THE LIFE OF A SPORTSMAN 351 



saw but very neat, very fast, very quick in their turns, 

 and very stout. I shall have an eye to some of their 

 blood, one day or another. They have a bad, light- 

 scenting country to hunt over, which puts their goodness 

 to the test. 



" You often hear me speak of my weight, and grumble 

 about it. I shall do so no more, because I see that men, 

 four stone heavier than I am, can go well up to hounds. 

 When I was in the Hertfordshire country, I saw this 

 proved in the person of one of the most extraordinary 

 men, perhaps, England ever produced. His name is 

 Richard Gurney commonly called Dick Gurney and, 

 although riding eighteen stone, he goes the best pace. 

 In fact, a short time since, I went to see a gate that he 

 and Sir Charles K-nightly but no one else leaped, near 

 Northampton, at the end of a twenty minutes' burst. It 

 appeared to me next to a miracle that he could have 

 cleared it, when I looked at its height, and thought of 

 his tremendous weight. The name of the horse that 

 performed it is Cock Robin (winged, I should imagine, 

 like his namesake), and he has refused 1000 guineas 

 for him. 



" The frost is gone at last, and to our no small delight. 

 Indeed, the breaking-up of one always reminds me of 

 the inhabitants of those countries from which the sun 

 absents himself for half the year. Speaking poetically, 

 when they see the chariot of Diana, every man claps 

 his hands for joy ; all come forth from their caves, with 

 dancing and songs, to welcome the approach of the 

 beautiful goddess. But you may wish to know what I 

 did with myself during the frost. I visited London for 

 a week, and afterwards ran down to Amstead, and had 

 a capital week's shooting, killing seventeen couples of 

 woodcocks, eleven and a half brace of pheasants, seven 

 and a half of snipes, and eleven of rabbits. I then ran 

 down to Quorn to see the hounds in kennel, and a great 

 treat I had. The master was from home, but I inspected 

 the whole establishment, which, to use the low expression, 

 ' made my mouth water,' and I said to myself ' when shall 

 I be qualified to be at the head of such an establishment 

 as this ? ' I was answered by the inner man, with a still 

 lower expression ' when you have eaten a good deal more 

 pudding.' But I tell you, honestly, Hargrave, I shall 

 never consider myself completely happy until I become 



