84 EEMINISCENCES OF A HUNTSMAN. 



jiidg-es of distance as these fellows usually are, his 

 left liand never reached me, and his right only struck 

 the peak of my hunting cap, which, however, it 

 knocked off over my face, and the cap gave me a 

 bloody nose. The other fellows also showed fight, 

 so I withdrew my hand from the staple, returned 

 tlie blow on the arm of the man who struck me, 

 with the heavy iron hammer of my whip, and kept 

 them at bay. Just then the field arrived at the 

 gate, and I called out, " Gentlemen, will you sit by 

 and see this ?" In an instant such a lot of goodly 

 less flew over their horse's manes, as made it evident 

 to me there was no lack of help, and in another 

 moment Mr. George Hawkins, Mr. William Norton 

 of Uxbridge, Mr. Baring, and, though last not least, 

 Mr. Gulley, some time member for Pontefract, were 

 with me. There were many others equally ready 

 and resolute, but my memory does not serve me 

 after such a lapse of time with their names ; I assure 

 them that they are not intentionally omitted. When 

 my assistants arrived at the barn-door, to my infinite 

 amusement I saw a huge rufiian, the one who had 

 struck at me, squaring at Mr. Gulley, and threatening 

 to strike him ; the latter simply collected himself, and 

 draAving his hands together on his chest, said in a 

 calm but ominous tone, " You'd better not." So 

 thought the countryman, or some sort of instinct 

 came to his rescue, for, turning quickly away, he 

 sought some other foe in the melee which had then 

 commenced. There seemed to be, among those barn- 

 savages — for to distinguish them from honest labourers 

 I can call them nothing else — much indecision as to 

 whether they should attempt to defend the barn 

 from being opened, or whether they had better get 



