366 LIFE AND EXPERIENCES CHAP. 



gauges were first placed in this locality by Mr. Symons, 

 and the annual return was found to be so enormous, it 

 was believed that the gauges had been tampered with, 

 and four others were fixed in the same neighbourhood, 

 all of which, however, registered a similar amount, 

 placing the fact of this abnormal rainfall beyond doubt. 

 Another pleasure of a country life is the entertain- 

 ment of friends, and this we accomplished to our own 

 satisfaction and, I hope, also to that of our guests. 



It was at Grasmere that a singular incident 

 occurred to me. My wife and I were both fond of 

 riding, and she was a first-rate horsewoman. I 

 rode an old-fashioned cob, and my wife a blood-mare 

 that we had lately purchased from a well-known 

 gentleman breeder in Yorkshire. The mare was a 

 lovely creature, with a character for good behaviour 

 which turned out to be false. The first day her 

 manners were admirable, but the next day she refused 

 to pass a coach and then bolted, though in the stall 

 she had been perfectly quiet. One morning, as was 

 our habit, we visited the horses, and my wife went 

 up to the mare's head, unfortunately, on the wrong 

 side, and I followed. The animal began to kick and 

 caught me with her hind leg as I was coming up, 

 giving me a tremendous blow on the side with the 

 hock and then afterwards plunging most violently. 

 I thought I was killed, and, rushing away, rolled on 

 the grass in agony. My wife, instead of flying to my 

 help, as nine women out of ten would have done, had 

 the presence of mind to remain for a few minutes at 

 the mare's head, seizing her under-lip, until the coach- 

 man clambered over the partition and backed the 

 mare out. If she had acted upon impulse she would 

 inevitably have been kicked to death. What a grand 

 thing it is to have presence of mind ! 



