64 The Chase 



Then long may courteous Redesdale live ! 

 And oft his paclc such gallops give ! 

 Should fox again so stoutly run, 

 May I be there and see the fun ! 



R. E. Egerton-Warhurton. 



A Day with the Surrey Hounds <^ 



OUR ball had failed so completely, that Jenny, 

 who was bent still upon fashion, caught eagerly 

 at Tagrag's suggestion, and went down to Tug- 

 geridgeville. If we had a difficulty to find friends 

 in town, here there was none ; for the whole 

 county came about us, ate our dinners and suppers, 

 danced at our balls — ay, and spoke to us too. We 

 were great people, in fact ; I a regular country 

 gentleman ; and, as such, Jenny insisted that I 

 should be a sportsman, and join the county hunt. 

 " But," says I, " my love, I can't ride." " Pooh ! 

 Mr. C," says she, "you're always making diffi- 

 culties J you thought you couldn't dance a quadrille ; 

 you thought you couldn't dine at seven o'clock ; 

 you thought you couldn't lie in bed after six ; and 

 haven't you done every one of these things ? You 

 must and you shall ride !" And when my Jenny 

 said "must" and "shall," I knew very well there 

 was nothing for it : so I sent down fifty guineas to 

 the hunt, and, out of compliment to me, the very 

 next week, I received notice that the meet of the 

 hounds would take place at Squashtail Common, 

 just outside my lodge-gates. 



I didn't know what a meet was ; and me and 

 Mrs. C. agreed that it was most probable the dogs 

 were to be fed there : however, Tagrag explained 

 this matter to us, and very kindly promised to sell 

 me a horse, a delightful animal of his own ; which, 



