LIFE OF MYTTON. 155 



a certain spot, where he also ordered to be assembled 

 all the servants of his establishment mounted on 

 whatever they could catch, down to ponies, donkeys, 

 or mules. A fox was then turned out, and the scene 

 was, as might be imagined, a ludicrous one, although 

 signalised by an act of unintentional cruelty. A stable 

 boy, on a fast pony, happening to be first up when 

 the fox was laid hold of by the hounds, cut off his 

 brush * instanter, when the animal, in his struggles, 

 got out of the lad's grasp, and went some distance 

 before he was again run into. But Mr Mytton was 

 often in the habit of mounting his servants with his 

 hounds, chiefly for the sake of witnessing the falls 

 they got, from their want of skill in horsemanship. 



On Crouch the trainer once making a call at 

 Halston, the Squire took him out shooting on 

 the plea of killing him some game. They presently 

 came to a brook, through which Mr. Mytton as 

 usual waded, bidding the other follow him. But 



• The famous Jack Shirley purposely once did the same thing when out 

 with the pack of a noble lord, who was not his master. He took the fox 

 from the hounds, when alone with them, and having cut off and pocketed 

 his brush, threw him over a thick hedge. On the huntsman coming up, 

 Shirley particularly requested to have the brush if they should kill him ; 

 and on the hounds again running into their fox, great was the astonish- 

 ment of the " field " to find that he had none ! 



