HUNTING TOURS. 67 



that in any country where the acknowledged 

 process of civilised cultivation of the soil was 

 practised that so much palpable neglect could 

 exist as that of not keeping the ditches open, 

 if only for the important purpose of letting 

 off the water. There is a most gratifying ap- 

 pearance of prosperity about these farms, very 

 clearly displaying the character and condition 

 of the occupants, and by far the greater por- 

 tion of the attendants at the covert side is 

 composed of agriculturists, well mounted, and 

 affording most pleasing examples of the highly 

 respectable class to which they belong. The 

 impression prevails in many parts of England 

 that horses can only be bred advantageously 

 on grass farms. A visit to Lincolnshire will 

 serve to dispel that delusion, for here they are 

 bred, and to a state of very great perfection. 

 Inexpensive thatched hovels, with yards or 

 outlets constructed with rough timber, afford 

 them shelter from the elements, and security 

 from those casualties which young animals 

 must always be subservient to when permitted 

 to range at large over extensive wilds and 

 wastes. On inquiry I found that many of the 

 horses reared in these parts are purchases 

 from Ireland when quite young. 



