JACK MYTTON 171 



waist ; and he was literally as wet as if he had ridden 

 through the Severn. On another occasion he came 

 from Cheltenham in his carriage to an appointment at 

 the Wheelgate. A frost had for several days prevented 

 the hounds from going out, and he resorted to Chelten- 

 ham for a lark. It commenced raining in the night, 

 when, ordering horses to his carriage, he set off to the 

 place of meeting. But he was behind time, and the 

 hounds on his arrival had gone to draw Morfe Gorse 

 without any horse being left for him, as his servants 

 did not know whether he would come on wheels, or 

 whether he would come at all. There was no approach 

 to within a mile of the covert for a carriage ; conse- 

 quently he mounted one of the post horses, and with 

 the encumbrance of some of the harness, especially the 

 winker-bridle, he came straight over the fences, 

 arriving at the gorse just in time to see his hounds find 

 their fox, and declared the horse jumped better with 

 winkers than he would have done without them. Ever 

 prone to play some pranks, after a short s^curry in the 

 same country his hounds hunted their fox to the 

 Severn and crossed at Quatford, where Mytton jumped 

 into the ferry-boat alone, and having gained the op- 

 posite side sent the boat adrift, thereby precluding the 

 possibility of any other persons crossing. All those 

 who were desirous to see the end of the run had to ride 

 round through Bridgenorth ; and we found the Squire 

 of Halston with his horse in a ditch, and the hounds 

 staring about with their heads up, having lost their 

 fox, their huntsman, and their whipper-in. Mr. 

 Mytton ostensibly gave up his hounds in 1822 ; but he 

 still kept on a sort of scratch pack, with which he 

 hunted near home. 



An amusing volume might be composed of Mr. 

 Mytton 's freaks and fancies, exclusive of any of his 

 faults, which, unfortunately, have been already too 

 glaringly paraded before the public ; but, poor fellow, 

 he is gone to rest, and it is to be hoped his indiscretions 

 have met with more lenient judgment from Heaven than 



