THE FARMER 177 



came up and begged he would ride through the wheat, 

 adding, " his father would be very much oftended if 

 he did not." 



Indeed it has been frequently observed that 

 Farmers are generally the first to ride over their own 

 wheat. An amusing instance of this is related by 

 Nimrod in his northern tour. A nobleman's Hunts- 

 man was blowing somebody up for riding over a field 

 of wheat, who not attending to the rate, the Huntsman 

 launched out again with something stronger. Still the 

 man paid no attention. The Huntsman " at him " a 

 third time, adding the inquiry if he didn't know he 

 was riding over wheat? 



"Well," replied the Farmer. "//^i- my own!" 

 thinking to silence the reprover with the information. 

 " So much the worse^" retorted the Huntsman, adding, 

 ^^ there's the force of example ^ 



Farmers are the most easily pacified and soonest 

 satisfied race of men under the sun. The smallest 

 kindness, the smallest attention, the smallest con- 

 sideration, is never lost upon them. Let a Master of 

 Hounds only show that he is sensible of any damage 

 he may have done them, or of any accommodation he 

 may have received, and they do not know how to stop 

 the expression of his thanks soon enough. It is in 

 these sort of trifles that Masters of Hounds show their 

 tact and management. We have seen some Masters 

 desperately uncouth with the Farmers, taking no 

 notice of them either at the meet or the finish. Others 

 again have always something polite or good-natured 

 to say, and a felicitously presented " brush " has 

 atoned for the tramplement of much wheat. We 

 remember when it used to be a favourite topic of 

 discussion, whether riding over wheat did it harm or 

 good, and we have seen stout pen and ink champions 

 in favour of the system, but, like many plausible 

 things upon paper, the theory and practice are very 

 dissimilar. It is quite clear that Farmers do not 

 12 



