1880—81.] SHARP MOMENTS. 355 



distance from home, and whether you were a one or two-horse 

 man for the da}', the fiehl thinning considerably at this period. 

 Snow flakes were still falling liglitl}'^, as they had been doing 

 since morning, though they appeared to influence scent for the 

 better rather than for the worse. 



SHARP MOMENTS. 



The Quorn Friday of February 18 was just saved by a 

 brilliant little burst in the late afternoon. It was a very brief 

 experience, but a bright sharp episode, such as stamps itself in 

 clean and deeply cut outline on the memory. It passed like the 

 rush of a whirlwind, but remains in mind as if all the thrill 

 and excitement were still in being. A dull flat morning had 

 been passed in tracking the footsteps of an Ashby Pastures' 

 fox, whose ingenuity in trailing his followers over mile after 

 mile of gluey plough was the only admirable part of the pursuit. 

 I have hunted a certain number of yesivs in the Quorn country, 

 but never before conceived that there could be so many acres 

 under cultivation. The field was a very large one, of quality 

 and intent quite in keeping with a meet at Thorpe Satchville 

 in early spring, and they got heartily tired of dragging about 

 the countr}' on a cold line, long before the run was announced 

 to be at an end. By this time they were at Keyham, and soon 

 afterwards they saw the Barkby Thorpe Spinnies drawn blank. 

 Hounds had already run through Barkby Holt, besides having 

 slipped their field from thence only the evening before, in a 

 hot scurry to Scraptoft, But Mr. Nuttall insisted thej^ would 

 still find, if they would but return to try. Accordingly tlio 

 pack were drawing the covert again at a , quarter past three ; 

 and at half past their tongues were going freely to announce 

 the wished-for news. Not too much scent in covert, either. 



They could never get up a crash ; and they followed their 

 fox rather than drove him. But the Holt is a right good 

 place to view a fox from quarter to quarter, and an easy place 

 in which to move about with hounds, if only you are not deterred 



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