OUR FOUR-FOOTED NEIGHBORS. 329 



hot and eager chase, while a dozen village dogs joined 

 blindly in the pursuit. 



5. Quite a crowd collected on the bank — men, women, 

 and children — anxious for the fate of the little animal known 

 to them all ; some threw themselves into boats, hoping to 

 intercept the hound before he reached his prey ; but the 

 plashing of the oars, the eager voices of the men and boys, 

 and the harking of the dogs, must have filled the beating 

 heart of the poor fawn with terror and anguish, as though 

 every creature on the spot where it had once been caressed 

 and fondled had suddenly turned into a deadly foe. 



G. It was soon seen that the little animal was directing 

 its course across a bay toward the nearest borders of the 

 forest, and immediately the owner of the hound crossed the 

 bridge, running at full speed in the same direction, hop- 

 ing to stop his dog as he landed. On the fawn swam, as 

 it never swam before, its delicate head scarcely seen above 

 the water, but leaving a disturbed track, which betrayed its 

 course alike to anxious friends and fierce enemies. As it 

 approached the land the exciting interest became intense. 

 The hunter was already on the same line of shore, calling 

 loudly and angrily to his dog, but the animal seemed to 

 have quite forgotten his master's voice in the pitiless pur- 

 suit. The fawn touched the land ; in one leap it had 

 crossed the narrow line of beach, and in another instant it 

 would reach the cover of the woods. The hound followed 

 true to the scent, aiming at the same spot on the shore ; 

 his master, anxious to meet him, had run at full speed, 

 and was now coming up at the most critical moment ; 

 would the dog hearken to his voice, or could the hunter 

 reach him in time to seize and control him ? A shout from 

 the village bank proclaimed that the fawn had passed out 

 of sight into the forest ; at the same instant, the hound, as 

 he touched the land, felt the hunter's strong arm clutching 

 his neck. 



