LORD MANNERS 77 



ance since then very considerably, the old trees on 

 the hill above have been cut down and others planted 

 below. At that time the new addition was in two 

 stages of growth, one having been planted about 

 five years, and the other only the previous autumn. 



There was good covert in the wood above, and 

 we had always found there, so that Firr confined 

 his attentions to the thick covert above and left the 

 lower part alone. Foxes are very fond of lying in 

 the sun, and will often not move if they think they 

 will not be observed. The young larch were barely 

 three feet high, but the ground had been taken from 

 an arable field, and there was good lying on the dry 

 twitch grass. Firr had aready blown hounds out 

 of covert, when it seemed to me he had missed the 

 most likely spot, and I rode in to search amongst 

 the young trees. A fox was there sure enough, and 

 gave us a most enjoyable gallop before killing him 

 at Owston Wood. 



This is, however, getting ahead too fast, and we 

 have not yet finished with Lord Manners' master- 

 ship. On 2ist November the Cottesmore had 

 another good run from the Long Spinney, and 

 scored a seven-mile point, but on this occasion 

 failed to catch their fox. They lost him eventually 

 at Wartnaby, in the Quorn country, after running 

 through a large slice of the Belvoir. It was a very 

 unusual line, and I remember uncomfortably stiff, 

 but the pace was very good for the first thirty 

 minutes, and it takes an exceptionally awkward 

 obstacle to stop a Leicestershire field when hounds 

 are running fast. 



That bit of country between Thorpe Arnold and 

 Melton was, in those days, fenced with " Oxers," a 



