290 The Post and the Paddock, 



run, in which he swam the Wreake. It was on this 

 magnificent black that his lordship led the field from 

 Lord Aylesford's cover in the Six Hills country to 

 Ranksborough in the Cottesmore — thirteen miles as 

 the crow would fly — in an hour and five minutes, and 

 never drawing rein but for three minutes, when the 

 hounds checked in Stapleford Park. Lord Water- 

 ford killed his 300-guinea, but somewhat under-bred, 

 Dusty Miller in his second or third run, and never 

 went better in his Melton days than he did on The 

 Sea, who won one steeple-chase match under him 

 "without touching a twig." In his lOOO-guinea a side 

 match on Cock Robin against Vyvian, he did not ride 

 so steadily, but let Captain Becher get the high ground 

 close at home, and was beaten some lengths. The 

 four miles were marked out by Mr. Greene (who was 

 at the winning-post with the two thousand guineas in 

 his pocket) from Shankton Holt to the Ram's Head. 

 Cock Robin was a splendid animal and a perfect 

 jumper, but by no means so fast as Vyvian, who had 

 very few signs of the ** h. b." about him but his rat 

 tail. Lord Wilton's cracks have included successively 

 Bijou, a bay half-bred m.are ; Brilliant, a thorough- 

 bred chestnut, with a flaxen mane and tail (who ori- 

 ginally belong to Sir Francis Goodricke) ; Longtwelves ; 

 Prince, the horse on which he appears in the Melton 

 Hunt picture ; Roland the Brave ; and Pigeon, who 

 has found a grey stable rival in old Wanderer, 

 from the Quorn sale. Prince was fifteen years old 

 when his lordship bought him, and his manner was to 

 gallop over his fences. Great things were vowed in 

 Flacrow's name when he went to meet Vyvian and 

 Jerry in the Leamington country, after his victory of 

 the previous year, in honour of which Mr. William 

 Coke presented Mr. Thomas Haycock, of Owston, the 

 best " brown coat " in Leicestershire for twenty-five 

 years, with a silver shield ; but as a steeple-chaser none 

 of the modern Leicestershire horses have perhaps per- 



