200 THE BEST SEASON ON EECOED. 



Leicestersliire — with its deep watercourses and rough 

 bottoms — it is held to be the better rule (except of 

 course in " High " Leicestershire proper and impracti- 

 cable) to ignore the country in advance, and trust to 

 fox and hounds, that they may lead you a rideable line. 



But, at Sherbrooke's Gorse in the Vale, the pace that 

 had been maintained for twenty minutes was interrupted 

 long enough for the body of pursuers to recover their 

 ground — before the chase w^ent on, straight and almost 

 up-wind, to Clawson Thorns. The southern edge of the 

 Vale was now gained ; but still the hunt pushed forward, 

 reaching Piper Hole Gorse (a six-mile point) in forty 

 minutes — which we consider quite good going in this our 

 country of low degree. Here a fresh fox jumped up ; 

 the pack divided almost exactly in half, each section run- 

 ning its fox to ground — the one a mile or two farther on 

 the Harby Hills, the other, after about five-and-forty 

 minutes' more hard running, round Clawson, Holwell, 

 <tc., at Old Hills. The former fox may probably have 

 been the original starter from The Curate, for he only 

 just carried his brush to ground in time. The latter, too, 

 was nearly tired out ; but managed always to keep his 

 distance in front. Altogether, the run was undoubtedly 

 great and good. 



I wish, by the way, that Mr. Sturgess could have been 

 posted in a certain road not far from Clawson Thorns, as 

 the chase swept across in the height of its career, and 

 when the pace was thoroughly " beginning to tell." 

 Seven couple suddenly glanced over the lane, to the 

 astoundiuGf deliirht of a knot of horsemen, who had not 



