The Hunting Year 



people to a " show " if the most interesting part 

 of it is invisible. 



There is another reason, too, for that flagging 

 of the course which is such an offence in the 

 eyes of the grumbler. Now that wire is so 

 much used for the mending of fences, it is quite 

 possible that a little bit of wire may have been 

 left or may be in the line a man would naturally 

 take if he were riding an unflagged course. 

 The wire might be marked right enough, and 

 there would be no risk of an accident, but the 

 man with the best eye to country might lose a 

 great deal of ground through coming across a 

 fence on which there was wire. We experience 

 this every day in the hunting field, and find 

 sometimes it is a great inconvenience ; but what 

 is an inconvenience in the hunting field is fatal 

 in a race. 



But we have left our field running, and they 

 are nearly home. Let us go down to the last 

 fence, for it is at the last fence generally that 

 the race is really decided. There are half a 

 dozen horses in sight — five of them apparently 

 with a good chance. On the right, our friend 



172 



