A WEEK WITH SIX PACKS. 531 



rain drove against the panes like spray against a fo'castle port 

 shutting out from view even the dense black clouds drifting 

 inland from the Atlantic. (Unconsciously one's thoughts 

 recurred to that stormy pathway, and one's sympathies went 

 forth to " those in peril on the sea.") But a wetting on dry 

 land, if a paradox, is no great hardship, and as for being blown 

 about, are there not living men said to be sane withal who 

 keep private ships (at the cost of a pack of hounds, forsooth ! ) 

 to ensure themselves that very luxury ? * Not a nice day for 

 hunting, doubtless. But what would you do at hame ? knock 

 off all your letters by one o'clock, eat an ill-earned and exagger- 

 ated luncheon afterwards, then, perhaps, smoke yourself silly, 

 and lounge about grumbling or not impossibly, swearing at 

 the weather, a prey to " undisciplined inaction," " and the frivo- 

 lous work of polished idleness." A rough-and-tumble with the 

 elements, in a tarpaulin kit or something as much akin to it 

 as civilisation will permit is surely better than this ? 



Of course it was, by rights, a Shuckburgh hurricane, and 

 should have come twenty-four hours earlier. But it happened 

 to be late for the meet, and fell foul of the Atherstone. So 

 yesterday the wholly unaccustomed spectacle was to be wit- 

 nessed of huntsman and field listening placidly on Shuck- 

 burgh Hill, while every hound note floated distinctly to the 

 summit. And thus it was only last night that my after-dinner 

 musing took the form of reflection upon the absolute advan- 

 tages of foxhunting as a soothing refreshing process, tending 

 more to invigoration and clear appreciation of life than all the 

 German waters, or all the tonics of home pharmacy or even 

 the most Spartan regimen of diet and training. The frame is 

 never more fit, or the brain less burdened with cobwebs, than 

 after day-to-day hunting stipulated always that long railway 

 journeys or ultra-Mel tonian dinners are not superadded to the 

 day's work. Fairly good living is essential, for mind's and body's 

 sake alike. Sybaritism is antagonistic, and will knock away the 



* Needless to say this was written previous to news of the sad incidents of the 

 storm in question. 



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