LEARNING THE MERITS OF FRENCH HOUNDS. 55 



« To lead up to the boar." 



"To lead! lead what? Why, he is not fast 

 enough to lead a lame blind man? " 



" Oh yes ; we put him on the line ; he leads up to 

 the boar." 



" Leads ! What, do you mean to say that those 

 three or four able young foxhounds, and Saxon, 

 when he is in health, wait for that thing to lead 

 them ? " 



" Oh, yes ; they would do nothing without him." 



" Well," I sighed to myself, " there must be some 

 mistake here of some sort ; but let us proceed with 

 the investigation." 



" What is that ? " I asked, pointing to a long- 

 legged picked-nosed thing, liver-coloured and white, 

 like a pointer ; no loins, no power, flat-sided, and 

 horrible in feet and legs, with a stump stern — evi- 

 dently chopped off. 



" That ! That is famous old Papajow," — so it was 

 pronounced. 



" What do you keep him for ? He can't run up." 



" Papajow not run up ! He can fly." 



On hearincr this annunciation, from a sensible 

 young man, I fell back against the wall, and seriously 

 took myself to task. "Here, then," I murmured, 

 ** is one of those apparent impossibilities, which, after 



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