70 Recollections of the Vine Hunt, 



both strength and activity. I wish I could make 

 others see him, as I can fancy that I see him myself, 

 trotting up to the meet at Freefolk Wood, or St. John's, 

 sitting rather loose on his horse, and his clothes rather 

 loose upon him — the scarlet coat flapping open, a 

 little whitened at the collar by the contact of his hair 

 powder and the friction of his pig-tail ; the frill of 

 his shirt above, and his gold watchchain and seal 

 below, both rather prominent, the short knee-breeches 

 scarcely meeting the boot-tops. See ! he rides up ; 

 probably with some original amusing remark, at any 

 rate with a cheerful greeting to his friends, a nod 

 and kindly word to the farmers, and some laughing 

 notice of the schoolboy on his pony. 



Or I could give quite a different picture of him in 

 his parish church — standing upright, tilting his heavy 

 folio prayer-book on the edge of his high pew, so that 

 he had to look tip rather than down on it. There he 

 stands, like Sir Roger de Coverley, giving out the 

 responses in an audible tone, with an occasional glance 

 to see what tenants were at church, and what school 

 children were misbehaving; and I am sorry to add, 

 sometimes, especially when the rustic psalmody began 

 its discord in the gallery, with a humour which even 

 church could not restrain, making some significant 

 gesture to provoke a smile from me and other young 

 persons in the pew. 



Mr. Chute was educated. at Harrow, where Mr. 

 Spencer Perceval, afterwards the murdered prime 

 minister, was his fag ; and the elder brother. Lord 

 Arden, his cotemporary and friend. I believe that he 

 always kept up as much intimacy with the Perceval 

 family as their different courses through life per- 



