Silverspring, skirting the plantations at Stover, then on to Frogley Glen, where there was a slight check-not more than five minutes, hardly so much-owing to a flock of sheep; however, we hit her off again, when the hounds flew like pigeons over those fine large pastures to Hackthorn, skirting Rookley Bog, and she was finally killed in the middle of Broadfield village, just by the blacksmith's shop. I dare say you know it, Mr. Scott-close tỏ the public-house-the sign of the Frugal Spinster." Here Tom managed to intimate that he didn't know the country.

"Ah, if you don't," continued his lordship, without drawing breath, "my friend Captain Windeyhash here does,"-as if Windeyhash's knowing it was the same as Tom; and on his lordship went again, talking of hunting, and riding, and foiling, and casting, and crashing, till the announcement of Colonel Buckskin again brought him "to."

Having got himself settled among them, much after the fashion of a lost hound casting up, Buckskin essayed to show his perfect ease by observing on his lordship's boots and breeches.

"At it," his lordship went again, beginning with the find at Clipstone Clump, and hunting the hare, with variations, through all the places before mentioned, running out into a long dissertation on the comparative merits of Pelhams and snaffles, each of which he had been trying on the horses he had ridden that day. This, too, in defiance of the

Н

gong, whose last boom had long died out, and been succeeded by the light notes of a musical clock chiming a quarter to seven.

Still his lordship rattled away, talking of scent, and skirting, and nicking, and babbling, and leaping, and creeping, and flying, and bruising, and rasping, and racing, and ramming, as if there was no such thing as dinner in the wind, at all events, as if his sporting keenness had completely subdued the keenness of his appetite.

At last Lampoil, the white-breasted gentleman Tom had encountered on entering, appeared at the door, followed by a flunkey with a tray full of flaring wax lights; which appeared to draw his lordship's attention to the fact of his not having dined, for whisking one up with a flourish that sent the accumulated wax all over his leather breeches, he transferred the rest of the company to Lampoil, and proceeded to show Tom to the "blue room."

"Gad," said his lordship, again sticking his back to the fire, after going through the usual evolution of showing the bell, the boot-jack, &c., "those are capital hounds of mine, and I'm very much obliged to Tattersall for buying me them."

"Suppose we take a turn with them to-morrow," continued he, after a pause.

"We are going out with the Tear Devil hounds, aren't we?" asked Tom, turning the airing shirt

at the fire by way of giving his lordship a hint that they ought to be dressing.

"Ah, true!" replied he, with an air of a man awaking out of a reverie, "to-morrow the Devils meet at Stallington Hill, nineteen miles from here, but that's nothing with two good hacks."

"Ecclesford Green you told me in your letter, I think," observed Tom.

"Ah, true!" rejoined his lordship, Stallington's on Saturday-you're right; to-morrow is Ecclesford Green, and a deuced bad place it is too."

Just as he gave Tom this pleasing piece of intelligence the tower clock chimed seven, and observing that he "supposed they ought to be dressing," his lordship lounged out of the room, having now enlightened Tom as to the meaning of the footman, in saying that dinner was "ordered" at that hour.

"What a queer bitch it is," said Tom, as his lordship's gaunt figure disappeared through the doorway.

"He seems to be keen about hunting too," continued he, running his proceedings and conversation through his mind; for we should inform the reader, that though we called him "Tom's noble friend" in a former chapter, yet Tom knew very little of him, his acquaintance having commenced by helping him out of a bog at the close of last season, when his lordship had paid Mr. Neville's