HUNTING.

Timaru Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 2805, 19 September 1883, Page 3

HUNTING.

THE SOUTH CANTERBURY HARRIEKS. BY A r OLTIGRCR. (Continued ) Taking up my parable again, I must hark back to where Thoycr (with an c pl.'ase, thi* time, Mr Printer) hud jmt lost his first hare, on tho occasion of our moet at Mountnessing. X capital luntli provirled by Mr and Mrs R. Rutherford proved a wo'dino interlude to both man and least. A different locality vr»s tried after lunch, for some time unsuccessfully, but at last ono couplo nnd a half of hounds found something m a deep gully, nnd went mvij up ll;c ouposito hill »t raoinj; pace, with tho remainder of tho puck at their heel". This run needs littlo description, suflico it to fay thnt hounds ran clean away frjm everybody without a cluck or turn, that Thcyer (who got an ugly cropper) was ncarost them with tho Geld straggling at long intervals behind ; thnt hounds unaccountably threw up I heir head*, after a very fast twenty minutes, or perhaps more, nnd that noliody ever caw a haro from find to finish I I havo my own private suspicions that there was no hare to see. Horses nnd hounds had hud quite enough, and tho word horn» wnß given. A bjo day on Saturday, m which Steve Margrett. nnd your humble oervunt wer.' the principal performers, provided n really firstmto gillop, with plenty of jumping. Theyer, wishing to cave his horse, was r.ot jumping much on this ocrn? on, and the few others out were not provided with " Ippper?." Wo found m Ike gully sacred li tho memory o' the pliant >m h.iro of the previous day, and she Brst of all took much tho eamo lino as that shadowy unimil, but like most others made of flesh nnd blood she turned m Mr J. Ruthcrfori's p'iddoek, whero wo lo?t tho first day, and retracing lier steps passed tho woolshed, went through the plantation, and ascended tin? hill where wo had found our first hare the day before. Being hot pressed she again made a wide detour for her form, and it was now evident that with ordinary luck sho had but n few minutes to live. But "thiTe's many a slip 'twen the cup and the lip," and her lifo was saved by a 1 uly, for whom I have tho ureutest possible respect, and who shall thorofore he ntmelrs.<, coming face to fnco with the astonished nnimnl, which immediately had tho bid tatto to turn tail and scuttle ba-k do«n a ditch. Iloundd of course flashed over it, and Theyer unfortunately cact forward, but of courso unsuccesifully, and it bring only n bye day, ho decided to whip off. This was oenainly one of tho bi'st runs I havo seen for a long timo. We were alwuys going, at times very fust, for nn hour and twenty minutes, with only two chocks. A hound called Skylark worked particularly well on this occasion, lie is n little bit given to throwing his tongue somewhat freely, but he is wonderfully truo nnd is always busy. An extreiaely pleasant visit to Mountnefeinp, which was filled with cheory people, who were much takon with tho grace and agility of their host's " pa* do deux," wound up tho first week's hunting m tho Albury district. The morning of Monday, the 10th, saw mo being tooled by Mr Ashby m a tandorn >o Strathconnn, our horaes having been cent on, Mr tt. Rutherford taking tho rest of the Mountnessing purty with a " unicorn." As uiuil m this district, hospitality was tho order of the d.iy, and nobody, I am suro, had reason lo regret tho kind invitation given to all comers by Mr nnd Mrs D. McLean. Tho first lure found led us a merry dance towards Mr Gillingbara's, into whose country sho was supposed to havo gone, but she must hare turned »hort back, and when Theyer made his ca»t back (a very judicious oue) it was too late, and, scent fii'hng, ho wai unablo to do anything more with her. A try for another haro resulted m a quick find, m a country wliioh to call a morass would be a flattery. Howofor, hounds ran fast enough (as upon that ground why sbould'nt thoy ?), a^id horsemen who had no idea of saving their wretched steeds followed them. They eventually ran into their hare m tho open, having by Theyer's judiciously ignoring ono or two wrong holloas, been enabled to literally hunt their haro down. But very few really rode this run, which, however well mountod we might be, took us through mch a bogey country, that I for ono would never go into again, particularly with a good horfe. It is noodle as to say that Mr Hamlyn was always near his hound?, and that Theyer rode fts a huntsman ought to tide, viz., m the tamo field with liis hounds. Tho nay m which ho landed hia horse out of the road, whon we were on tho hill by Mr Qillinghnru'd paddocks, over three naked wires on a high s>d bank, was somewhat s'ortling to look at, but at tho same timo ought to bo a littlo edifying to tho colonial youth as to how they should rido their horses at a fenca. Most fools with muscles can rido them over. S > ended a viry good duy's hunting m which a Urge number took part, as 1 at cue timo counted sixty-eight horsemen present. Three ladies graced the scene, viz , Mrs Intnan and the Mieses Shaw and Qillingh'im. Among ths residents m the district were to bo noticed Messrs Gil'ingliam (2), lluddleetone, Goodwin, Hamilton," MoCaugh, nnd Struthers, and those not to be denied when hounds wero running ineludod Messrs Jefferson, Gray, Aehby, Richardson, to i<ay nothing of the Maptcr, Thojci 1 and Steve Murgrrtr, who aoems to think that his mission on earth is to break his neck with tho least possible delay — a mission which no ono grudges, but which he pursues with a diligence worthy of a bitter cautp, although, afti r al 1 , i xcept m tho battle-fiold, ono could hardly wish to havo a better ending than such exponent! of tho art as Whyte-Melville, Lord Watorford, General Fane, cum Mullis ails, have como to. [To bo continued.]