THEIR PHILOSOPHY OF THE CHASE. ^"J 



whereupon sixty different specimens were instantly 

 produced ! 



In disposition Mr. Costobadie was very like the benevo- 

 lent vicar who, when a man asked for a day's work, although 

 there was nothing that really required doing, being anxious 

 to assist the man, he was told to wheel a heap of stones 

 from one corner of the garden to the other ; in a few hours 

 the man notified the vicar that he had accomplished his 

 task, and wished to know what he could do next ? To this 

 puzzler the vicar replied that he really did not know, but 

 thought he had better wheel the stones back again ! " 

 Without going to such extremes the Vicar of Norton was 

 equally reluctant to give a disappointing reply to such 

 applicants for employment, and after searching round the 

 premises to find some sort of a job, would often end by 

 saying, oh ! yes, I know what yon can do, you can help me 

 cut up some fire-wood (a favourite past-time of the vicar's), 

 when the hired helper would be told to stand by whilst the 

 vicar gave him a very practical demonstration of the way in 

 which it should be done ! No man, be he guest or tramp, 

 was ever allowed to go away hungry or thirsty from the 

 vicarage. In the former case the ceremonius enquiry 

 "Will you take anything" was never made, but the 

 decanters, or more often the bottles, were first produced, 

 the only questisn asked being, '* Which do you prefer, port 

 or sherry ? " 



Although a parson himself, and of clerical stock, Mr. 

 Costobadie used jokingly to say, " Never trust parsons, 

 lawyers, or doctors ! " 



Descended from an old Yorkshire family of French 

 origin Mr. Costobadie resumed in 1882 the prefix " De " 

 to his patronymic, which had been abandoned by his 

 forbears, when they became anglicised in 1685. Accus- 

 tomed in early life especially to mix with the great, he was 

 equally at home with Peer or Peasant, in Cottage or 

 Palace. An aged lady, and one very competent to express 



