1 88 RIDING RECOLLECTIONS. 



slopes, above, rather than below, the pack, for, if they 

 turn away from you, it is harder work to gallop up, than 

 down. In the latter case, and for this little hint I am 

 indebted to Lord Wilton, do not increase your speed so 

 as to gain in distance, rather preserve the same regular 

 pace, so as to save in wind. Descending an incline at 

 an easy canter, and held well together, your horse is 

 resting almost as if he were standing still. It is quite 

 time enough when near the bottom to put on a spurt 

 that will shoot him up the opposite rise. 



On the grass, if you must cross ridge-and-furrow, 

 take it a-slant, your horse will pitch less on his 

 shoulders, and move with greater ease, while if they lie 

 the right way, by keeping him on the crest, rather than 

 in the trough of those long parallel rollers, you will 

 ensure firm ground for his gallop, and a sounder, as well 

 as higher take-off for the leap, when he comes to his 

 fence. 



I need hardly remind you that in all swampy places, 

 rushes may be trusted implicitly, and experienced 

 hunters seem as well aware of the fact as their riders. 

 Vegetable growth, indeed, of any kind has a tendency 

 to suck moisture into its fibres, and consequently to 

 drain, more or less, the surface in its immediate vicinity. 

 The deep rides of a woodland are least treacherous at 



