“He, by a quick movement, bitted the animal with the rope.”
CHAPTER III.
Mat bids farewell to the Forest—The Young Austral—Tim and Jumper on board.
At length, shortly after midnight, as far as he could judge by the moon, Mat arrived once again at Braken Lodge, and knocked up Burns, who, though astonished to see him at that hour, immediately routed out the old housekeeper to light a fire, brew some coffee, and get provisions, whilst he found a change of clothes for Mat, and bound up his wound with a healing ointment. And all these things he did without asking our gipsy any useless questions, wherein he showed his sense.
After Mat had thoroughly refreshed himself, he said,—
“Now, Mr. Burns, I’ll just stretch out afore the fire—that’ll ease my limb—and tell you all about it.”
He then related shortly but accurately every detail from the time of their parting in Boldre Wood down to the termination of his fight with the hound, adding that he was very sorry for the loss of the game-bag, which Burns said did not matter a snuff.
“Perhaps not for itself,” continued Mat, “but they might trace you by it.”
Burns listened with intense interest to the narrative, and remarked,—
“I should have shot that hound, I know I should; but then, you see, I would not have thought of that dodge of yours of tying him up; besides, I could not have done it, I’m not so quick and handy.”