292 THE HUNTING FIELD 



which otherwise would be extremely dull and un- 

 interesting to them. What man ever wants to be 

 bored with the details of a day of which he has not 

 partaken ? 



When women do ride they generally ride like the 

 very devil. There is no medium with them. They 

 either "go" to beat the men, or they don't "go" 

 at all. We have seen some uncommon performers 

 among women, performers that would put nine-tenths 

 of the men to the blush. We are puzzled whether to 

 give the palm to the single or to the married women 

 in this respect ; but, as the single are most interesting, 

 perhaps the preference will be yielded to them. Like 

 many things in this world it makes all the difference 

 who the party is that hunts. If a pretty woman 

 hunts we are all glad to see her; if an ugly one 

 comes we wonder what " brings her out." Certainly 

 dishevelled hair, ruddy and perspiring face, and 

 muddy habit, are more likely to be forgiven in the 

 bloom of youth than in what ought to be the orderly 

 sobriety of maturer years. We had dotted down a 

 lot of names of first-rate female performers across 

 country, but in looking it over we find it contains 

 such a curious medley, that we think it better to 

 suppress it altogether than risk the chance of offending 

 by publishing an unpalatable assortment. 



Soever having been a woman, we cannot understand 

 how it is they manage to keep their seats. We see 

 what are called "wash ball " seated men rolling about 

 constantly, and yet women, to whom the term as well 

 as the form is much more applicable and becoming, 

 manage to keep on. Keeping their seats on the 

 road, and keeping them in the field are very different 

 things, about as different as riding horses on the road 

 and riding them with hounds. "Still, where there's 

 a will there's a way," and pretty dears who would 

 scream at the sight of a frog or a mouse, will face a 

 bullfinch from which many men would turn away — 



