HUNTING. 153 



faced my letters to my Editors with, " Please 

 do not alter anything in my J MS/* Poor 

 blind child I was then, groping about in the 

 dark, and sadly needing the helping hand 

 which I was so obstinately rejecting. Well, 

 we gain sense with years, and wisdom with 

 experience. Now that I have got on in the 

 world, in every sense of the word, I am only 

 too anxious for advice, and ready to grasp at 

 every friendly hint. 



And so it should be with riding as with 

 writing. Take all kindly counsel in good 

 part, and if given advice ask for more. Bad 

 habits grow upon us with giant force ; they 

 strengthen with our strength, because we know 

 not of them, or blindly refuse to be controlled. 

 I dare say a good many of us are acquainted 

 with a very famous queen of song who always 

 holds her hands crossed and her thumbs 

 turned stiffly up whilst she is singing. I do 

 not beheve she is at all aware of the pecu- 

 liarity of her attitude, and perhaps she could 

 not sing half so well nor sweetly if she altered 

 it. In Hke manner I told you, in the earlier 

 portion of this volume, of a young lady who 



