SEASON 1881-82 163 



tells a story of how he swam his horse over one 

 of these mud-bottom Leicestershire streams during 

 the first season at Belvoir as whipper-in under 

 Cooper. The season was one of the wettest on 

 record, and all the rivers were running bank high ; 

 but the young Devonshire whipper-in, imagining 

 all streams had stone beds like those of his own 

 country, saw no fear in his ardour to turn hounds, 

 and fortune favoured him, for he was quickly out 

 again on the other side, without getting very wet 

 either. Parson Banks Wright saw the performance, 

 and riding up to him, said, "Young man, you 

 must not try to swim the rivers here, or you'll 

 soon be a subject for a coroner's inquest ; that 

 sort of thing may be all very well in Devonshire, 

 but you'll soon get stuck in the mud here ! " 



On February 24th, a ten-mile point, lasting one 

 hour and six minutes, from Irnham Old Park Wood, 

 is worthy of mention, for hounds killed their fox 

 on the door-step of Belton House, the seat of 

 Lord Brownlow, after a very fast spin across the 

 park. 



The weather being very open throughout the 

 season, sport was good, with only six days' stop for 

 frost. Hounds went out 144 days, killed 188 foxes, 

 and marked 55 to ground. 



At the end of the season Will Wells left to 

 carry the horn for the Puckeridge. His career 

 with the Belvoir was a short but brilliant one, and 

 the hunt never had two finer horsemen than Will 

 Wells and Arthur Wilson to turn hounds at the 

 same time. Across country they were the delight 



