THE END OF A LONG REIGN. 207 



Spiller was a good man in the field, and during 

 the time he carried the horn he showed capital 

 sport. His hounds did him the utmost credit, for 

 they were always turned out in first-class style. 



One of the many subjects that demand tact and 

 judgment in a hunt country, and on the successful 

 carrying out of which the Master's success in the 

 field may depend, is the organisation of the poultry 

 fund. Many a fox has been done to death because 

 some man's just claim to compensation has not 

 received the consideration it deserved, and those 

 who in the interest of sport undertake the thank- 

 less task of certifying for loss of poultry, &c,, 

 should bring discrimination and tact to bear on 

 their self-imposed duties. If on the one hand you 

 are careless and let things slide, you are sure to 

 be imposed on ; but on the other hand you cannot 

 be too careful to satisfy all just claims, and to give 

 as little trouble as possible to those who have 

 suftered loss. The latter duty is, I think, often 

 lost sight of by people whose time is entirely at 

 their own disposal. With the working farmer 

 and others of his class " time is money," and it is 

 a serious thing for him to waste hours in setting 

 forth a claim, which in the end may be viewed 

 with suspicion from the fact that some of his 

 neighbours are not sufficiently scrupulous as to 

 the means by which they get payments from the 

 hunt funds. 



That there are difficulties on both sides to be 

 met in this delicate matter I know from experi- 



