268 WILD SPORTS OF THE HIGHLANDS chap. 



a narrow fissure in the rocks, down which the water ran like a 

 mill-race. Scrambling up to the head of the ravine, we found 

 ourselves in the corrie, a magnificent amphitheatre of precipitous 

 grey rocks. The fox's favourite earth was known to be far up 

 on the cliff, and as only two passes could easily lead to it, we 

 endeavoured to command them both. My station was high up, 

 on a dizzy enough crag, which commanded one of the passes 

 for a considerable way, and sufficiently screened me from all 

 the lower part of the corrie. Having with some difiicultjr got 

 to my place, and arranged the best vista I could command 

 whilst keeping myself unseen, I had a few minutes to admire 

 the wild scene below me. It was a narrow corrie, with a small 

 clear stream twisting and shining through an endless confusion 

 of rugged grey rocks. 



I had not been placed many minutes when a deep bay 

 reached me through the clear morning air. I listened with 

 eagerness ; and soon heard the whole pack in full cry, though 

 at a great distance, and apparently not coming quite in our 

 direction. While watching, however, the different entries to 

 the corrie, I saw a fox come leisurely down a steep slope of 

 loose stones, towards where the fox-hunter was concealed. Pre- 

 sently he stopped, and quietly sitting down, appeared to listen 

 for the dogs ; and, not hearing their cry come nearer, he came 

 quietly and leisurely along, till he reached the track where we 

 had crossed the corrie ; when, cautiously stopping with his nose 

 to the ground, he changed his careless manner of running to a 

 quick canter, halting now and then, and snuffing the air, to find 

 out where the enemy was concealed. Just then, too, the hounds 

 appeared to have turned to our direction, and another fox came 

 in view, entering the corrie to my right hand at a great pace, 

 and making directly towards me, though still at a mile's distance. 

 The first fox had approached within sixty or seventy yards of 

 the fox-hunter, when I saw a small stream of smoke issue from 

 the rocks, and the fox staggered a little, and then I heard the 

 report of the gun. The foxes both rushed down the hill again, 

 away from us, one evidently wounded ; when, the echo of the 

 shot sounding in every direction, first on one side of the corrie, 

 then on another, and then apparently on every side at once, 

 fairly puzzled the poor animals. The wounded fox turned 

 back again, and ran straight towards where the fox-hunter was, 



