412 LEAVES FROM A HUNTING DIARY 



Better luck with the "Clipper" on Saturday, March 31st. 

 The staghound fixture was at Fyfield to-day and the fox- 

 hounds having" been yesterday at Old Sanford and not out 

 to-day, there was an unusually large field, comprising most of 

 the men who hunt with Greaves. They looked also bent on 

 mischief and I have sometimes noticed that oood men with the 

 foxhounds who only come occasionally with stag, ride with much 

 more dash at first than regular staghunters, not being so well 

 aware as the latter that the run is just as likely to be two or 

 three hours as one and to extend over ten to twenty miles of 

 country. We prepared ourselves, therefore, to be cut down, or 

 at least for an attempt at it. The hind was "the spotted hind," 

 a real good one, that gave us the clipping forty minutes from 

 the "Axe and Compasses" on the 13th March, 1855. 



Running at a rattling pace to Long Barns the large held 

 was scattered far and wide and only a select few with hounds. 

 Here we ran up to our deer and ran her in view at a racing 

 pace, Frederick Petre calling out to us to ride as hard as we 

 could and we took him at his word, the line being by Brick 

 Kilns and over the High Laver Brook, with some awkward 

 roads to cross to High Laver Church, where the first check 

 occurred after thirty-five minutes without a pause or hesitation. 

 We had now time to look for our foxhunting friends and to 

 look in vain, for only one man (Willie Davis) was visible and he 

 goes so frequently with the stag as to be almost claimed by 

 them. The only men who had ridden to the hounds to this 

 point were our Master (Frederick Petre), Sir Charles Smith, 

 Sworder, C. R. V., Tom Mashiter, Soames, William Davis, 

 Sullins and Stock, nine in all, and the lead was taken alter- 

 nately by Sworder, Sir Charles Smith, and myself on the 

 " Clipper ; " but all went right well. 



"The Clipper " pulled so hard that I was very glad to leave 

 my whip at High Laver Hall (Barnard's) and my hands and 

 arms were so cramped that I had scarcely strength to continue 

 in the run. Taking up the running we passed Magdalen Laver 

 and reached Hastingwood Common in an hour and with this 

 hour ended the good performance of " The Clipper," for a few 

 fields from Hastingwood Common he resolutely refused to (juit 

 the road and I took so much time battling with him that I had 

 to go the road to Thornwood Common, and crossing it to the 

 right hand corner on reaching the country, the cross-grained 

 brute behaved as badly as possible, refusing nearly every fence, 

 eventually reaching Copped Hall after a run of one and a-half 

 hours, as good, and over as fair a country, as could be desired, 



