150 REMINISCENCES, ETC. 



Nimrod, at the time when the circumstance occurred. It 

 was during the last year Mr. Smith hunted Leicestershire. 

 He had a run of nineteen minutes point blank, known 

 to the present time by the name of the "Belvoir Day." 

 It happened that the pace was so good, and the country so 

 severe, that no one was with the hounds towards the last 

 except the squire of Tedworth and Mr. John White, a well- 

 known sportsman of that day. These two came to a fence 

 so high and so strong that there was apparently only one 

 place at all jDracticable, and this was in the line Mr. White 

 was taking. Mr. Smith consequently was obliged to turn 

 his horse to this place, expecting to find White well over ; 

 but instead of this he found him well " bullfinched," that is, 

 sticking fast in the hedge. " Get on ! " says Mr. Smith. 

 " I cannot," replies Mr. White : " I am fast." " Ram the 

 spurs into him ! " roared out the squire, " and pray get out 

 of the way." " If you are in such a hurry," rejoined Mr. 

 White, '' why don't you charge me 1 " Mr. Smith never 

 spoke, but did charge him, and sent him and his horse into 

 the next field, when away they both w^ent again as if 

 nothing had happened, the squire of course soon making 

 to the front. 



Another remarkable run with Mr. Smith's hounds, when 

 in Leicestershire, is also thus chronicled by Kimrod : 



" I will mention a day's sport which I had when Mr. Smith 

 had the Quorn hounds, which I have no doubt is fresh in the 

 recollection of many w^ho witnessed it, for it was a brilliant 

 one, and such as no other country in the world could have 

 shown on that day. It was on the 17 th of April, and as 

 Tom Wingfield (the whipper-in) observed, ' a kind of day 

 more fit for growing cucumbers than for hunting.' It was, 

 however, allowed to be the second best day's sport of the 

 year. We had had one good burst of sixteen minutes with- 

 out a check, best pace, heads up, and sterns down. The 

 fox of the day, however, was found in Holt Cover, and took 



