CHAPTER V 



REMINISCENCES 



" O'er the bottle at eve, of our pleasures we'll tell, 

 For no pastime on earth can foxhunting excel ; 

 It brightens our thoughts for philosophy's page, 

 Gives strength to our youth, and new vigour to age." 



After unkennelling a fox on a very windy day, 

 I have heard people exclaim, " Oh ! he'll never 

 face this wind on the top." Despite such opinions 

 the fox generally does face even the strongest 

 wind, if he has made up his mind to reach some 

 particular point. 



It should be remembered that a fox stands a 

 great deal lower than a man, and offers much less 

 resistance to the wind. 



I once remember sheltering on Wctherlam 

 behind a boulder, my companion being the hunts- 

 man of the Coniston Hounds. It was a wild, 

 windy day, in fact, the wind was so strong that 

 when facing it we could scarcely breathe. There 

 was snow on the ground at the time, and hounds 

 were running on the breast far below us. We 

 were just about to leave our shelter when we 



