A WEEK AT MELTON 33 



the riders, but these are diminishing as time decays 

 their stout ox rails and in their place comes the strand 

 of wire, to guard the fence from the bullocks. The 

 latter, thanks to the farmers, is generally taken down 

 in the hunting season, and the way is thus left open 

 where in earlier times it was closed to all but the few. 



On this side of the Quorn country are a number of 

 artificial coverts which hold foxes and are separated 

 by only short distances. Thus we find a chain of 

 places, each of which is strong enough to hold a fox, 

 but not large enough to detain the pack long if they are 

 running. It is, moreover, a grass country as long as 

 we are on the Melton side of Widmerpool. For this 

 Monday country belongs particularly to Melton, since 

 it is near no other centre ; and, though part of it over- 

 looks the Belvoir Vale, yet there are no places of any 

 size along its borders. That this is considered a very 

 typical country may be gathered from the fact that 

 when the present King desired to have a quiet day so as 

 to see what the Quorn was really like, it was Ragdale 

 that was chosen for the bye-day, when starting to 

 hunt with the snow on the ground at three o'clock 

 they had a rare gallop to Schoby Scholes from 

 Cossington Gorse. 



But, of all the Monday fixtures, Kirby Gate stands 

 first. As to the usual term " meet," I rather agree 

 with the old sportsman who when asked where the 

 meet was, replied with grim humour, " A boiled leg of 

 mutton, sir, will be on my table at four o'clock, and I 

 hope you will do me the pleasure to sit down to it, 

 but if you mean the fixture of my hounds they will be 

 at so and so." 



For many years Kirby Gate with the Quorn has been 

 looked on as the formal opening of the hunting season. 

 It has come to be an annual holiday for Leicester, and 



c 



