A RAVISHING SCENT 2\*] 



Monday, Nov. 23rd. Thornwood Gate. A cold raw morning. My little 

 daughter, " M." — though her pony was led by Jenkins, managed to see 

 a good deal of the fun. Not a whimper in the Lower Forest or Rough 

 Talley's, hut a right good halloa in Gaynes Park set all our pulses throbbing. 

 Out by the Riile Butts two fields and an open ditch, one of the fields, a 

 \ery heavy one, found us in Rough Talley's, where our fox did not dwell 

 a moment, but was viewed over the line by some platelayers into the 

 Lower Forest. Here a good many were soon plunged into the lowest 

 depths of despair, for they did not get out, when hounds running the 

 outside, feathered over the road and were away in a minute over the grass 

 meadows towards Duck Lane. It was a nasty up-jump out of the road, 

 and Bailey's horse did not like it, but Mr. Tyndale White gave him a lead 

 and we followed one another pretty sharp, and set to work to take every- 

 thing as it came — a drop fence, then another drop, a pretty flight of rails 

 and Bailey was boring his way into Duck Lane, while Mr. Hart swung open 

 a gate into and another out of the lane, and switching over the next 

 fence, hounds scudding away on our right. The huntsman, Messrs. Du 

 Cane, Tyndale White and Longbourne being well up on that side — a fence, 

 with wire but, thank goodness, rails to make a horse rise, and over a very 

 heavy piece of seeds we ran very fast. Messrs. Du Cane and Longbourne, 

 disdaining the gate, flew the Weald Brook. Mr. Tyndale White had a 

 lead down the next grass meadow, but came to a stopper; however, turning 

 left-handed over a ditch and fence, popped his grey over the rails, with 

 ditch to him, into the same field as the hounds, Bailey asking someone to 

 break them, but neither " Rosa " nor Du Cane's horse could assist in that 

 performance, so over he came. Keep the grass ! A warning too late for 

 Mr. Du Cane who had swung over the rails into the stubble, while Bailey 

 hit the road in time to see that his fox had been headed, and two of the 

 leading hounds were already up it. No occasion for a cheer, even from the 

 huntsman, for the scent was ravishing. Messrs. Du Cane and Longbourne 

 charged into the stubble together, while the huntsman kept the parallel 

 road, for already horses were beginning to hold out signals of distress, for 

 there had not been the semblance of a check and the going was remarkably 

 heavy. 



Leaving Little Weald Hall on our right, we jumped out of the road 

 into some heavy ploughs, and ran without dwelling to the North Weald 

 road, where Mr. Arkwright, on " Diana," got a cut in, his light weight 

 serving him, and he went on over the plough with a lead. Hounds checked 

 a minute on the North Weald road, which allowed the Master, Mr. C. E. 

 Green, with a flying squadron behind him, to come up. How hounds 

 stuck to their fox in the forest, rattling him round in grand style ! We just 

 got up to Crane's in time to view him over, and, cheering hounds on, we 

 raced back to Weald Coppice ; one turn round its leafy precincts and whoop ! 

 they had him. It was a capital hunt, and I claimed the brush for M. 

 W. Sewell rode my new horse " Tinker," purchased from Mr. C. R. 

 Doxat, and got on very well, considering he knew very little about jump- 

 ing and absolutely had only one side to his mouth. 



Wednesday, Dec. 2nd. Tyler's Cross. There was a very heavy fall of 

 rain in the night, but clearing up, we had quite a spring day— more like 

 summer than winter. After a run in the Pinnacles country, the going fright- 

 fully heavy, we for a wonder drew Parndon Woods blank, but found in a 

 covert just beyond Passmores, and ran on up to Parndon Hall and lost this 

 one. " No scent " they kept saying, but very soon sang a different song when 

 we got to Mark Hall, for from there they had a screamer through the 

 kennel field, across and away to Barnsley's, and on at a great pace to 



