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mare is! She is the only one I ever have a real go on 

 now." His friend replied that no doubt the animal was 

 a "nailer," but it did not happen to be a mare. It 

 turned out that not only had he mistaken his favourite 

 mare, when changing horses, for a gelding, but for a 

 gelding in which he had no confidence whatever! The 

 man of the small stud, who has to make his own hunters, 

 is at least saved from that kind of mistake. 



It is a great point to dress properly for hunting. 

 .-. red coat is a passport in all the countryside., and 

 villagers like to see a smart turn-out. But again 

 subscriptions must come before clothes. n old song 

 runs in my head - 



If my life should depend on the wager, 

 I know not which brother I'd bac . 

 The Parson, the Squire, or the Major, 

 The Red, or the Pink, or the Black. 



We may be perfectly certain the major, who no doubt 

 was in a smart cavalry regiment, spent more on his hunt- 

 ing kit than the parson brother, but it does not appear 

 to have given him any advantage when hounds ran. 



So that if the proposition is accepted that hunting 

 can only be carried on in these days if subscriptions 

 come first , it can be shown that we shall not lose much 

 individually by that. on one considers, too, what 

 one can get for a hunt subscription, who can deny that 

 if they have to be very greatly increased we shall still, 

 if we have any real love of hunting, get our money's 

 worth in full? 



Consider, for one thing, how long the sport lasts. 

 If you don't mind early rising, you can begin v/ith cub- 

 hunting in September, even earlier with some packs. 



Then comes the regular season in November, and, 

 bar a frost, you can keep steadily at it to at least 

 the end of larch. And even a short frost is sometimes 

 welcome to the owner of a hard-worked little stud. 



Hunting, too, is the most democratic of all sports, 

 and brings together good fellows of all classes. The 

 penniless younger son may take a better place on his 



