66 TALES OF PINK AND 8ILK. 



men and women — wliicli included both Sir John and his 

 daughter — were in close attendance, while the bulk of the 

 field were tearing down the slope from the covert, and at 

 the bottom a frowning bull-finch with a ditch on the 

 take-off side was spelling disaster already. Several have 

 refused, many turn away unblushingly, while two loose 

 horses are tearing after hounds, their owners footing it in 

 hot pursuit. A strong detachment is following old Hard- 

 acre, who knows every gap and gate in the country. Burton 

 is making a half-hearted attempt to send his horse at the 

 fence, with no desire whatever for him to jump it, and he, 

 too, will turn for the line of gates in a minute. Maltby 

 steadies his horse as he nears the thin place he has selected, 

 and the youngster jumps it cleverly. But not so Lucy 

 Glitters. She has got her head up, and so I fail to make 

 any impression whatever on her mouth, goes forty miles an 

 hour at the fence, takes off a couple of yards too soon, 

 and, while I am making up my mind for a toss, lands 

 well over the obstacles in a marvellous manner. She 

 certainly can jump, but one likes to have a word or two 

 to say in the matter, and not have to be taken at a racing 

 pace at one's fences, whether one wants to or not. 



" A few fields brought me up w^ith the leaders, the 

 mare so far having made only one mistake, by slightly over- 

 jumping into some plough ; but she had quite got out of 

 hand, and I was anxiously speculating as to how it would 

 all end. Then all at once my heart went in my mouth, 

 for hounds threw up in a road, and pull as I might I 

 could make no impression whatever on Lucy Glitters. We 

 went past the Master like lightning, the mare waving her 

 head in the air as I tugged frantically at the reins, flew 

 hedge and ditch in superb st3de, and landed in the road 

 among the hounds, whom she scattered right and left. 

 Some unjumpable rails on a bank were on the other side 



