VI.
How Sir Thomas Wyat hunted with Herne.
Accompanied by Wyat, and followed by the whole cavalcade, Herne dashedinto the glen, where Fenwolf awaited him. Threading the hollow, thetroop descried the hart flying swiftly along a sweeping glade atsome two hundred yards distance. The glade was passed--a woody knollskirted--a valley traversed--and the hart plunged into a thick groveclothing the side of Hawk's Hill. But it offered him no secure retreat.Dragon and Saturn were close upon him, and behind them came Herne,crashing through the branches of the trees, and heedless of allimpediments. By-and-by the thicket became more open, and they enteredCranbourne Chase. But the hart soon quitted it to return to the greatpark, and darted down a declivity skirted by a line of noble oaks. Herehe was so hotly pressed by his fierce opponents, whose fangs he couldalmost feel within his haunches, that he suddenly stopped and stood atbay, receiving the foremost of his assailants, Saturn, on the points ofhis horns. But his defence, though gallant, was unavailing. In anotherinstant Herne came up, and, dismounting, called off Dragon, who wasabout to take the place of his wounded companion. Drawing a knife fromhis girdle, the hunter threw himself on the ground, and, advancing onall fours towards the hart, could scarcely be distinguished himselffrom some denizen of the forest. As he approached the hart snorted andbellowed fiercely, and dashed its horns against him; but the blow wasreceived by the hunter upon his own antlered helm, and at the samemoment his knife was thrust to the hilt into the stag's throat, and itfell to the ground.
Springing to his feet, Herne whooped joyfully, placed his bugle to hislips, and blew the dead mot. He then shouted to Fenwolf to call away andcouple the hounds, and, striking off the deer's right forefoot with hisknife, presented it to Wyat. Several large leafy branches being gatheredand laid upon the ground, the hart was placed upon them, and Hernecommenced breaking him up, as the process of dismembering the deer istermed in the language of woodcraft. His first step was to cut offthe animal's head, which he performed by a single blow with his heavytrenchant knife.
"Give the hounds the flesh," he said, delivering the trophy to Fenwolf;"but keep the antlers, for it is a great deer of head."
Placing the head on a hunting-pole, Fenwolf withdrew to an open spaceamong the trees, and, halloing to the others, they immediately cast offthe hounds, who rushed towards him, leaping and baying at thestag's head, which he alternately raised and lowered until they weresufficiently excited, when he threw it on the ground before them.
While this was going forward the rest of the band were occupied invarious ways--some striking a light with flint and steel--some gatheringtogether sticks and dried leaves to form a fire--others producingvarious strange-shaped cooking utensils--while others were assistingtheir leader in his butcherly task, which he executed with infiniteskill and expedition.
As soon as the fire was kindled, Herne distributed certain portions ofthe venison among his followers, which were instantly thrown upon theembers to broil; while a few choice morsels were stewed in a pan withwine, and subsequently offered to the leader and Wyat.
This hasty repast concluded, the demon ordered the fire to beextinguished, and the quarters of the deer to be carried to the cave. Hethen mounted his steed, and, attended by Wyat and the rest of his troop,except those engaged in executing his orders, galloped towards SnowHill, where he speedily succeeded in unharbouring another noble hart.
Away then went the whole party--stag, hounds, huntsmen, sweeping like adark cloud down the hill, and crossing the wide moonlit glade, studdedwith noble trees, on the west of the great avenue.
For a while the hart held a course parallel with the avenue; he thendashed across it, threaded the intricate woods on the opposite side,tracked a long glen, and leaping the pales, entered the home park. Italmost seemed as if he designed to seek shelter within the castle, forhe made straight towards it, and was only diverted by Herne himself,who, shooting past him with incredible swiftness, turned him towards thelower part of the park.
Here the chase continued with unabated ardour, until, reaching the banksof the Thames, the hart plunged into it, and suffered himself to becarried noiselessly down the current. But Herne followed him along thebanks, and when sufficiently near, dashed into the stream, and drove himagain ashore.
Once more they flew across the home park--once more they leaped itspales--once more they entered the great park--but this time the stagtook the direction of Englefield Green. He was not, however, allowedto break forth into the open country; but, driven again into the thickwoods, he held on with wondrous speed till the lake appeared in view. Inanother instant he was swimming across it.
Before the eddies occasioned by the affrighted animal's plunge haddescribed a wide ring, Herne had quitted his steed, and was cleavingwith rapid strokes the waters of the lake. Finding escape impossible,the hart turned to meet him, and sought to strike him with his horns,but as in the case of his ill-fated brother of the wood, the blow waswarded by the antlered helm of the swimmer. The next moment the clearwater was dyed with blood, and Herne, catching the gasping animal by thehead, guided his body to shore.
Again the process of breaking up the stag was gone through; and whenHerne had concluded his task, he once more offered his gourd to SirThomas Wyat. Reckless of the consequences, the knight placed the flaskto his lips, and draining it to the last drop, fell from his horseinsensible.
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