were vigorously beaten, however, and all of us, except Uncle
Limpy-Jack and Milker-Tim, crossed over to the far side of the ditch
where the bottom widened, when suddenly she was discovered over on the
same side, on the edge of the little valley. She had stolen out, the
negroes declared, licking her paws to prevent leaving a scent, and
finding the stretch of hillside too bare to get across, was stealing
back to her covert again, going a little way and then squatting, then
going a few steps and squatting again. "Dyah she go!" "Dyah she go!"
resounded as usual.

Bang!--bang!--snap!--bang! went the four guns in quick succession,
tearing up the grass anywhere from one to ten yards away from her. As if
she had drawn their fire and was satisfied that she was safe, she turned
and sped up the hill, the white tail bobbing derisively, followed by the
dogs strung out in line.

Of course, all of us had some good excuse for missing, Uncle
Limpy-Jack's being the only valid one--that his cap had snapped. He made
much of this, complaining violently of "dese yere wuthless caps!" With
a pin he set to work, and he had just picked the tube, rammed painfully
some grains of powder down in it, and put on another cap which he had
first examined with great care to impress us. "Now, let a ole hyah git
up," he said, with a shake of his head. "She got _man_ ready for her,
she ain't got you chil-lern." The words were scarcely spoken when a
little darkey called out, "Dyah she come!" and sure enough she came,
"lipping" down a furrow straight toward us. Uncle Limpy-Jack was on that
side of the ditch and Milker-Tim was near him armed only with a stout
well-balanced stick about two feet long. As the hare came down the hill,
Uncle Jack brought up his gun, took a long aim and fired. The weeds and
dust flew up off to one side of her, and she turned at right angles
out of the furrow; but as she got to the top of the bed, Milker-Tim,
flinging back his arm, with the precision of a bushman, sent his stick
whirling like a boomerang skimming along the ground after her.

Tim with a yell rushed at her and picked her up, shouting, "I got her! I
got her!"

Then Uncle Limpy-Jack pitched into him: "What you doin' gittin' in my
way!" he complained angrily. "Ain' you got no better sense 'n to git in
my way like dat! Did n' you see how nigh I come to blowin' yo' brains
out! Did n' you see I had de hyah when you come pokin' yer wooly black
head in my way! Ef I had n' f