134 THE CREAM OF LEICESTERSHIRE. [j^kasox 



— and when hounds are steahng along as the}' can only do in a 

 grass country. There are a certain few men who will almost 

 invariabl}' single themselves out at such times, and can grapple 

 with nearly any combination of difficulty or fortune ; but even 

 these are sometimes left in the lurch, baffled by a hindering 

 crowd, or thrown out by some error at starting. For, nine 

 times out of ten, it is at starting, or immediately afterwards, 

 that men are i)ut out of a quick burst. Once fairly under way, 

 the crowd oi^ened out or left beliind, all goes merry as a 

 marriage bell, and it is as easy to ride to hounds as to steer the 

 proj)er course between flags. Listen to the hundred] diflerent 

 reascms substiquently alleged for failure when a real galloj) is 

 over, and one good performer after another comes up, sick at 

 heart, and cm"sing his "luck" loudly, or in miserable but 

 more dignified silence. One and all date back to a mistake or 

 an accident in the connnencement of the run. Excuses at such 

 a time are best weighed according to the measure of the man 

 himself; but how seldom do we meet one having the pluck (or 

 do we dare ourselves) to say, "I made an ass of myself; I was 

 thrown out in consequence, and I hate myself accordingly ! " 

 Over-wisdom, be assured, on the other hand, is almost as 

 frequently fatal as the opposite extreme ; and it has been said 

 by men who seldom miss a run, " As sure as I attempt to ride 

 cunning I am ' out of it ' at once." I could even adduce 

 several notable instances to prove that the most successful 

 plan of oj)eration is to ignore entirely the country passed over, 

 and to ride as a total stranger, putting faith only in hounds 

 and your own judgment of what you have to encounter. 



Truly Friday was a day full of misadventure, and one that 

 I fancy illustrated the above theories to a painful degTee. A 

 better field never stood at a covert side than hovered round 

 the gateway above Sir Francis Burdett's covert about noon on 

 Friday. They had already been disappointed of a run from 

 Gartree Hill, whence a right good fox had to be abandoned in 

 consequence of interniption caused by a meaner-toned comi'ade ; 

 but in spite of this, and in spite of a strong sou' -wester, they 



