SEASON 1878-79 129 



tiated a stiffish fence he heard a tremendous crash 

 behind him. Looking round, he saw Mr. Cross 

 and his horse struggling about as they made 

 desperate efforts not to part company. However, 

 it was of no avail, for the next moment a riderless 

 steed galloped by, and a top-boot stood up in the 

 near side stirrup, just as if a leg had been inside it. 

 Mr. Alfred Cross happily was none the worse, 

 giving chase to his horse over a rough fallow field, 

 which was decidedly hard going for the bootless 

 foot. 



The vein of good luck continued all through 

 February, and one good Croxton Park Wednesday 

 succeeded another, that of the 19th being as good 

 as that of the week previous. The famous Bur- 

 bidge's Covert was the first draw, but as Gillard 

 remarked to us, it is a mistake to disturb a good 

 fox covert oftener than once in three weeks. On 

 this occasion hounds chopped a mangy one who 

 had probably been run very hard on a previous 

 occasion. The right article was waiting for us 

 in Freeby Wood, and a very merry spin re- 

 sulted with him as far as Thorpe Arnold, where 

 he hid himself in a straw stack in Mr. Garner's 

 yard, but paid the penalty of his indiscretion. 

 The third fox was started from Melton Spinney, 

 running by Chadwell, Freeby, and Brentingby 

 villages to Burton Lazars in fifty -five minutes 

 without a check. When the line was recovered 

 the pack ran on by Freeby village, marking to 

 ground near Brentingby with all the horses pretty 

 well at the end of their tether. The noble master 



K 



