26 MEMORIES OF THE SHIRES 



school that thought more of the riding than the 

 hunting. My father remembered the occasion 

 when he beat them all in a fast gallop, I believe in 

 the Bel voir Hunt. There was only one way out of 

 the field, a foot-stile with an impenetrable bull- 

 finch on either side. Towards this stile a mob of 

 cattle were converging with all the speed that 

 clumsy animal is capable of for a short distance. 

 Lord Wilton took in the situation at a glance and 

 with equal promptitude raced for the stile, just 

 beating the leading cow by a horn. The next 

 second the place was effectually blocked by the 

 cattle, and before they could be driven away the 

 Earl had established a lead and was not over- 

 taken until the cream of the gallop was over. There 

 is an excellent likeness of him in Sir Francis Grant's 

 picture of the " Meet at Melton," at least I imagine 

 it must have been good at the time, because I could 

 pick him out from what I remembered of him many 

 years later. Touching this same picture, I read in 

 my father's diary already mentioned, " Went to 

 the Academy and saw F. Grant's picture of the 

 Melton Hunt — very good likeness of both men and 

 horses." We may therefore take it that, apart 

 from the artistic merits of the picture, the portraiture 

 was true to life. 



Colonel Forester (the " Lad ") must have been 

 ten or fifteen years younger than my father, and 

 his was a familiar figure in the Shires up to a few 

 years ago. I believe he was always short-sighted, 

 but he could not have ridden harder if his eyes 

 had been good. I remember my father told me 

 one day there was a very dense fog, when he and 

 two or three others got away with hounds in a very 



