WITH THE KILLING KILDAEES 93 



"there was a binder on the bank," or "the bank 

 broke," or no matter what. The fact remains that 

 there are more falls on the other side of the Channel, 

 and that not only among the young, active, and not 

 too wealthy, but also among their seniors, who fall 

 less lightly, and can afford to pay for safety. 



Now what was the best run I ever saw in Kildare ? 

 As a real fast spin ending with blood, nothing, I 

 think, that I saw can touch a gallop we had from 

 Gingerstown Gorse one day just before the opening 

 of the legitimate season, when they raced from that 

 gorse for five-and-thirty minutes and killed in the 

 laurels at Landestown House. That day is impressed 

 on my memory by the recollection of the fact that 

 a horse of mine had the last of that run absolutely 

 to himself, although (worse luck !) he was not carrying 

 me. Nor was I there to see his prowess, having fallen 

 a victim to that old Kildare trap, a little bank and 

 a big ditch beyond. Although by a violent effort 

 the mare cleared it, she overjumped herself and rolled 

 head over heels with me into the field beyond. My 

 left stirrup hung me up, but a Good Samaritan came 

 to the rescue ere more harm w^as done than a black 

 eye from a blow with the side of a hoof I shall 

 always think of him with gratitude, but why — oh, 

 why — did he slip the girths instead of pulling the 

 stirrup-leather out of the bar ? Once I was on my 

 feet the others, of course, rode on, and it took me 

 minutes to girth up the impatient little beast. So 

 that at all events was not the best run I saw in 

 Kildare. 



Then there was a day of another sort, when a 

 fox from Copeland's Gorse gave us a hunting run of 

 no less than an hour and three-quarters, beating us 



