ported minus a leg, which excited surprise and indignation in the neighbourhood of the estates of⚫ such excellent fox-preservers as the Earl of Roseberry and Mr. Dundas, to whom may be added the name of that respected Nobleman the Earl of Dalhousie, on whose property, two miles distant, another fox was found, and run more than forty minutes, too much in a ring certainly, but his gallantry could not resist coverts so temptingly placed. A good fox he was, and, when hard pressed, a drain, left ungrated, ended our day's sport.

The country I have gone over I must say I consider but moderately suited for fox-hunting-so many glens, so much thick wood, and so much land under plough; but the hounds, no person who knows what a fox-hound is can view without every feeling of admiration, whether doing their work, or surrounding the good grey of their sporting-like huntsman, Mr. Williamson. Of him the success of his many years anxious exertions speak aloud his praise, and I may truly add, so neat a rider to hounds I have seldom seen he is ably seconded by Hugh, who makes a first-rate first whipper-in, and Jack, who was favorably known, I understand, with the Fife hounds.

The Duke of Buccleuch was in the field, and rode a bay horse: he is evidently a good horseman, and considered as a sportsman altogether not easily to be beat: likewise the Marquis of Lothian, the Earl of Caithness, Sir John Hope, Sir William Scott of Ancram, Colonel Maclaine, Captain Burn Callander, Mr. Henry Scott, Mr. Stewart, Mr. G. Williamson Ramsay, Mr, Johnston of Alva,

Mr. Dempster, Mr. A. Hope, Mr. Dewar, Mr. Earle, &c.

Having determined on again hunting the following Tuesday, I proceeded to Crichton Castle, upon reaching which, and close by, to my horror I perceived another immense glen, and with every appearance of being boggy. A fox was instantly found, and right along it he went. I and my horse did our best, going over about two miles of what to look at I thought impassable. The hounds appeared to be coming into a better country, when unexpectedly, to me at least, they ran in upon him,having done all in good style.

We then drew a small gorse covert on the bank of a neighbouring river, the name of which I do not know: the fox was chopped. Afterwards we proceeded towards Arniston, where we soon found, and had a great deal of running from one plantation to another, evidently more than one fox on foot at a time, latterly rather bewildering both hounds and their followers. Most of the men I have mentioned above were again in the field, as also Lord John Scott, who, although of course from his age not very many seasons entered, shews in first-rate style, and appears a valued addition to the Members of his Noble Brother's Hunt; Lord Elcho, and Sir David Baird, both well known as rarely to be equalled; Mr. Fletcher of Saltoun, Mr. Campbell, Colonel Balfour of the 82d Regiment, Mr. Fletcher Campbell, Mr. Hay Newton, Captain Smith, Mr.Dyre, Mr.Brandling, and several Officers of the Second Dragoon Guards, now under orders for shortly marching: the regiment leaves Piershill Barracks with the uni

versally expressed regret of the inhabitants of this neighbourhood. The next day I had the enjoyment of hunting. The place of meeting announced by the card was the Windmill, near Vossie, three miles from the kennel; and here I must pause to mention, as an example worthy of imitation by all huntsmen, the correctness of the manner Mr. Williamson makes, announces, and keeps the fixtures of the Duke of Buccleuch's hounds. Our covert was a gorse covert, and at last I had the pleasure of seeing a covert going to be drawn, to a stranger's eye tolerably well situated: how

ever,

for more than an hour no fox would fairly break, although I should think several were in it: at last, away went one that had been pronounced a dodging brute, (however, a good one he proved,) right over to Vossie, where hanging a little, right on to Crichton Dean, and beyond it four or five miles here he made a decided double, and was run back about half that distance. The scent, which all day had not been good, gradually dying away over some cold ploughed land, the hounds threw up, and he never could be again hit off.

These hounds, which everything but their country renders delightful to hunt with, now leave this district, and I shall not this season probably again have an opportunity of hearing their heartcheering music. They go into Roxburghshire, of which I have received a very detailed description; and from every account of itself and its foxes, I conceive it capable of affording magnificent sport; and this opinion I under

stand to be borne out. This very day did I gaze towards Soutra Hill, and wish myself on the other side of it.

and

The fields with the Duke's hounds are generally numerous, composed of all grades of society, which is as it should be, and of all degrees of sporting knowledge, from as good sportsmen as England possesses down to men who appear to understand as little about fox-hunting as it is possible to imagine a human biped can do. One egregious fault is constantly committing with these hounds, that of coverts being nearly surrounded by men and horses while being drawn, which, in a country where foxes, from overfeeding or some other cause, appear even with fair play almost invariably sufficiently disinclined to break covert, is as effectual a plan of preventing a fox going away as could be invented. Should this remark of a stranger in the slightest degree tend to increase the sport of men from whom he has received much unexpected courteous attention, it will afford him sincere pleasure.-In concluding, permit me to apologize for any mistakes of places or names, and to request they may be attributed to want of sufficient local knowledge, added to the haste with which these lines have been written.

With every best wish to His Grace, in the words of the lamented Sir Walter Scott, the Heir of the Bold Buccleuch, I subscribe myself, Sir, your wellwisher,

A Warwickshire Proprietor. Edinburgh, March 12, 1833.

no more-Government assisting its downhill by paying a reward for all skins brought in, provided the claws and head are thereto attached—I presume, in their mercy, permitting the animal to go at large when divested of these "adornments."

Hog-hunting, vulgo "pig-sticking," a right manly pastime, I am sorry to say is also fading away like the dews of the morning (you see I am no ways particular about my similes). In some parts of Bengal it is still to be had, and in the district of Tipperah and its neighbourhood (notwithstanding the prowess of a first-rate Sportsman, G. P. T—n, Esq. who with two other Gentlemen not long ago demolished sixty-four boars in four days, considerably more than a moiety of which number fell to the spear of the Gentleman I have mentioned) there are still a few left to floor "the griffs" withal, and delight the hearts of such sportsmen as Mr. T—n. Talking of boars reminds me of one Mister "Meleager," whose praises are sung by a very decent poet yclept OVID, though I think undeservedly, as it was by no means correct for the said Gentle man to sally forth with a posse, comitatus to attack one unfortunate "pig," and "hurry him to his account, with all his imperfections on his head," with a poisoned arrow, or a long throw with a light spear from behind a tree. Now if the before-mentioned Mr. Meleager had saddled his steed, put on his boots and spurs, and (if he was in the habit of riding long) taken up a hole or two in his stirrup-leathers, and called for a proper spear, it would have been another guess sort of affair. But the ancients

had no SPORTING MAGAZINE to set them right, which accounts for the few feats in that way we find recorded of them. Perhaps the largest jump ever taken in those days was by one Sir Marcus Curtius, Knight, who, as Shakspeare says, "jumped the life to come," which only affords matter of surprise that his horse could be brought to face such a yawner, (he must have been a good bit of stuff,) and of rejoicing to his eldest son, to whom he doubtless left his small property and the rest of his stud........ "Hold hard!" I was nearly off again. This communication will be exceeding all bounds if I go on in this fashion: so I shall wind up with some account of what English imported hounds have been doing of late days in India.

very

Bobbery Packs, which (in comparison with regular establishments) may be considered what Falstaff's regiment of ragged recruits were to the disciplined army, (and they afford to the full as good fun, and more sport very often,) are to be found at all large military stations. I believe there are but three regular packs of hounds on this side of Indiaone at Bareilly, of which I know nothing; one, a small one, in Tirhoot, which I fear will soon be broken up, of which I have seen a little, and have witnessed some very excellent sport with, the country being by far the best adapted for hounds and riding of any I have seen in India-perhaps a little too open; but high cultivation and grass coverts give it a great superiority over that about Calcutta, where the ground is literally iron-bound. In the year 1830, the kennel was strong enough to send twelve or four

teen couples into the field on hunting days, and in that season, between November and the beginning of March, sixteen brace of Jackalls resigned their headpieces to serve as embellishments for the kennel door, most of them after runs which would be despised in no hunting country in the world.

They are generally hunted by a Gentleman whose name has been in print in your pages, and who gave universal satisfaction for many years while hunting the Calcutta Hounds. His method is admirable, and he is moreover a "workman" in the saddle, and a most accomplished sportsman in every sense of the term. I sincerely hope he may live long to enjoy many seasons in Leicestershire or Warwickshire: whereever he is, his place I dare aver will be a good one. There are several performers with these hounds quite competent to instruct in the "ars eundi," the science of " going along," and are all real lovers of the sport. This reminds me, as Caleb Quotem says, of a very excellent man and sportsman, who I am sure would be the last person to speak lightly or irreverently upon a subject of such awful importance, who, hearing the conversation turn upon what was to be expected in an after-state, said quietly, that "for his part he had somehow always felt certain that there was some good sport in store for those who conducted themselves properly here below." To this I am an ear-witness, and the Gentleman it refers to stands too high in general estimation both as a Christian and a man to allow me to suppose for a moment, notwithstanding the oddness of the remark, that it implied

any want of proper reasoning upon so grave a matter.

while

It would be wrong, speaking of this part of India, not to mention, that in the Tirhoot district one of the Company's stud-establishments, Poosah, is stationed, where are generally to be seen throughout the year nearly 800 mares: they are sent to this stud (from the districts they are foaled in) as yearlings, and when turned of three years, a selection is made by the superintendant of the stud, and those approved of for breeding purposes are returned to the breeding districts, and those rejected as undersized, &c. are sold, and generally find ready purchasers. The Poosah Stud is under the management of Capt. H-s, and the excellent manner in which it is conducted is beyond all praise. Such condition and cleanliness as are to be witnessed throughout the stables will be met with but seldom, and I fancy would put to shame most of the large breeding establishments in England or Europe.

Now, Mr. Editor, for a word or two touching the "Calcutta Hunt." I need say nothing on racing matters, for, unless an accurate account is given, they are best let alone suffice it, that the Calcutta December Meeting 1831 was a very good one. The only race I shall mention is a Sweepstakes for Maiden Arab horses untrained-Gentlemen riders: the conditions being, "that each rider shall light a cheroot at starting, and bring it lighted to the scales, or be considered distanced." Seventeen horses started: it was a mile race, and run in good time, creating much amusement, the leading horses not to be distinguished