THE LIFE OF A FOX. 101

fallow in the direction which I had gone, straight
beyond. It seems that Stephen, the huntsman,
made one or two casts with his hounds across
each of these fallow fields, without success.
In his anxiety not to lose, I suppose he forgot
that if the hounds could not hunt scent over one
fallow they could not over another. He omitted
to hold the hounds on, and across the next field
of wheat beyond it, and took them back towards
the covert where I came from, and thus it was
that I escaped; for after some remark was made
to him on the subject, he directly took the hounds
back to the field beyond the fallow; they there
got on my line of scent, and after hunting slowly
for a couple of miles, fortunately for me gave it
up; otherwise, the line I had taken was so good
that I might have fallen a victim to this persever-
ing and promising young huntsman. After a
little more experience, he will be a dangerous
enemy of ours.

“ Now, Chester, tell us how ein go on in thy
part of the world, and how thou hast contrived to
escape from that famous hunting pack of hounds,

F 3