1881—82.] ST. martin's SUMMER. 391 



luxuiy to ride. On the other hand, "VVidmerpool may mean a 

 muddy day: yet it is all a sporting, if not a fashionable 

 country. But we have to do with The Vale to-day — The 

 Parson's and the Cm-ate's, and the happy grass glebe below. 

 A dense fog lifted just as the meeting-hom' arrived ; and about 

 11'15 on a warm dull day the Master led a sanguine field in 

 the direction of the two contiguous coverts. To all appear- 

 ance nobody of lesser degree than the castle-folk mhabits the 

 AVidmerpool wolds. But somehow a jungle race crops up 

 whenever the country is to be hunted ; and shows an infinite 

 interest in the pastime. By intuition or hint the nomade body 

 knew the two crack coverts were to be drawn ; and the hillside 

 round and about was akeady besprinkled. Scream and howl 

 and yell suddenly burst forth — such as when a hare springs up 

 on Caesar's Camp, and an Aldershot division is waiting under 

 arms for a nice H. R. H. noonday inspection in July. Only 

 three-parts of the field had arrived. Only half had changed 

 hack for hunter. Only a quarter thought anything of the 

 foolish noise. But Firr was already on the gallop to The 

 Paivson's ; dipped into the hollow beneath it, and rose the hill 

 again above — to clap hounds on where the old fox had passed, 

 from his quiet stubble field beside the road. Thus there was 

 a gain of ground against a trifling loss of time ; and, though 

 some tail hounds caught heel, the head carried them forward 

 at once, and in a moment they were together and away. A 

 spur of high ground runs into the Vale from The Parson's to 

 Hickling ; and the left side of it is cut and broken by a couple 

 of bottoms, at right angles to the du-ection in which hounds 

 were running hard. A flurry and flounder and a broken 

 stirrup-leather were the earliest result of the first rugged 

 nullah. A refusal followed, and then a complete choke up of 

 the only desirable place. But the brow of the spur was the 

 better line to liave chosen ; for in another halfmile the racing 

 pack swung over it, -and swept into the Vale to the right, 

 heading straight down for Sherbrook's Covert. Two wide 

 grass fields form the slope ; and men were sitting back and 



