268 MR. SPONGE'S SPORTING TOUR. 



he seating himself comfortably in it, " let's see where did we 

 go first ? ' He broke at the lower end of the cover, and crossing 

 the brook, made straight for Fleecy haugh, Water Meadows, over 

 which,' you may say, ' there's always a ravishing scent.' " 



" Have you got that ? " asked Jack, after what he thought a 

 sufficient lapse of time for writing it. 



" ' Ravishing scent,' " repeated Sponge as he wrote the words. 



" Very good," said Jack, smoking and considering. " ' From 

 there,' " continued he, " ' he made a bit of a bend, as if inclining 

 for the plantations at Winstead, but, changing his mind, he 

 faced the rising ground, and crossing over nearly the highest part 

 of Shillington Hill, made direct for the little village of Berrington 

 Roothings below. ' " 



" Stop ! " exclaimed Sponge, " I haven't got half that ; I've only 

 got to ' the plantations at Winstead.' " Sponge made play with 

 his pen, and presently held it up in token of being done. 



" Well," pondered Jack, " there was a check there. Say," con- 

 tinued he, addressing himself to Sponge, " ' Here the hounds came 

 to a check.' " 



" Here the hounds came to a check," wrote Sponge. " Shall we 

 say anything about distance ? " asked he. 



" P'raps we may as well," replied Jack. " We shall have to 

 stretch it though a bit." 



"Let's see," continued he ; from the cover to Berrington Rooth- 

 ings over by Shillington Hill and Fleecyhaugh Water Meadows will 

 be — say, two miles and a half or three miles at the most, — call it 

 four, well four miles, — say four miles in twelve minutes, twenty miles 

 an hour, — too quick, — four miles in fifteen minutes, sixteen miles 

 an hour ; no — I think p'raps it'll be safer to lump the distance at 

 the end, and put in a place or two that nobody knows the name of, 

 for the convenience of those who were not out." 



"But those who ivere out will blab, won't they?" asked Sponge. 



" Only to each other," replied Jack. " They'll all stand up for 

 the truth of it as against strangers. You need never be afraid of 

 over-eggin' the puddin' for those that were out." 



" Well, then," observed Sponge, looking at his paper to report 

 progress, "we've got the hounds to a check. 'Here the hounds 

 came to a check,' " read he. 



" Ah ! now, then," said Jack, in a tone of disgust, " we must 

 say summut handsome of Bragg ; and of all conceited animals 

 under the sun, he certainly is the most conceited. I never saw 

 such a man ! How that unfortunate, infatuated master of his keeps 

 him, I can't for the life of me imagine. Master ! faith, Bragg's 

 the master" continued Jack, who now began to foam at the 

 mouth. " He laughs at old Puff to his face ; yet it's wonderful 

 the influence Bragg has over him I really believe he has talked 



