Our master was a good, kind man.  He gave us good food, good lodging and kind words; he spoke as kindly to us as he did to his little children.  We were all fond of him, and my mother loved him very much.  When she saw him at the gate she would neigh with joy, and trot up to him.  He would pat and stroke her and say, “Well, old Pet, and how is your little Darkie?” I was a dull black, so he called me Darkie; then he would give me a piece of bread, which was very good, and sometimes he brought a carrot for my mother.  All the horses would come to him, but I think we were his favorites.  My mother always took him to town on a market-day in a light gig.

We had a ploughboy, Dick, who sometimes came into our field to pluck blackberries from the hedge.  When he had eaten all he wanted he would have what he called fun with the colts, throwing stones and sticks at them to make them gallop.  We did not much mind him, for we could gallop off; but sometimes a stone would hit and hurt us.

One day he was at this game, and did not know that the master was in the next field, watching what was going on; over the hedge he jumped in a snap, and catching Dick by the arm, he gave him such a box on the ear as made him roar with the pain and surprise.  As soon as we saw the master we trotted up nearer to see what went on.

“Bad boy!” he said, “bad boy! to chase the colts.  This is not the first time, but it shall be the last.  There—­take your money and go home; I shall not want you on my farm again.”  So we never saw Dick any more.  Old Daniel, the man who looked after the horses, was just as gentle as our master; so we were well off.

CHAPTER II

THE HUNT

Before I was two years old a circumstance happened which I have never forgotten.  It was early in the spring; there had been a little frost in the night, and a light mist still hung over the woods and meadows.  I and the other colts were feeding at the lower part of the field when we heard what sounded like the cry of dogs.  The oldest of the colts raised his head, pricked his ears, and said, “There are the hounds!” and cantered off, followed by the rest of us, to the upper part of the field, where we could look over the hedge and see several fields beyond.  My mother and an old riding horse of our master’s were also standing near, and seemed to know all about it.  “They have found a hare,” said my mother, “and if they come this way we shall see the hunt.”

And soon the dogs were all tearing down the field of young wheat next to ours.  I never heard such a noise as they made.  They did not bark, nor howl, nor whine, but kept on a “yo! yo, o, o! yo, o, o!” at the top of their voices.  After them came a number of men on horseback, all galloping as fast as they could.  The old horses snorted and looked eagerly after them, and we young colts wanted to be galloping with them, but they were soon away into the fields lower down; here it seemed as if they had come to a stand; the dogs left off barking and ran about every way with their noses to the ground.