188 HUNTING REMINISCENCES 



five minutes, the Belvoir having run consecutively 

 for two hours and twenty-five minutes. I could 

 hear the hounds savaging him in covert, and was 

 quickly off my horse, knowing there was not a 

 moment to lose. Hounds had broken up their 

 fox, but, as luck would have it, they left the brush 

 and mask lying close together, so I picked them 

 up before Firr came, putting the brush in my 

 pocket as I wanted to take it to the Duke, and I 

 was afraid one of the field might ask for it. As 

 Firr made no claim, I thought I would not be hard 

 on him, so said, ' Here you are, Tom, you take the 

 mask, as your hounds helped to kill my fox ! ' A 

 moment later, to my horror, I heard him tally-hoing 

 and who-whooping in the central ride, with every 

 hound round him and the field looking on, under 

 the impression it was his fox. ' By Jove ! ' I said, 

 'this will never do,' and I slipped out of covert, 

 ran about fifty yards down the fence, blowing my 

 horn, waving the brush about. In a moment all the 

 hounds left Tom and came to me, so I cheered and 

 hallooed them till I thought he had heard enough 

 of it, and he said to me, 'Now, Frank, we had 

 better take the pack to that gate and draw out our 

 own hounds.' 'All right,' I said, 'let me jump 

 on my horse first.' No sooner was I in the saddle 

 and said, ' Come on, my lads ! ' than every one of 

 my hounds came to my horse's heels, including one 

 couple of the Quorn, which I had the pleasure of 

 returning next day. Mr. J. Coupland came up 

 and begged very hard for the brush, saying that he 

 would give anything to possess it as a memento of 



