•216 NIMROD'S HUNTING TOUR 



Tinkler — " Not the Hit-or-Miss mare ; you will want her for the 

 Cheshire." 



'Mr. Mytton — " It will put her in wind." 



Eemonstrance was in vain. Every horse was saddled, and the 

 Squire, his three whippers, with Tom Whitehouse (his jockey), were 

 all mounted on the best horses in the stud. 



I cannot describe our arrival at the covert ; I cannot speak of the 

 hound that " spoke to him in the gorse ; " I cannot even attempt to 

 describe the crash when he broke from the covert ; but — from the 

 inside of a wicker basket with a lid to it (oh ! how tame, how 

 languidly does my pen move over my paper as I write it !) away 

 sneaked as fine a fox as ever wore a brush, and certainly afforded us 

 a very fine run of an hour, when he fell a victim to the pack, which, 

 I must say, hunted him well. 



Nothing is to be done in Shropshire without a luncheon ; but on 

 this day we had two — first, at the inn at Ellesmere, after our run ; 

 and secondly at the house of a very respectable yeoman by the name 

 of Wynne (of Cricketh) where the second fox was in waiting. The 

 second luncheon, however, saved this fox's life ; for after the usual 

 law was given him, and I was in the act of mounting my horse, Mr. 

 Wynne came out to me and said, the Squire proposed one other 

 bumper toast, which he hoped I would return and drink. The 

 hounds were then laid on ; but though they were sober, the faculty 

 of smell had deserted them, and they never touched upon their 

 game. The exertions of their huntsman (the Squire himself), 

 however, were great. Mounted upon Magnet, with his horn in his 

 mouth, and at three parts speed, he made his casts with the rapidity 

 of a Shaw ; but one peculiarity attended them. If the fence into 

 one field was larger than that into another, that field was preferred — 

 not as most likely to hit off his fox, but as most likely to floor some of 

 his field, who, with his three whippers-in and Tom Whitehouse, 

 were hard at his brush. As the pace was quick, and the country heavy, 

 I was beginning to calculate upon how long the nags would live 

 without a check, when an accident occurred that put a stop to all. 

 A hare got up in view, which every hound followed into Sir Edward 

 Kynaston's plantations, and thus ended the morning's sport. We 

 had a party to dinner, and the evening's cast was by no means slow. 



