HUNTING RECOLLECTIONS. iii 



misleading ; there has been no bridge since the 

 days when Cromwell's soldiers destroyed it. 

 There is, in fact, a portion of the old bridge to 

 be seen in Whitbred Garden). The water was 

 pretty deep, as it was we just managed to save 

 the tide. One of the party — a young man 

 living at Southend — was riding a horse quite 

 unused to fording the river ; it started plunging, 

 the poor young man lost control of the animal, 

 also his seat, and at the same time dug his spurs 

 into its side, the result being the rider was 

 deposited in deep water. He found himself in 

 a most awkward predicament, but managed 

 scramble on to land. We adjourned to the 

 Anchor, according to custom, for tea, which we 

 were all enjoying, when a dripping spectacle 

 appeared in the doorway. " Get out, man ! " 

 roared Charles Tabor, "you will give us all a 

 cold." There was a complete transformation 

 scene when he returned, clothed in white socks 

 and slippers, a pair of the landlord's Sunday 

 trousers reaching half-way down his legs, and a 

 covert coat lent by one of the party ; and in that 

 costume he rode back to Southend. 



Like the P.S. in a lady's letter often con- 

 tains the most important matter in the whole 

 letter, so the short account I propose to give 

 now ought certainly to have occupied a more 

 prominent place, and really belongs to the first 

 volume, but before the details (which have been 

 sent by kind friends) reached me, the book was 

 in the printer's hands, and I feared to worry him 

 with fresh matter, so I must apologise to my 

 readers for running a "heel-line," and going 



