The Hound Mans Coming

[gonetoearth 5,144]

Id been beating for two seasons And helping out during the summer months cleaning drinkers filling bins etc the poults were ready to go to pens , i was sat in the shed having me snap. When a tractor pulled into the yard .All right lad said a lager than life wally big rotund man was wally big red side boards , like a farmer right out of the darling buds of may , were is he said wally i pointed at the incubater shed, out came the keeper whats up wally seen a big fox running up the hedge this morn up by the wood carrying a pheasant , now wally never seen little or small it was all ways a big dog , sure it was a dog wal said a grining keeper , cup of tea wal as they walked in the keepers head popped back out of the door. You glued to that bench , get to it come on , i went back to filling sacks of weat , Out they came sat it is then wally. Ill ring the hound man wally clamberd up into his tractor and off he went , Friday night Id been out all day got home me mam shouted as i walked in that keepers been on the phone. Ring him , i fell over to the phone Diailed the wrong number twice in my hurry to get the info , he is out was the answer said be here for 8 , six my alarm went off army surrpluss pants jumper boots on and off on me bike got there an hour early just as the light weight ex raf lanny rolled up the drive making that noise on cobbles that only lanys do , your keen lad he shouted as he passed. , leaned me bike by the trailer the beaters used and went into the kitchen , he was on the phone ok see you then , go and get nell he said , nell was jr bitch the old type queen ann legs under shot rough coated But could boalt foxes for fun , one by one they arrived farmers and auther c and big les the keepers right hand men , then. Up the drive came a bedford van. With barking coming from the back. Pulled up , how do lads John was the hound man he came when called and thats all i knew of him , off we all went in assorted transport escort vans one on a honda fifty The usuall orders were given men who had stood in places year on year on such occasions , the keeper waved me over , go to the bridge by the feed hut and stand there watch up and down the ride dont move , off i went he whistled i turned and NO FOOKIN WHISTLING he said , he hated my whistling lol , now john f The hound man had half a doz hounds and some leggy white terriers by todays standards they were typy

He ran his hounds through most of the estates in the surroudung area and his terriers had reputation , , i got to my postion passing all the usual suspects guns in hands nodding as i past Big les trying to trip me up as i past , then laughing as i did trip trying to avoid him , the feed hut stood at the side of a big deep ditch with an old railway sleeper across it. The realease pen was ready for poults with the chicken wire down elec fence in place ready for the poults arrival i leaned against the side and peerd throught the window. Stacked up feed bags white bags poult pellets Traps hanging with snares. Slept in it once but thats another story . In the distance i could hear the low odd bark of a hound then the voice of the hound man encouraging the hounds. , then the barks turned it to bays and a gunshot , the hounds were all barking and getting nearer me , then i seen it a red flash past across the bridge right past me right out of the pen heading for the fir trees heading for the only earth i knew In a flash two hounds came the same way with the hound man and keeper in hot pursuit there i shouted up there , the keeper waved me on the hounds were marking in the distance we got there just as the rest off the hounds arrived , shot one said an excited farmer. A dog Its a cracker said his mate , , weres the fooking terriers get the fooking terriers said the keeper ill use mine said john f keep away lads keep away says the keeper as evey one came over and peard down the earth some sniffed and said fox smell fox , another said vixen that vixen lol Snares not workin keeper says big wally laughing fook off was the reply , through the roadys came a skinny bloke spade over his sholder and terrier on string go and get nell says the keeper to me. My heart sank at the thought of running back getting nell and missing all the action , dont need her use mine says the hound man kneeling over the the hole in the ground pulling a hound out shhhhhhhhhhhh lads keep it down lads. , net the other holes , the wood was in the main was old oak with a small plantation of firs right in the middle the ground was peat but going down deep it became sand , , john f got his terrier. And walked over letting him go , there were no bnf back in 74 just men who knew , the terrier had been in about 10 mins. Jonh f and his mate were on there hands and knees ears to the ground and me head to the ground shhhhhhh shhhhhhhhhhhh lads shhhhhhhhhh. I could hear bumping then yapping hes on the yapping carried on. They started to dig. They soil was like butter before i knew it. He was waist deep then shoulder deep. Soil was coming up and over id never seen any one dig so fast , he stopped every few minutes. And we all listened. Nothing not a sound i peerd down the gaping hole Nothing , the lads all on there knees now all listening nothing , no yapping no bumping , For what seemed like hours knothing no sound. I looked at the keeper whos face was white I found out later. This earth had claimed a terrier years before the earth had collapsed , we carried on listening there was no emotion on the hound mans face he was very matter of fact hes moved. Shhhhhhhhhhh i could hear a fiant yapping in the distance under a big oak tree. Come ere pointing at me i walked over. Will you go down pointing to the hole they had dug I looked down yeh. Lay down he said two of them grabbed my leggs and lowerd me head first watch out he will bite yeh a laughing wally said as i was lowerd Give him that torch , there was just enough room for me to peer up the chamber in front of me were i could hear the faint yappin in the distance There was no smell just damp sandy soil as they pulled me out How far up is he lad. He's. Right up there not knowing what to reply Fook fook said john f. Under them roots i nodded , Sand roots a terrier mans night mare

Trench it said big wally You fooking trench it wally said the skinny bloke leave him be said john f. With a confident voice , the yapping turned to growiling and bumping. He on it said the skinny bloke. Again and again we could hear a battle taking place it was probly in reality half an hour but when your twelve its hours ! Then knothing not a sound ere lad i walked back over will you i just nodded down i went again its names jim lad ah ha said big wally in a pirates voice fook off wally said the skinny bloke as i was lowerd futher down. Again i peered up the tunnel were i could hear growling and bumping , can you see him i fumbled with the torch and could see a tail wagging Yeh yeh there , can you see the fox i stared i could see red fur its dead i shouted can you reach it I streched and streched my arm lower me more i just got me hands on the terriers leg and pulled and pulled they pulled me i pulled jim and jim pulled charlie out we came , the terriers eyes were full of sand the fox was dead and I was HOOKED , that nite as i walked through are front door were have you been look at the state of yeh MAM MAM can i get a TERRIER !!!!!!!!!

Edited September 26, 2013 by gonetoearth

[whippet 99 2,613]

we never seen eye too eye,.........with me being far more intelligent,...........but I enjoyed that ,...........fair play.........

[dymented 2,220]

racking read bud

[the_stig 6,614]

thanks for that gte...

[BIG TOM 835]

Brilliant mate glad you put that up

Atb Tom

Edited September 26, 2013 by BIG TOM

[redcharge 378]

Good read

[paulus 26]

whens the next instalment due , to be fair its about time this section had some input, difficult i know but not impossible, 1 real post is better than 10 money hunting ones

[smithie 2,443]

i think most come on here hoping to find stories like this

 

 

more please..

[Bazil brush 474]

Good read mate

[the_stig 6,614]

whens the next instalment due , to be fair its about time this section had some input, difficult i know but not impossible, 1 real post is better than 10 money hunting ones

[gonetoearth 5,144]

Sad thing is the names in that are all no longer with us. Except the hound man who is now the ferret man so ive been told lol he must be 90

[top terrierman 90]

very good read

[jharrison_2009 8]

great read that gte we need chapter 2 now

[derek2012 32]

What a belta ;-)

[mr scent 665]

Now thats a proper write up