Dick Christian again. 59 



often blow his horn when there was no manner of occasion 

 — always so chaffy. The whips mostly drew the cover 

 while he was talking. Very keen of the sport, though ; 

 sometimes have two packs out in one day : get away 

 with his fox like a shot. After that second leg busi- 

 ness, he was a bit nervous in a crowd ; he wanted a 

 wide berth. At a fence, it would be, " Now it's my 

 turn — don't press P' If he could get well clear of 

 them, he went like a bird. He was a rare match-rider 

 across country ; I never see a better at that game. 

 Mr. Gully used to be a deal down with him at Quorn. 

 Tom Sebright hunted the hounds when Sebright and 

 his leg was broke. It was grand to see ^^^^ Burton. 

 him and Dick Burton swinging them round in their 

 cast, fifteen miles an hour, over everything. Tom had 

 such a musical voice ! Rode with a loose seat and a 

 slackish rein, quite on the balance. They was a grand 

 pair ! and Jack Stevens and Dick Sadler come after 

 them ; good uns to go, they were. They're both 

 dead now. Tom Sebright and Dick How they lost a 

 Burton were with The Squire at Ather- ^o^- 



stone. I have heard them laugh about it scores of 

 times. They once run him to ground, an hour and 

 twenty minutes, from Hopper Hayes. Then they 

 dug till eight at night. They thought at last it was a 

 badger. The Squire, he goes home, and Tom digs 

 his fox out by moonlight. Blame me ! if a hound — 

 Benedict they called him — doesn't catch him by the 

 leg, and pulls him slap out of Tom's hands ; and away 

 he slips under their bellies, and gets clean off. They 

 runs quite a ring. Dick went to stop 'em, and he 

 tumbles rap over a tree in the middle of a ride. Then 

 he gets to a gate, and he hears the fox come blowing 

 up to it ; it was quite a frosty night : and he fetches 

 it such a clip with his whip — he was so mad about 

 it — and they goes home quite down in the mouth. 

 Mr. Edge used to live with Mr. Smith , , ^ ^ , 



.1, t. LV. T-1- M'"- Tom Edge. 



When he was there. They were an un- 



