1881—82.] THE TILTON DAY OF 1881. 397 



stiU to come. The scent was tremendous ; and, of course, the 

 pace in keeping. There were plenty of good men on the 

 track now — doing their utmost over what is undoubtedly the 

 most difficult country in the Shires to cross with quickness 

 and credit. The hills are very severe ; the ridge and furrow 

 very exhausting ; and half the fences altogether unjumpable. 

 Overpressing hounds when they can run over this ground is, 

 happil}'', an impossibility. To keep them in sight must be the 

 only aim. Up and down the great bullock grounds some twenty 

 or thii'ty men were pushing hard, on the best of horses, to have 

 a share in the fun. Prominent among the party in front were 

 Mr. Baird, Mr. Tailby, Sir Bache and Mr. G. Cunard, Captain 

 and Mrs. Blair (the latter riding brilliantly in both gallops of 

 the day), Colonel and the Messrs. Gosling, Mr. Logan, Mr. 

 Marshall, Mr. Westley-Richards, Mr. Horace Flower and 

 others — with Neal and Goddard on the spot for emergencies. 

 Not that the pack ever wanted help. Hounds ran without a 

 check of the smallest description for some fifty-two or fifty- 

 three minutes from the find. And this is how they travelled. 

 They went on from Tilton Station (which, by the way, is more 

 than a mile and a half from the village) to pass between Tilton 

 Wood and Tilton Village, over the brow as in the morning, 

 pointing for Quorn territory ; ran to within a couple of fields 

 of Lord Moreton's covert ; then swung leftwards towards The 

 Coplow. Just short of Tomlin's Spinnies (which face The 

 Coplow) their fox's heart failed liim, and bending suddenly 

 stiU more to the left, he headed round for Skeffington "Wood. 

 Leaving that and Tilton Wood just to the right (the pace as 

 furious as ever), he got back as far as Colborough Hill; and 

 dipping into the railway behind it, slipped into a short drain 

 by the side of the metals. A finer, faster, hound-run it would 

 be difficult to conceive; while all but the early part was 

 splendid sport for every rider lucky enough to grasp it. Of 

 course hounds deserved their fox ; and equally of course it was 

 determined that they should, if possible, have him. But in 

 the midst of well meant attempts, a coal train came by — neces- 



