SEASON 1890-91 237 



probably tired, blundered and put him down, 

 breaking his rider's leg. His first idea was to 

 crawl from the lonely spot to a farmhouse, but 

 he soon found out the pain was too great, and 

 there was nothing for it but to sit still. By a 

 providential dispensation the horse galloped on, 

 and finding a line of gates open, turned into the 

 stack-yard at the farm, where the men, who had 

 just finished a day's thrashing, saw him, and what 

 is still more wonderful, followed for the best part 

 of a mile the track of his footmarks back to the 

 hedgerow where Rudkin sat. Making them put 

 him in the saddle, he very pluckily rode back to 

 Grantham and got it set, going home the other 

 10 miles that night on wheels. For weeks he lay 

 in bed mending, getting well just in time for the 

 chases which wound up the season ; there he rode 

 this same horse Billy which had given him the 

 accident, and received a tremendous ovation on 

 winning the heavy-weight farmers' steeplechase. 

 Subsequently the horse was sold to Sir John 

 Lawrance, and hunted by his daughter, who with 

 her mother were ardent followers of the chase 

 when not too busily engaged with Primrose League 

 work. 



Winter and rough weather made many days a 

 very doubtful matter hunting, and one of these 

 was December 1st, when hounds were busy running 

 in the neighbourhood of Woolsthorpe. The fox 

 crossed the frozen canal, the ice being strong 

 enough to bear him ; but when the pack attempted 

 to follow, some ten couple became submerged, and 



