THK WILD PONIES OF EXMOOR. l227 



tbem struggle so. A few days' confinement in a shed, 

 a few carrots, w4th a little salt, and gentle treatment, 

 reduces the w^ildest of the three-year-olds to docilit3\ 

 When older they are more difficult to manage. It was 

 a pretty sight to view them led away, splashing through 

 the brook — conquered, hut not yet subdued. 



In the course of the evening a little chestnut stallion, 

 twelve hands, or four feet in height, jumped, at a stand- 

 ing jump, over the bars out of a pound upward of five 

 feet from the ground, only just touching the top rail 

 with his hind feet. 



We had hoped to have a day's wild stag hunting, but 

 the hounds were out on the other side of the country. 

 However, we had a few^ runs with a scratch pack of 

 harriers after stout moorland hares. The dandy school, 

 who revel in descriptions of coats and waistcoats, boots 

 and breeches, and w4io pretend that there is no sport 

 without an outfit which is only within the reach of a 

 man with ten thousand a year, w-ould no doubt have 

 been extremely disgusted with the whole affair. We 

 rose at five o'clock in the morning and hunted puss up 

 to her form (instead of paying a shilling to a boy to 

 turn her out) with six couples, giving tongue most 

 melodiously. Viewing her away we rattled across the 

 crispy brown moor, and splattered through bogs with 

 a loose rein, in lunatic enjoyment, until we checked 

 at the edge of a deep " combe." Then — when the old 

 yellow Southerner challenged, and our young host 

 cheered him with " Hark to Reveller, hark!" — to hear 

 the challenge and the cheer re-echoed again from the 

 opposite cliff; and — as the little pack in full cry again 

 took up the running, and scaled the steep ascent — to see 

 our young huntsman, bred in these hills, go rattling 

 down the valleys, and to follow by instinct, under a 



