HISTORY OF THE KILDARE HUNT 



On the following Wednesday Downings was 

 drawn, and a fox found in the plantations before 

 reaching the cover. He took a ring round a very 

 ugly close bit of country, and after skirting the Bog 

 of Allen went into Donore at the corner near the 

 Cock Bridge, and out again at a terrific pace into 

 Castlekeely cover. Time up to this, one hour and 

 twelve minutes. After three or four minutes he 

 broke and headed for the aqueduct at Waterstown 

 and got to ground at last in a rabbit-burrow in 

 Osbertstown Hill. 



There was an immense gathering at Hortlands on 

 February lo notwithstanding the weather; there 

 was a cold, steely rain falling, drifted snow still lay 

 in the ditches, and the Wicklow mountains were 

 still covered. But the fine surroundings of Hort- 

 lands, large areas of grass intersected by safe wide 

 ditches with solid, sloping banks on either side, and 

 the experience of the past two seasons, in which 

 the cream of the cream of Kildare sport has been 

 found in this wide basin, made many a sportsman 

 from the neighbouring counties of Meath and 

 Westmeath attend this tryst at all hazards. 



From Hortland Gorse, which is thickening to a 

 very good covert, a good fox broke away very 

 quickly and ran, after one or two preparatory 

 bursts, towards Cappagh and Newtown and past 

 the strong wide gorse of Ballycaghan. Before, how- 



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