266 The Hunting Countries of England. 



Mr. J. Stancomb of Shaw, and Hon. E. Bouverie of 

 Market Lavington. At Rood Asliton there is already 

 a very large woodland ; and again at Erlestoke is a 

 similar good covert on the hill side overhanging the 

 valley. The fences of the vale in question are of the 

 bank-and-ditch description, the banks low and the 

 ditches not so wide and deep as they are found in 

 many countries — as for example in the Suffolk, which 

 was last under notice. Good sport has already been 

 seen here : for instance — the thirty-nine minutes' 

 gallop from Keevil Withybed to kill in the town of 

 Melksham. 



A similar class of vale country runs up by the side 

 of the Avon between Chippenham and Compton 

 Bassett j and this too gets very deep as winter goes 

 on — the neighbourhood of Great Wood and Dauntsey 

 especially. Great Wood, which stands just on the 

 edge of the Y.W.H. territory — and generally sends 

 a fox forth over the strong Swindon grass — will be 

 remembered as the source of the famous run of 

 February 22nd 1871 — as widely known in the west 

 under the name of The Great Wood Run as The 

 Waterloo Run is renowned in Northamptonshire. 

 Meeting on this gallant occasion at Swallett^s Gate, 

 they ran for three hours and a half unceasingly, 

 across the whole breadth of the V.W.H. Countrj^ 

 into the Old Berkshire, to ground in the village of 

 Highworth — fourteen miles as the crow flies, seven- 

 Mnd-twenty as the hounds travelled — and a superb 

 line all the way. Between this Avon Yale and what 

 is as yet termed the New Country, comes in, it should 

 be mentioned, a rough strip of ground twixt Chippen- 



