A BOBBERY PACK 53 



first time since puppyhood — broken away from their 

 astonished and outraged huntsman, and across the veld 

 they carried the hne of the hare, their deep, bell-hke 

 voices almost drowning the yapping of the struggling 

 tangle of cur dogs. Still rating and cursing, Tom jumped 

 on the pony of one of the field — who, owing to a great 

 breadth of beam, had been given permission to ride to 

 " hounds " — and off he galloped in pursuit of Amazon 

 and Guardsman as though his Satanic Majesty was behind 

 him, while the field laid into the other rioters indis- 

 criminately and with hearty goodwill. At length we had 

 them in hand again, and five minutes later the banks 

 of the river were being drawn, one half of the pack, piloted 

 by the Airedale, working the right-hand and the other 

 half the left-hand side. 



For perhaps an hour nothing wearing fur or feather was 

 moved, and then one of the Kafir dogs made a sudden rush 

 into a patch of scrub that grew down to the water's edge, 

 and out bolted a meerkat, which led the pack a merry burst 

 across the veld of quite a minute and a half's duration. 

 Then, with a flirt of the " brush," as though to wish his 

 pursuers "a very good day! " he disappeared down his 

 burrow, which ran for many feet below the surface of the 

 sun-baked earth. Some little time was wasted in getting 

 the pack back to the water again ; but when they were 

 whipped back to try for the legitimate quarry, the Airedale, 

 after feathering round a growth of dry rushes for a few 

 moments, gave a whimper, and along the bank he 

 drove with the whole pack — barring the foxhounds, which, 

 probably mindful of the trouble they had already ex- 

 perienced through running the hare, refused to work out 

 a yard of the trail, but kept close to their huntsman's 



