hardly hunt it ; so they hold it patiently on, unravelling 

 two or three doubles over the rank yellow grass, and 

 at last bring it fairly down once more to Badgworthy 



N 2 



