196 STAG-HUNTING RECOLLECTIONS 



Hind leg hitched through the spars ; all passage blocked. 

 A nice predicament for me and large and brilliant field ! 

 At first we gave the usual advice. ' Take care ! Look 

 out ! Mind where you're going to ! ' His brother Charlie 

 again on the right side, urging him to shove the blooming 

 horse into the river and let him swim for it. Jim seemed to 

 think it a good joke ; and if it had to happen, it was as well 

 it should happen to a Rich. They have a talent for rescues 

 and emergencies, and are the sort of Deal fishermen of the 

 Beaufort Hunt. Meanwhile, there we all were. After hop- 

 ing against hope, I started magna comitante catervd for the 

 nearest bridge, four miles off. By this time I was on William, 

 and directly we got to the high road we set off at a strong pace. 

 The high road had all the requisites — hard, wide, well-kept, 

 and no grass siding to lure one off it. After galloping for fif- 

 teen bright minutes or so, we at last saw scarlet specks bobbing 

 along about a mile away from us, half right. Thank Heaven ! 

 hounds looked as if they w^ere only just running. After 

 some difficulty in persuading AVilliam of my good intentions 

 — for he fancied by this time that he was taking the good 

 news from Bruges to Ghent — I turned out of the road with 

 Sturges on his white horse and two of the second horsemen 

 who had kept ' follering on ' with their usual dash ; the rest 

 of our party being beaten off by our superior disregard for 

 our horses' legs. We made straight for them over quite a 

 nice line of hunting country. To my surprise, or rather not 

 to my surprise, there were both Charlie and James Rich. 

 Just as they were resolved on putting Charlie's first counsel 

 of perfection into effect, the animal had recovered the leg 

 which was over the edge of the bridge. Not liking the look 

 of the swirling starchy water, he made a great effort, ably 

 assisted by Charlie, who had hold of the root of his tail, 

 the others meanwhile hauling at other coigns of vantage. 

 Up to this point I think they had enjoyed this more than any- 



