COLONEL JOHNSTONE 73 



old friend, Colonel Johnstone, then living at Ratoath, 

 raced in at the finish and whipped off the hounds, that 

 old dog-fox would have been killed. Colonel John- 

 stone was the only one who was up at the finish in 

 time to save me from a row with the master of the 

 Meatb. I saw very little of the run, as I was riding a 

 hack, which was an indifferent jumper, and had no 

 intention of doing more than circuit about after a hare, 

 and did not want to get on my second horse, but laid 

 the hounds on at once, and so consequently was out of 

 it before it began in earnest ; but it was as good a 

 fifty minutes, so Colonel Johnstone informed me (and 

 there are still few who can compete with him), as he 

 had ever seen — and, indeed, we had nothing better 

 with the Meath that season. It was a great sell to 

 me to have lost it, but I had several friends to mount 

 that day, and having six days a week to do, as luck 

 would have it, I was short of horses that day. 



Apropos of mounting one's friends, it often fell to 

 my lot to mount the late Major Whyte-Melville, and 

 no straighter, better man, even on a strange horse, ever 

 went better in a strange country. At times General 

 (Charlie) Fraser, V.C., acted the part of Good Samaritan 

 in a princely fashion, and on one memorable occasion 

 two gray horses of his, one ridden by himself and the 

 other by Whyte-Melville, were inseparable throughout 

 the run. 



It is sad to reflect what a change for the worse has 

 come over the whole country since those days. It 

 was then the pride of Paddy to have a fox ' awaiting 

 yer 'oner,' no matter what havoc might have been 

 played in the poultry-yard. ' Sure, we will be well 

 paid by their 'oners when the time comes ; but the rale 



