and struck him on the arm.

'I'm done for,' said Dick, and came forward to pick up his ball.
Chippy vanished into a clump of gorse, for the remaining members of the
patrol were running towards the place, and all three had seen him.

The five who had been put out of the hunt gathered together, and
watched the three effective fighters, who now began to beat the
surrounding gorse in search of Chippy's hiding-place.

George Lee, Reggie Parr, and a comrade named Harry Maurice were left in
the pursuit, and they went very warily to work to seize this wily bird.

Reggie Parr was creeping down a narrow alley between the gorse, when he
saw something which pulled him up at once. He dropped flat, and
signalled to George Lee, who was behind him, to come up.

'I can see him. I know where he is,' whispered Reggie eagerly when
George was at his side. 'Lift your head very carefully and take a look
at a big blackthorn-bush just ahead.'

George did so; and there, sure enough, was Chippy's queer old felt hat,
with his rather pale face under it.

'We'll rush him from three sides at once. One of us is sure to get him
that way,' whispered Reggie.

George nodded, and crept away to take up his position, while Reggie
slipped off to find Harry Maurice and place him for his share in the
attack. The signal for the charge was the cry of the patrol.

When all was ready, Reggie gave one howl, then the three scouts darted
from their hiding-places, and bore down at full-speed on the little
covert where Chippy's hat was still to be seen through a thin place in
the blackthorn-bush.

But they burst into the covert, to find it quite empty. No Chippy was
there, only his old hat cleverly arranged on a stick as if he were
crouching behind the bush. And while they stared at the hat and each
other, there came a swift fusillade of balls from an ambush a dozen
yards away. Chippy had three balls, and every one hit its man.

'Got yer,' grunted Chippy in a tone of deep satisfaction, and crawled
out of a patch of tall dried bracken, and came forward to fetch his hat.

'Well, by Jingo! That's an artful touch,' cried Reggie Parr. 'Why, I
saw you. I saw your face plainly.'

'I know yer did,' replied Chippy, with a cheerful grin. 'I meant yer
to. As soon as I wor sure yer'd seen my face, I rigged up th' ole 'at
an' 'ooked it.'

At the sound of their voices in conversation the other five scouts came
racing towards them. Dick Elliott was leadin