114 ON THE GRAMPIAN HILLS. 



boggy bank on the opposite side only to fall back 

 into the middle of the brook, from which,. whilst never 

 losing her seat or her nerve, she had to be lifted off 

 her horse by one or two gentlemen, who went breast 

 deep in the stream, and bore her safely and uncon- 

 cernedly to dry land. Whilst a portion of the field 

 were using their best exertions to extricate the horse 

 from his perilous position, the hounds had run into 

 their third hare, after half-an-hour's excellent sport. 

 Again we tried for another, and in full view of the 

 pack up jumped a big brown hare, which went away 

 merrily at a stunning pace. Two or three big fences 

 winnowed the field, more than one or two biting the 

 dust or the mud, as the case might be, and many 

 shirking the big places or hesitating for awhile, until 

 the hounds and the forward riders had reached the 

 railway, when puss doubled back, making for Horton, 

 where she was lost. After this, Mr. Scott suggested 

 that as the field had tailed off considerably, and Sir 

 Robert Harvey had expressed his opinion that the day 

 was still young, the hounds should draw again for yet 

 another hare. Thinking that as I should have to ride 

 some eight or nine miles to Twickenham, and feeling 

 a certain indescribable yearning for another " go in " 

 at Mr. Stollery's ribs of beef, I quitted the gay and 

 festive throng, and wended my way homewards after 

 playing a capital game of knife and fork. Then 

 reacking Twickenham in time to try a marvellously 

 good-looking horse by driving him from Mr. Sherley's 

 stables to the station in the dark gloom of the 

 evening, I reached home after being on horseback for 

 eight hours, well satisfied with such an unusually good 

 day's sport. 



