Mr, A. A. Young. 235 



tious cover. Growing so thickly as to require two dis- 

 mounted horsemen as well as the hounds to complete an 

 effective draw, an hour is often cut to waste before a fox 

 is induced to quit his snug' surroundings. When well 

 away, nothing but an absence of scent can prevent a 

 g'allop of more or less enjoyment, according to its pace 

 and duration. To hear of a " forty minutes and a kill ^' 

 from the ^^ bantling '^ of his heart is gladdest of glad 

 tidings in the ears of the worthy old Squire, of whom it is 

 said in relation to this little spot of ground, that '^ after 

 his death the word ' Cock-a-roost ' will be found imprinted 

 on his heart/* 



With him time seems to deepen rather than to weaken 

 recollections of old hunting'-days. Speak to him of 

 ^^ Clarion ^^ or '^ De Grey,''"' and the glistening eye and 

 reflective look speedily show into what region of the 

 irrevocable past his thoughts are wandering. The last- 

 named, bought as a four-year-old at Boughton Fair, 

 occupies perhaps in the heart of his master a warmer 

 place than any horse he ever possessed, but to him who 

 was not *"' in the secret/^ the other appeared greatly the 

 superior animal. Troubled with a bit of temper, the 

 first was not always to be depended upon at his fences, 

 and in the last stride would whip suddenly round ; 

 whereas the second was, if anything, in too great a hurry 

 to arrive on the other side of the hedge and ditch. No 

 man need wish to have two better hunters in his stable 

 at the same time, but to the outsider, " Clarion " with 

 his pace, quality, and jumping power, was the one to take 

 for choice. Not given to award praise or blame in a 

 niggardly fashion, it may be asserted without fear of 

 contradiction that no two animals were ever made the 



