340 TJie PytcJiley Hunt, Past and Present. 



country. In Matthew Oldacre of C]ipston_, we have one 

 of those exceptional organizations in whose hearts there 

 seems to be no room for fear, and to whom the class of 

 animal they ride seems to be a matter of no material con- 

 sequence. Riding nearly seventeen stone_, a ^'^ weight- 

 carrier ^' was a necessity to Mr. Oldacre ; and though he 

 could not always command class as well as power, the 

 runs were few and far between, the best part of which he 

 could not dilate upon as ^* one who was there." The 

 bigger the country, the more sure he was to be near 

 hounds ; the combination of weight and pluck serving 

 him in good stead, when no one else saw a likelihood of 

 arriving at the other side of an unyielding bullfinch. 



Ill-health has for some time stood between him and a 

 pursuit that in his eyes has iio equal ; but with only 

 three score years and ten to grapple with, it is to be 

 hoped the day is far distant when he will cease to appear, 

 careering across the big grasses of Oxenden and 

 Kel marsh. 



MR. CHARLES HEWETT. 



Weee the name of Charles Hewett of Draughton to be 

 omitted from the list of the hunting farmer-worthies of 

 the ^^P.H./' the very hounds in their kennel would cry 

 out. In early life a rider of no ordinary acquirements, 

 his services in a steeplechase were in frequent demand 

 by the owners of horses ; but it was in pursuit of the fox 

 that he was most at home. 



Living in a position from which most of the Meets 

 were easily accessible, in days gone by, the father and 



