The Bicester and Warden Hill Hunt. 193 



ward over tlie low meadow country swamped by the 

 Ray ; or^ again, they may take a line north or west 

 over light plough — perhaps reaching Middleton Park, 

 a great stronghold. This strip of plough up the 

 western border is nearly all the arable that the 

 Bicester Country contains ; and it is so narrow that a 

 fox very soon travels off it. It should be added, 

 too, that the " Steam Cultivator " has no place in 

 this district, and the soil is consequently only thinly 

 turned. 



Middleton Park is another favourite meet for Oxford. 

 The Park (the seat of Lord Jersey) is very extensive, 

 is thick with foxes and tempts them to cling to its 

 limits, till too hot to hold them. Stoke Lyne (more 

 generally put on the cards as Stoke) is in the midst of 

 the light plough, and has some very holding, and well- 

 preserved, coverts belonging to Sir Thomas Peyton — 

 whose place, Swift^s House, stands among them. 

 Next, to the north, and on the same description of 

 soil, is Tusmore, Lord Effingham^ s house and Park — 

 the property adjoining that of Stoke, and equally well- 

 stored with foxes. Shelswell (Mr. Harrison^s) has 

 several very good coverts, is situated on the borders 

 of the grass, and is invaluable to the Hunt. No place 

 in the Bicester country lies better for hunting than 

 Shelswell (or Stratton Pasture, as this part is often 

 termed) — its outside coverts running up towards the 

 Tingewick Woods, with the Claydons imminent 

 beyond. The Kennels at Stratton Audley (three miles 

 from Bicester) stand in capital country. About a 

 mile and a half away is a large, and famous, gorse 

 covert — known as Poodle Gorse — surrounded by 



