So the next day the two of us tossed up for the first of the stream, and he won the toss, but did nothing; and then I came after him with my little grey, and it was not long when I had a fine fish hooked; and when I killed him, I hooked another, and lost a third; so the grand fisherman was obliged to allow himself beat, and the next morning he was on his road to London; for, it was little he knew of salmon-fishing in Ireland, and the gentleman gave me the situation of fisherman; and I have now good wages and a comfortable house, and the grass of a cow besides; and I set all my luck down to a grey cock I have, for if I had not him, sure I never would have the hackles; and if I had not the hackles, I could not have the fly; and if I had not the fly, I never would have got the situation. Forsayth, Donevail, August, 1844. RECOLLECTIONS OF OTTER HUNTING. Believing that the generality of sportsmen are partial to, and enjoy the recital of, any memorable sporting incidents, from one of their fraternity, and that few lack the power, or will, to communicate in return, some that they have witnessed; and that they will admit no time to be better calculated for their being truly relished than when a goodly dinner has given a grateful climax to a brilliant day's sport, and the luscious juice of the "grape," or the more frugal draught of "home brewed," has fully ensured the complacent humour arising from the joys of the day, I shall venture to lay before any thus on good terms with themselves, yet lacking the company of sporting friends, with whom to con over, and enjoy, the features of the day's sport, and pledge the social glass, the following recollections of some remarkable days' otter hunting, hoping that they may possibly prove interesting and amusing. The spring of 184 offered but a sad prospect for the Otter hunters of N. D., and, up to the middle of the month of May, the streams were too highly swollen to admit of the sport being pursued with the smallest chance of success. By the 29th, however, the L- stream, a small tributary of the river T, was deemed sufficiently low for the N. D. hounds to make the debût of the season. The meet was at the bridge, the time half-past five, the party strong, and the pack gay; and in the brief space of time that elapsed in exchange of the morning salutation, the survey of the dogs, and admiration of their racy condition, Old Harmony had stolen a march up stream, and her mellow tongue, opening upon the trail, awoke the slumbering echo of the vale, drew the entire pack to their work, and kept them steady on scent, which freshened to such a degree as to ensure their running trail, and not riot; before the piscatorial wanderings of the nightly poacher were hunted up, the youngest puppy was well entered on the scent, and at the finish of a five-mile trail, marked as truly and staunchly as the oldest of the cry; and then arose "Such gallant chiding, for besides the groves, So musical a discord, such sweet thunder." Nor ceased such glorious baying when he chained the stream and sought the opposite lair; and I was ordered to the shallow below, which, "a willing heart making me a light pair of heels," I soon gained, and intently watched, anxiously hoping I might be the first to greet him with an I gaze. But he had pushed on from pool to pool up stream, and soon was hailed by a loud I gaze from the stentorian voice of the proprietor of the hounds. Now the mingled and various shouting of I gaze, There he goes, Chain, Chain, plainly told of his still boldly dashing up stream to some favoured pit, till the angles of the valley shut off such sounds from hearing, and for a period my ears were only greeted by the murmur of the water and the ordinary sounds of nature, when again they were gladdened by the distant harmony of those tongues so enchanting to a sportsman's ear. My eye relaxed its steady gaze with a momentary twinkle of delight, but only to renew it the more rigidly, well knowing the probabilities of his approach being made during the next five minutes, or the next half hour, to be equal: the precaution was not unnecessary, for almost at the next moment I discovered him gliding down the shallow, in the remarkably quiet and eel-like motion so peculiar to the race. But when passing my post, I, as a trusty sentinel, arrested his downward progress by exchanging the countersign, a kick from my steel-shod boot, which lifted his breast so completely above the surface of the water, that the rare appearance of a white spot thereon was distinctly noticed by me, and giving the watch-word, a rattling I gaze, as he passed from me, and disappeared in the still dark waters of the Factory pool; that, sounding up the valley, was quickly answered by a few turns on the bugle, the hounds lifted down stream, spared the toil of hunting, the profusion of scent floating on its surface, so often causing delay and perplexity, and thrown in on the shallow, in which I had made so intimate acquaintance with him. The still dark bosom of the Factory pool soon became lashed to a foam by the eager and continuous plungings of the pack, as marking him from lair to lair, and tearing away the tangled roots with tooth and claw, they bayed vociferously at its mouth, till, by the bold entry of some dauntless terriers, it became no longer tenable. Now the varied shouts of Bubble he goes told the fact of his crossing in a distressed state, carrying the tip of his nose scarce above the turbid surface of the pool, to get air, as he sought refuge from his pursuers but all shelter of the banks was cut off by the continued disturbance of the lairs, and, after seeking the depths of the pool, necessity forced him again to its surface, and to trust his entire head above it; this was not done without calling forth the shout of Bubble a vent from all, but novices at the sport; and drawing down on his head the relentless attacks of his pursuers, from which he escaped, not without a hearty shaking for his temerity; though he left evident marks on the frontispieces of some of them, showing a return for the same had been given. In a moment more, the sport assumed a very novel feature, by his breaking land, bustling through the sedge, and then crossing an open marsh, at a really gallant pace. The dogs soon gained it too, and having first either christened, or re-christened, all near them, whilst shaking the watery element from their hides, viewed him across the marsh, and sprung the cope of the opposite hedge, almost in the same instant as he had safely gained it, but shot a few yards over their game into the adjoining field; when, soon regaining its sunken cope, they carried the line of scent, through all its tangled underwood, which snapped and cracked as if it had a flame of fire shooting through it, to a spot where a friendly moot offered him a temporary holdfast: here, however, assailed from before, by hounds and terriers, and most annoyingly poked from behind, by the insertion of the buts of sundry hunting poles, he found it too hot to tarry long; so boldly sallying out, and using his white grinders to the best advantage, in again acknowledging the receipt of certain awkward shakings he met with, managed to slip over the cope, and availing himself of a ledge just underneath, foiled his over-eager pursuers, now plunging headlong, one after another, into the marsh, just as nimbly as I have often seen a rabbit, and regaining it about a yard further down: but just as the pack had done so, he was to be seen crossing the marsh, and slanting downward. The effect of the dodge was pretty quickly retrieved by his pursuers, and they most certainly had made him pay a severe penalty for the stratagem, possibly his life, had not a deep surface drain most opportunely afforded him a secure passage down to the water's edge once more. Again the sides of the Factory pool were chafed and fretted, as it became the scene of action for a few moments, till passing down stream, his rapid and crafty movements, in plunging on at best speed under cover of the bank, and from time to time taking a swim across, and again pushing down under shelter of the opposite one, gave us true cause to admire his tact, and enjoy the harmonious crack of the dogs, whilst hunting down the scent to a crossing, and then casting about them, till they hit it off on the opposite side, and plunged on till they encountered another break in its line. For better than a mile did he thus skilfully beat his retreat downward, and gain possession of the impregnable stronghold of an old culvet on the Factory leat, into and from which the water rushed by an aperture beneath its surface, thus precluding a right of entry to either hound or terrier, and recal to our mind the lines of the Scottish bard, as well suited to convey to my reader our position and feelings at being thus put hors du combat. "Then dashing down a darksome glen, In the deep Trosach's wildest nook, His solitary refuge took. There, while, close couched, the thicket shed Cold dews and wild flowers on his head, He heard the baffled dogs in vain Rave through the hollow pass amain, My reader will remember it has been said of old, that "those who fight and run away may live to fight another day," while I proceed to lay before him our preparations and precautions for the morrow. A chosen corps was drafted from our party, and sent to guard and watch the shallow next above the bridge, the scene of our morning's meet. I followed the pack and saw them located in a warm and comfortable outhouse, at a neighbouring farm, helped in the preparation of a warm and tempting supper, securing the tit bits for those having peculiar claims thereto, from delicate appetites or especial favour, withdrew the irritating thorn, cared for the chafed claw, by applying, under the eye and direction of their doating owner, a cooling lotion he purposely carried on his person, and leaving them in security and comfort to refresh for the toils that might await them to-morrow, returned to the bridge, to fix upon our position, and lay our plans for intercepting any downward movement our friend might deem it prudent to make, so as to gain the greater security afforded by the still swollen waters of the river T- Twilight was past, and the moon softly rising o'er the western hills, ere our plans were fully resolved on, and divulged to the gradually decreasing party, a few more of whom, on hearing the disclosure, paired off; still, however, a strong muster remained, ready and willing to share in their execution, romantic as they may appear to have been. It was determined then to kindle a huge fire, so as to become a source of comfort to the party during the chilly hours of night, and of terror to our game, should he, on emerging from his stronghold, contemplate a passage to the river T-; and to keep a rigid look out on the shallow above us, where the water was not sufficiently deep to cover his body; and had he attempted to pass, the clear light of the moon must certainly have discovered his presence to the prepared and practised eyes that alternately watched it during the night. By the liberality of the yeomen of the neighbourhood, many of whom had witnessed and shared in the day's sport, we were amply supplied with fuel wherewith to feed our watch-fire, and one of the dry arches of the old bridge was soon deeply blackened by its flitting blaze, as it cracked and burnt joyously beneath it. Nor did their generosity cease here, but supplied us with good and substantial solids and liquids, free of all cost or consideration, and, moreover, enlivened us with their jovial company; the dash of romance and of Indian life that pervaded our undertaking appearing to jump with their taste and ideas (happily for us). Our every wish was anticipated, and I scarcely ever remember more highly relishing a supper. It consisted of the provincial dish, or pan, of fried bacon and potatoes, cooked on the spot, over the splendid fire (that now burnt up in all its ruddy glory), by a burly yeoman, in as au fait a style as his better half could possibly have done the act; in fact, I should guess he had taken a few lessons from her in the art. Many of the party were employed in a similar way, and for the same common end-that of preparing a comfortable supper; and at different parts of the fire were to be seen, one toasting ham and his own face, a second boiling eggs (for we lacked neither pots nor kettles), and a third, your humble servant, boiling a whole kettle-full of coffee, and performing the fining process, so completely to his own satisfaction, that he would not have blushed to have offered his reader a cup. At this juncture, I had to obey the call of the Captain of the Guard, to which chosen corps I and another of the party had been voted as auxiliaries, and march, hunting pole in hand, with three others, to relieve the two of our body who had kept the first relief; the movement being gone through with as much of military precision as our captain could instil into us by a hasty drill. Luckily for me, it fell not to my lot to watch this hour, but to return with my captain and three comrades, to fortify myself for the coming one, by enjoying the goodly supper, the savoury odours of which actually reached the station of the guard, and, I apprehend, was not a little tantalizing to its keepers; its component parts, however, had strengthened our bodies, and enlivened the hearts of the entire party, as evidenced by the jolly chorus given to a song, volunteered by one of the mess, ere the call of the captain was again heard. It was promptly obeyed, and soon I and my comrade became the guards of the shallow, and our predecessors hastened to the supper that awaited their return. Thus hour passed on hour, guard relieved guard, and round about the burly blaze we drank and sang right merrily, till morning, peeping o'er the eastern hills, bade us again to prepare for action. The blushing light had not long risen on the vale, before the merry pack was ringing harmoniously up its sides, having hit off the trail from the mouth of the culvet, that had afforded him so impenetrable a stronghold on the previous evening, and carrying it up stream. It soon became apparent, however, that our game had conceived the will of achieving his object, in spite of all opposition, and of showing us the way; for breaking land, and mounting the steep side of the valley on our left, he led us, at a splitting pace, by an overland route sufficiently long and toilsome to attest the wind and mettle of the best, to the vale and swollen waters of the river T——. Here, it seemed, he thought himself out of danger, and licensed to set up any pranks, as disclosed by the pack, carrying the line throughout an entire float of barges, that lay in the locks of the Rcanal, close adjoining the river's bank, the very cuddies of which he had not held sacred, but inquisitively entered; and thus he satisfied his curiosity, gained his object, and signally baffled all further pursuit. No language of mine can depict the enthusiasm bred in our party by the music of the merry tongues that opened on the burning trail, the character of the singular burst over the land, and the final result, so tersely and truly as that of the immortal Shakspeare, with whose lines I bid adieu to my reader for a season * * * "Then I beat my tabor, At which, like unback'd colts, they prick'd their ears, As they smelt music; so I charm'd their ears, That, calf-like, they my lowing follow'd through Tooth'd briars, sharp furzes, pricking goss, and thorns, I' the filthy-mantled pool beyond your cell, There dancing up to their chins." (To be continued) BERRY'S FRERE. |