A COVERT SIDE. 89 



smiles," of the delighted delicate hcings ^\ho disdained 

 not to be observers of the rude sports, and witnesses 

 of the pluck and peril of their admirers. 



By this time Matuschevitz and the Virginian had 

 betaken themselves to their hunters, after looking duly 

 and warily to the length of stirrup-leathers, the 

 strength and tightness of girths, and all those nice 

 minutiae which may not be neglected save at severest 

 risk of a fall ; a thing never desirable, and no where 

 less so than at Melton, where it is, unless a fortunate 

 check intervene seasonably, almost synonymous with 

 the loss of a place in the run ; and the count being 

 well horsed on a fine brown hunter by Lottery, while 

 Fairfax bestrode "Moonbeam" with his Tiger upon 

 " Thunderbolt," the nigh of kin to Valentine Magher's 

 famous Slasher, they had no reason to fear their ina- 

 bility, cseteris jyai^ibus, to go in the first flight, and live 

 as long as their neighbors. 



" " The first words that the Russian spoke, were, 

 " Just in the right time, by Jove ! Osbaldiston look- 

 ing at his watch. Yes ! now he nods to Jack Ste- 

 vens — they'll be in covert in five minutes or less. 

 Come along Fairfax !" 



Then as the other followed him easily, but promptly, 

 toward the hounds, he turned in his saddle to his 

 friend, and said laughingly, '' Ah, ha ! you'll have to 

 win your laurels before you wear them to-day, my gal- 

 lant colonel, for yonder I see Valentine is mounted on 

 the very horse they were talking about in our stables 

 yesterday. There he goes — that's Slasher — and nei- 

 ther he nor his master are very easy to beat, I can tell 

 you." 



" He is very heavy to look at it, whatever he may 

 be to go," answered the Virginian. 



" Don't plume yourself too much on your weight, 

 I'd advise you. It is a common saying here that the 

 feather-weights take more out of their horses by rash 



