DONATES COMET 427 



calculated at the moderate time of 2,000 to 2.500 years. This 

 has been a real comet with a splendid tail, and allowed to be 

 finer even than that of 181 r. One night in October, when seen 

 in apparent close proximity to "Arcturus," the star rendered 

 more brilliant by being viewed through the comet's tail, the 

 spectacle was really grand and imposing, and something to be 

 remembered. 



Perhaps the most striking instance of the drought was given 

 to-day in the fact of the cracks in the ground being so wide and 

 deep that it was really dangerous riding down some of the hills, 

 and this in the middle of November, and this remark was made, 

 not by a timid rider, but by Frank Barker, a bold horseman 

 and steeplechase rider, who said he was afraid to ride. 



November i6th. The last four days have been like bitter 

 March weather, and this morning the N.E. blast raked man, 

 beast and vegetation, piercing through the warmest clothing. 

 The land was as dry as bricks and hard as the roads, and 

 hunting seemed a farce and almost an affliction ; but comforting 

 myself with the reflection that it was staghunting, I hacked to 

 Good Easter, arriving rather late, and found only a small field. 

 As I rode up, the question "Shall we uncart or not?" was put 

 to me by our Master, Frederick Petre, to which I replied in the 

 affirmative, and I was then told that they had been so balanced 

 in opinion, that as they saw me riding up they agreed to be 

 determined by my reply. 



(Here follows a long account of a splendid run, detailing 

 how " Evergreen Smoothy " on his bit o' blood got over the 

 brook, and how Charlie Ind fell at it and got out the right side, 

 the diary entry finishing up as follows) : — While riding quiedy 

 homewards, having just dropped Roberts at his own house, I 

 was overtaken by Beckington with the hacks. It seemed more 

 like a dream than a reality to have had a clipping run of eight 

 miles and heaps of fences in the interval, and to reach home in 

 litde more than four hours after I had quitted it. This is one 

 of the chief advantages of staghunting, that brilliant sport is 

 attainable in weather and under circumstances that will render 

 sport with foxhounds or harriers a simple impossibility. 



(On December 2nd, after describing a great run with the 

 stag to High Easter and Mr. George G. Glyn's singular luck, 

 rolling into a lane when he had baked his own horse just 

 in front of his second horseman, he quotes Mr. J. Reeves' 

 characteristic remarks to his own man, Beckington. " Your 

 master went splendidly to-day, I could never get up to them, 

 but I kept on calling out ' Forrard ! forrard ! ' and saying to all 



