170 FOX-HUNTING RECOLLECTIONS 



''November 15th. — Nineteen couples at Od- 

 stone ; found a brace of foxes in the gorse, 

 one of which we ran direct through Nailstone 

 Whigs, and over the open for forty minutes at 

 the best pace on to the Forest ; we then changed 

 our fox, and after a great deal of severe running 

 he went into a drain under the road by Bradgate 

 Park wall, making on the whole two hours and 

 twenty-five minutes, the first hour and five 

 minutes without a check ; opened the drain 

 and got him out, an old dog-fox. My horse 

 Exeter died the same evening. Rode Exeter 

 and Houghton ; Jack, Peter ; Kit, Chicken. 



'' November 17th. Catton. — Twenty couples ; 

 found two or three foxes immediately, one of 

 which we got well away with and ran a ring by 

 Walton and back, when he threw himself into 

 the earth, which had been opened in our absence, 

 about ten yards before the leading hounds ; a 

 most terrible burst for thirty minutes, so quick 

 that no horse could live with them. Found a 

 disturbed fox in Seal Wood, which got away 

 twenty minutes before us, and ran him with a 

 stale scent down to Barton ; Jack's horse so lame 

 we were forced to leave him at Drakelow. Rode 

 Derby and Richmond; Jack, Doctor; Kit, Chest- 

 nut Horse. 



'' December 2nd. Burbage. — Twenty couples ; 

 tried all the Tooley and Normanton Coverts, but 

 did not find. Jack coming with my second 

 horse, viewed a fox go into a small spinney near 

 Kirkby, when we laid the hounds on, and ran 



