14 SPORTING REMINISCENCES [1745 to 



quite characteristic of the person in question, 

 who, though a real gentleman in his general 

 bearing, would sometimes suffer the zeal of 

 the chase to swallow up his usual good man- 

 ners.* c An acquaintance of mine,' says he, i a 

 good sportsman, but a warm man when he sees 

 the company pressing too closely upon his 

 hounds, begins with crying out, as loudly as 

 he can, " Hold hard !" If any one should per- 

 sist after that, he goes on moderately at first : 

 " I beg, sir, you will stop your horse. Pray, sir, 



stop. Heaven bless you, sir, stop. your 



blood, sir, stop your horse." ' " 



Mr. Gilbert's kennels were at Northerwood, 

 but the hounds occasionally went to Cran- 

 bourne. 



Woods. Woods was his first huntsman, and, 

 from an entry in the diary, it appears he came 

 on January 7th, 1781; in July of the same 

 year "he was discharged for neglecting the 

 hounds," but came back in October, "having 

 made proper submission, and asked pardon." 

 In March, 1790, a note is made that "the fox 

 was lost by Woods' obstinacy," and in May 

 of the same year he was discharged. His 

 next huntsmen were Tull, in 1791-2; Fox, in 



* In corroboration of this, the folio-wing entry is made in Mr. Gil- 

 bert's diary: "Horsewhipped one White for being impertinent and 



beating the hounds." 



