THE HUNT.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 2, Issue 382, 29 June 1881, Page 2

THE HUNT.

“ An easterly wind and a cloudless sky .Proclaims ; a hunting morning.” . So says the old hunting chorus, or something very likeit, and to-day was certainly one ■of New -Zealand'sown* Ibeaufcifhl winter days. 1 Not a 1 dibud was te -be seen :dri 'the azure - vault of' hertveh, ! and ! there was just enough breeze stirring to fill one’s blood with the oxygen necessary to make a well-mounted horseman fpel .that “life was yet J worth living; 1 ’ and the; prospect of a spin after the' houhds over' as nice a bit of hunting country as Mr Sam Saunders could select (and his knowledge of fences in the suburbs cannot be questioned),j promised ass tticel oh afternoon’s diversion as the ipost exacting pleasure seeker could ask. for/ The meeting took place opposite the gasworks at 2 p.m., and by that'time vehicles of " every description,; from' 'the humble carrier’s dray to the swell buggy and' pair, occupied all the available frontage on the Great South road from the gasworks, to the mill. Pedestrians and equestrians,' the latter qn qvcry possible description of “crock,” were there in.suqh’hummers as to induce one to imagine that the county had turned out en masse to do honor .to the hounds and the weather.’ T-hehourrda, who wore under the command of Jtr-, S. Saunders on Why Not, threw off, Mr Max Friedlander acting’as whipper-in on a pony, anything but equal to former mounts we have seen him on., ' , 'About 40 horsemera ; followed, and theleaders showed up in the huntsman and whipper-in, Tommy Cotton oh Mungo Park, and Johnny Smith on;Merlin being prominent. One horseman, who ought to know how to keep his seat better, ,got spilt at the first jump, but his ; hbrse evidently did not. mean to be out of., the. hunt for he was in the front rank all, , through the, run. The pace was. .fast throughout, and the fences being? tolerably; easy all. through, the, majority -got. 'irf- at the “ kill,” which was effected pear Mr Joseph Hunt’s house.-:; Those who came to grief did not appear to suffer much, and the spilt ones all agreed that the ground was very soft, but abominably muddy, a fact which their well-bespattered garments amply proved. A spell took place here for half an’ hour or so, and'the' whipper-in took • iadvantage .of - / the interval to do the. church” warden business, by going, round with the. hat, and appeared to . succeed a good deal better than the usual “ threepenny bit ” and brass button collection at other places where collections are part of the play. The scent was again raised, and the hounds made away in the direction of Mr Lamb’s farm, through Hunt’s and Lemon’s paddocks, finishing in Mr W. T. Smith’s nursery. Those who preferred being spectators to actors in .the second rim had a fine view of the fun from the road near the Nursery, as every jump was well in sight, and a large concourse of the sight-seers assembled. Thirty-nine horsemen followed, and thb scent being* : good ' the hounds went away at a rattliijg paqq,, apd the course being somewhat 1 heavy,’ a lirgb number of the tail Were left a long way in' the rear, and made up' lost ground by skipping*a couple of the fences. • vt The aftamoon's spdrt terminated without hitch or accident, 'and'the proraot'e'rs ! Well deserve the thanks' universally accorded to them for the sport provided, and all present were’unanirtoohs *in expressing a hope that the “ meets” would •be of more frequent occurrence. - [Since thb above was • written wo- have 'been informed that there is every jprob-' ability of, the hounds meeting again to-’ moiftbw/J" ; -!*J