Fox-hunting Past and Present 



farmer, who rode coatless and in flannel shirt : 

 he had fine lungs, too, and was quite a character 

 here. 



Hedges are then grey rather than green. For 

 the hot, trying days in the middle of August 

 old horses are much better than young ones. 

 Most of the field do their day's hunting on one 

 horse ; although hours are longer and distances 

 galloped longer than in fox-hunting countries, 

 horses last a longer time. However, most of the 

 field bestride ^* quads" that would be little ac- 

 counted of in the Midlands. They know their 

 country and are hill-climbers of Exmoor Combes, 

 not so trying to forelegs and tendons as a flying 

 country or one of banks is — comparison this of 

 tortoise to greyhound. About seven years ago, on 

 the Saturday after Barnstaple Fair, a memorable 

 stag led the field to Castle Hill and Umberleigh 

 on the River Taw to such purpose that some 

 of the followers lay out all that night. 



Stags, however, are slow to break cover, and the 



harbourer usually tries to find one with three long 



points atop on each horn. (It is of the hunted wild 



deer, not the ^' carted " deer that I speak of now.) 



If the harbourer's boots are wet when he reports 



to the master, so much the better ; then there has 



been rain on the moor : he brings good news. 



He has slotted a fine stag across the Combes, 



'' brow, bray, and tray, and three on top." A stag 



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