284 THE QUORN HUNT 



accompanied by such hurricanes of wind that sport was 

 out of the question. Frost and snow held sway in 

 January and February, and then the country rapidly 

 dried up after the beginning of March. Mr. Clowes's 

 last season was a decided improvement on the other two 

 in many respects, but instead of hard, they had to put up 

 with deep, ground, for horses went up to their hocks in 

 mud from the beginning of November, and hunting was 

 scarcely stopped at all by reason of frost. 



To a certain extent the deep ground was an advan- 

 tage, as the greatest " thrusters " in Leicestershire could 

 not manage to override the hounds ; and, like a good 

 sportsman, Mr. Clowes took advantage of the open 

 season to hunt the country very fairly from one end to 

 the other. The master hunted four days a week, but 

 that was thought scarcely sufficient for so wide a country, 

 in order that the owners of coverts from Staunton 

 Harold to John o' Gaunt might be satisfied. 



Towards the end of Ins last season several coverts 

 on the Donington side were blank, especially Breedon 

 Clouds and the Aspinalls ; Scraptoft Gorse, too, failed 

 to hold as a rule, and that was rather a serious matter, 

 as several little coverts round about drew their supplies 

 from that famous stronghold. Many people thought 

 that the vulpicide had been at his unwelcome work, but 

 from several accounts it seems that the foxes had for- 

 saken many of their usual haunts, and no one knew 

 where to find them. Sometimes they were kicked up 

 out of the open fields, at others they were started out of 

 the hedgerows. All the Leicestershire men sympathised 

 most sincerely with Mr. Clowes in his run of ill-luck. 



Before the resignation of Lord Stamford (as will 

 presently appear), Mr. Clowes had worked hard in the 

 interests of the Quorn Hunt, taking upon his shoulders 

 sundry burdens ; and when he agreed to succeed Lord 

 Stamford he knew how much trouble he would have to 



