The Old Berkshire, 213 



you tied your horse up, put down your sixpence, went 

 away and remained out of sight till he had finished. 

 This legend is amusingly worked into Sir Walter 

 Scott^s " Kenilworth '' — the scene of which is laid 

 partly in this neighbourhood. At Kingston Lisle is 

 another curiosity — the Blowing Stone, which gives its 

 name to the fixture. It is a stone of about three cubic 

 feet j and is pierced with holes, which when blown 

 through are said to produce a sound loud enough to 

 be heard at Faringdon. The coverts in view when the 

 Blowing Stone is advertised, are those of Kingston 

 Lisle — both meet and coverts being popular. The 

 Kingston Spinnies, by the Canal, are almost sure to 

 produce a run — generally over the Vale, though it is 

 always on the cards for a fox to face the hills. The 

 Downs will carry a hot scent if wet enough ; but if 

 dry and hard, hounds cannot act with great vigour 

 over them. 



Woolstone also overhangs the Vale, and is named 

 for the small but very useful wood of Uffington — while 

 Ufl&ngton Station means Uffington Gorse, which is 

 always regarded as a gi^eat ^^lace. Childrey Canal 

 Bridge and Challow are two of the most popular meets 

 of the Hunt — the best of the grass lying all round, 

 with no drawback to its charms save such as is con- 

 tained in the presence of the railway and canal, here 

 running side by side. Sparsholt is the usual covert 

 from Childrey. From Challow Station and Goosey 

 Green a move is generally made to Woodhill Gorse, a 

 nice covert of four acres, faciug south-west, the 

 property of the junior member for Berks, almost a 

 sure find, and from which a gallop over the grass is 



