The Hunting Year 



tered in April, and much as I love a hunt on 

 the moors I should advise my friends who have 

 had no experience of moor hunting to leave it 

 alone in mid-season, and take their moor 

 hunting in April. 



In the ordinary hunting country, where moors 

 and big woodlands are not, the functions in con- 

 nection with April hunting are mainly social. 

 The first week or ten days may be devoted to 

 hunting, but " to finish the season " is an- 

 nounced, and the Point to Point Meeting is 

 exercising the minds of all and sundry, and is 

 the most important event of the month in the 

 hunting man's diary. 



Point to Point racing has really sprung into 

 existence during the last quarter of a century, 

 and it was a necessary consequence of the 

 action of the National Hunt Committee insist- 

 ing on the regulation fences. Hunting men 

 did not like these regulation fences ; they 

 objected to school their horses over them, and 

 they wanted to have races among themselves. 

 So they turned to the old rules of steeplechasing 



which prevailed in the days of Red Deer and 



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