30 WITH HOUND AND TERRIER. 



came to me in rather a curious way. He was 

 bought by a farmer in the Blackmore Vale at 

 Bristol out of an Irish drove, and his temper 

 made him anything but a pleasant acquisition. 

 On board ship he had been so unmanageable 

 that he carried the mark of his struggles for 

 the rest of his life. The farmer, however, was 

 taken by his good action and his air of breed- 

 ing, and determined to try his hand at break- 

 ing him to harness. In this disappointment 

 awaited him, for Tom invariably kicked him- 

 self free as soon as he was put to. At last 

 his owner thought the best plan would be to 

 look for a purchaser who might be taken by 

 his good points, and this he found in my 

 brother. It was at a meet of the Blackmore 

 Vale Hounds that the farmer appeared on Tom, 

 and his first experience was one that caused 

 general merriment to the rest of the field. 

 As the horse caught sight of the hounds at 

 close quarters he snorted with astonishment, 

 and, ducking his head, shot his rider into the 

 midst of the pack. After this Tom naturally 

 came in for a good share of observation, and 

 my brother fell in love with his big powerful 

 hocks, and saw that if he could be tamed he 

 would make a first - class fencer. In a short 

 time Tom changed hands and became my 

 brother's property, and before long he was 

 handed over to me. We soon became ffood 

 friends, though we often had battles, and he 



