28o HUNTING. 



down, his legs and feet dry-rubbed and bandaged, and his inner 

 horse mildly refreshed with a mouthful of gruel. Where there is 

 a station there is sure to be some stable accommodation sufficient 

 for your purpose ; but it is not so sure that you will find an 

 ostler equally sufficient. To make a tired and dirty hunter 

 comfortable for his journey home requires no great intelligence 

 or labour ; but you will be wise to superintend matters your- 

 self, and the judicious suggestion of a pot of beer has sometimes 

 a stimulating effect. The country ostlers are a pretty hard- 

 worked class, and perhaps, considering all things, can scarcely be 

 expected to bestow much additional labour on mere pilgrims 

 whom they may never see again. Particularly -will you be wise 

 not to trust the gruel to the tender mercies of the inn servants. 

 See that the flour is put in boilipg water and cooled with cold 

 water, not stirred up with cold water and then qualified to the 

 proper temperature with hot water ' to taste.' A quart of good 

 beer, or a wineglass of whisky, after a hard day, may be added 

 with advantage. Of course, if you can insure returning to your 

 starting point — and if you have self-denial enough to leave off 

 your fun in time, there should be no difficulty in your arranging 

 this, save in very exceptional cases — all these obstacles will vanish 

 in the presence of your own servant, whom you will do wisely to 

 take down with you, without whom, indeed, you will hardly do 

 well on these journeys. However learned you may be in theory in 

 the care and management of horses, in practice you must in- 

 evitably be more or less at fault. You have never been taught 

 to groom a horse ; the groom has been. You know what 

 things should be done, the groom knows how to do them. 



Again, there is the problem of exercise. How are hunters 

 stabled in London to be kept in proper condition ? How are 

 they to be exercised in the London streets ? There is Rotten 

 Row to be sure, where grooms are allowed to disport themselves 

 on their master's nags before 7 a.m. from April to October, 

 and before 8 a.m. from October to April. 



Thus, it will be seen, there are many things to be said 

 against keeping your hunters in London ; indeed, so many 



