The next morning, at an early hour, George and Harry arrived at the cottage, and, after a light and hastily-eaten breakfast, they set out. Frank and Harry were armed, as usual, with their guns, while the others carried axes. They crossed the meadow at the back of the orchard, passed through the cornfield which had been the scene of the 'coon-hunt, a few weeks before, and struck out through the woods. The dogs were then sent out ahead, and they had not gone more than half a mile, when Sport uttered a long, loud howl, and, when the boys came up with him, he was running impatiently about with his nose close to the ground.
"A fox has been along here," said Frank, bending over and examining a track in the snow, "and the trail looks fresh."
"Hunt 'em up! hunt 'em up!" shouted Archie, excitedly, waving his hand to the dogs.
Sport bounded off on the track like a shot, and Lightfoot followed close after. Brave barked and howled furiously, and acted as if he wished very much to accompany them; but the swift hounds would have distanced him in a moment.
It must not be supposed that it was the intention of the boys to follow up the hounds—that would have been worse than useless. Perhaps the chase would continue for several hours. They had once hunted a fox all day, without coming in sight of him. Reynard has ways and habits of his own, which a person who has had experience in hunting him understands. He always runs with the wind, and generally follows a ridge. The hunters take advantage of this, and "run cross-lots" to meet him, sometimes gaining on him several miles in this manner.
The moment the hounds had disappeared on the trail, Frank—who knew all the "run-ways" of the game like a book—led the way through the woods toward a ridge that lay about a mile distant, where they expected the fox would pass.
A quarter of an hour's run brought them to this ridge, and they began to conceal themselves behind trees and bushes, when Archie suddenly exclaimed,
"We're dished, boys. The fox has already passed."
"Come on, then," said Frank. "No time to lose. We must try again."
And he again led the way, on a keen run, through a strip of woods, across a wide meadow toward another ridge, that lay fully three miles distant.