nORSES AXD HOUNDS. 233 



him in view, although they did not see him themselves, and 

 here I observed that, where the fox lingered, the scent more par- 

 ticnlarly failed. The scene was a most exciting one, and 

 desperate efforts were made with whip and si)ur, by the choice 

 number who witnessed it, to urge their panting steeds to greater 

 exertions, each struggling for the first place ; but nothing could 

 be effected boyond a scrambling jog trot, and the wisest of the 

 party jumped off and led their horses. A gallant captain on a 

 capital hunter, of which he had used to boast that, if ever so 

 tired, a shake of the rein would rouse him to renewed action, 

 was here jeered by a rival brewer, who generally bore him 

 company. "Now, Captain, is your time, shake his head a bit, 

 for his tail has been shaking like the pendulum of a clock for 

 the last ten minutes ; you can't think how regularly it goes ; it 

 would do to keep time at the Horse Guards." " Come, none of 

 your nonsense, thou vender of stout ; your nag looks as if he 

 had just come out of the mash-tub, and as for his carcase, it 

 rattles like an empty beer barrel." Fox-hunters are generally a 

 cheerful set of men, particularly when things go well, and here 

 we had the prospect of a brilliant finish to our sporting run, 

 and hard work over as stiff a vale as ever was crossed. On the 

 top of the hill our gallant fox stopped, sat up for a second or 

 two to survey his pursuers, and then disappeared over the 

 brow. Every man now strove hard for the lead, and we were 

 soon on the summit, with the hounds streaming away once 

 more with an improving scent. For a few minutes the fox kept 

 on the high ground, with his head to the wind ; then stretched 

 bravely away over the open downs for a gorse covert, about four 

 miles distant. Knowing his point, I kept my eye forward, 

 and soon observed a dark object, in size and appearance like a 

 crow, skimming over the surface of the ground. This I knew 

 to be our fox ; and, with a cry to my companions of " yonder he 

 goes," pointing in the direction with my whip, and a cheer to 

 the hounds, their heads were up and sterns down, and away we 

 rattled, as if running for the St. Leger. With recovered wind 

 and emulous spirits, our horses appeared to have forgotten their 

 previous labours in the vale below, and a most exciting race 

 ensued for a mile and a half over this fine elastic turf, when the 

 whoo-whoop resounded over as gallant an animal as ever wore 

 a brush. Some may think the reason the hounds went so slow 

 up the hill was because they were blown, and not from a failure 

 of scent ; but this was not the case. They had crossed two or 

 three arable fields before reaching the base of the hill, and here 

 they experienced a sufficient check to recover their wind, but 

 where the fox lingered was on the turf, and therefore better 

 holding ground. 



