70 ENGLAND'S OLDEST HUNT. 



hounds, and how in the end she outran the constable, and by some 

 means lost her power of escaping just at the right moment. The fact 

 that she did lose this power robbed her of that which enabled her to trans- 

 form herself, nor did she cast any spell upon those who took a prom- 

 inent part in the chase which resulted in her imdoing. With pretty 

 much the same field as on the previous occasion they set off with only 

 some four couple of hounds, amongst which were Minister, of which 

 more later, Gamester, Towler, and Lady — some of the best hounds 

 the hunt ever had. Several hares had been killed, and the followers 

 were just thinking of returning to the old Fox and Hounds Inn to a 

 hare-pie tea, when up started a beauty, and away went hounds with 

 such a burst of music as " niwer were heeard afore or sen." It was not 

 a long run, but tremendously fast. Hounds got clear away from the 

 foot-folk, but in the course of a circle came back again and took over 

 some low-lying marshy ground. At last they came to a gate under 

 which the hare went with hounds just behind her. Stephen Ainsley 

 could have felled her with his stick, but already one or two had dropped 

 out of the himt with the warning " Remember poor Isaac ! " and as 

 Steve once told me he did not want a " hanging job." However, old 

 Lady clicked the hare when she was passing under the gate, and soon 

 after she was seen to disappear through the broadside of Peg's house. 

 The sportsmen entered the house and saw Peg in a pitiable plight on 

 her bed. Young Tom Johnson lifted his stick, and said he would 

 '* bray her for her tricks." George Bell restrained him, and said they 

 did not want " Onny moddering bouts." A doctor afterwards had to 

 be sent for to have a wound on Peg's body attended to, and ever after 

 that day did she go lame, never again troubling the sportsmen. 



My father in his " Wit, Character, and Folklore of the 

 North Riding of Yorkshire," tells of another Yorkshire 

 witch, who employed the power of transforming herself 

 into a hare, as she did other wondrous charms and spells 

 for working evil. One young love-sick swain found his lady 

 growing cold towards him and " pining away," as we say in 

 Yorkshire. To-day we should rush to a medical compendium. 

 They trusted to the wise man, who, as often as not, was in 

 league with the witch, the one playing into the hands of the 

 other, though, be it said, some of these men not only believed 

 in their own powers of second sight and a sort of crystal 

 gazing, but actually did elucidate some mysteries in a re- 

 markable manner. The following, however, may be taken 

 as a typical specimen of their modus operandi : — 



On hearing his story the wiseman declared that she (the witch) was 



