imagined. Many of the field had quitted ere the hind was viewed away, and those from Dulverton and its immediate neighbourhood had already doffed their hunting gear, and proceeded to discuss the delicacies their larders afforded, when the huntsman's horn echoed through the streets of the little town and over the hills, and they once more hastened to join the chase, sanguine of being in at the death. But notwithstanding that the beaten hind took soil again, the hounds were still more beaten, and the darkening shadows of night saved her life.

On Wednesday the 13th, the Tiverton hounds met at the Anstey kennel for fox-hunting, when the large coverts of Knoweston were drawn, a leash of foxes were soon on foot, and one broke after a ring in covert, facing a keen east wind. Notwithstanding very indifferent scent, and ground as hard as iron, the pack raced him for three miles towards Rackenford, a first-rate country; but, alas! the hopes of man are vain; no sooner did the heretofore stagnant blood run warmer through our veins, and nerves became braced to face all obstacles, than a villanous sheep-dog, meeting the varmint face to face, turned him direct to the coverts from whence he came, where, sheltered from the cutting wind, of which he must have had a good taste, he remained the rest of the day. True, that on more than one occasion he attempted to break; but it was only to return again to the dark recesses of the woodlands. Beale made several splendid casts, and worked as few huntsmen could have worked in such coverts for blood. But if a fox will not properly perfume himself at his morning toilet, to receive the visit of a pack of hounds, or that the elements sweep away the odour, to whose door can blame be laid that he will not die?-certainly not to huntsmen or hounds.

On Friday the 15th, the Devon and Somerset stag-hounds met again at Dulverton, and the words re-echoed from the lips of a large field were: "This day a hind must die," and die he did, after as gallant a chase as sportsman could desire to share in. Another hind was harboured in Barons Down, and another hind was found there. But on this occasion it was wisely determined that the pack should be reserved at Mr. Lucas's kennels, and the tufters permitted to do their duty.

To those who may be unacquainted with the nature of wild deer. hunting, I will name that this severe duty which falls to the lot of two or three couple of hounds is not frequently a work of many hours; in fact, although three or four hinds were forced from the woodlands, it was only to return; and knowing that Beale and his reserve division were safe at hand, I availed myself of Mr. Lucas's courteous permission to look over his beautiful and interesting collection of antlers. Having done so, we were sunning ourselves on horseback on a grassy slope which overlooked a beautiful valley, through which the river glided, as also a portion of the coverts where the tufters were hard at work; and not a little amused at the passing bits of wit between two rather corpulent gentlemen, the one mounted on an Exmoor pony, scarcely as large as himself, the other on an aged hunter; the pony being backed against the horse across country, owners to ride, when breathless a miessenger arrived bringing the joyful intelligence that a hind had broken covert below Hele Bridge.

"If such is the case,' said Mr. Lucas, "the sooner Beale and the hounds are there the better."

"I saw her distinctly," replied the man; "she crossed the wall and made for Picton Park.'

"Then tallyho for Beale," we all exclaimed. No sooner said than done, and brief was the time ere the hounds and the whole field were on the spot where the hind had crossed. Now came a consultation. One declared the hind was a young stag, another that it was a five-yearold hind, and Mr. Carew, very properly not being desirous to hunt an unwarrantable stag, to the detriment of future sport, for a moment hesitated.

While he did so, for my own part I must own I felt, as doubtless did many others, an all-overishness of anxiety which would have induced me to swear it was a hind had I known it to have been a calf.

The corps of cavalry were all eager for a charge. In the mean time the majority said "hind for ever," and carried the day. The hounds were laid on-who cared then? Away we went, racing pace, direct through Picton Park, the woodland seat of Earl Carnarvon, down the grass meadows for Exe bridge, thence turned to Bury village, through the Baronhay coverts, where she hung for a short time, owing to the badness of the scent, over the hill to Moor Bath, leaving Bampton on the left to Wenhamden, thence to the iron suspension which crosses the river Exe, half way between Dulverton and Tiverton. Large coverts here clothe the hill sides, and a check occurred of some duration, giving time for horses to recover their wind, which so hilly a country severely tries. Beale, however, was not to be disappointed, or his hounds either, of well-merited blood; and, after working with increased vigour, the hind was fresh found, and having afforded us a beautiful burst through the vale, of forty minutes, the greater portion best pace, the noble animal crossed and re-crossed the river Exe, took soil, and was killed close to Fairby, three miles from Tiverton. And thus ended a day's sport which I for one shall not readily forget. The ground covered in this run exceeded eighteen miles from point to point, as the crow flies fully twelve.

The hounds selected by Mr. Carew for the deer-hunting season are, I believe, the largest of his pack. Whether he is wise in allowing the hounds he purposely keeps fox-hunting to hunt the deer I will not presume to say; it is hinted that it gives them a peculiar love for Exmoor mutton; but Beale will soon cure them of that, and the taste is not uncommon among bipeds as well as quadrupeds. The opinions of sportsmen are also various as regards large hounds; some say that the larger the hound the faster he is, and that he will undergo more fatigue. I cannot agree with them, having generally observed that the fastest are the moderate-sized hounds; and in a long day, I submit that the largest hounds are more apt to tire, and that they will not show again so soon. With two days' rest, the moderate-sized hound is fit to work again: the large hound often requires more, and it frequently happens that they suffer from swollen feet. However, this is a mere opinion, and wilddeerhunting is not foxhunting.

I have made use of the word "wild" repeatedly, simply to explain that the nature of this sport-obtained only with the Devon and Somerset hounds-is as distinct from that of stag-hunting generally as the hunting of a bagman, which unquestionably may afford a gallop, as will a red-herring. But where is the splendid sight of a gallant pack

thrown into a gorse covert, where the quivering sterns, where the joyous gone away, the music of a tallyho, the crash, the burst, the chase and death of an animal, roused from nature's lair, and flying for his life?

Sportsmen who are really so at heart, having the wherewithal £ s. d., which supplies every thing but health-aye, even a bishoprick with horses, and the power of riding them, will be well repaid, their own seasons having terminated or not commenced; for recollect, deer-huntting is to be had in late spring and early autumn, by a visit to the Devon and Somerset stag-hounds.

SUMMER SPORTS ON MOUNTAIN, STREAM, AND LAKE.

BY A WELSH ANGLER.
(Continued.)

Next day, Verniew being still too dark for fly-fishing, we passed our time in superintending the preparation of our fish. The weather was warm and damp-very unfavourable for its transit. Be the air ever so cool, none of the Trutta genus is worth a rush if kept beyond twelve hours; in all practicable cases, eat them in one hour after reaching the basket. Those in question would be detained three days; so we pickled them by an approved receipt, which most probably came from old Walton. The reader shall have it with Spartan brevity :-Clean fish; mix grated nutmeg, mace, ginger, pepper, salt; put these and the fish into a jar, the whole being covered with a sufficiency of strong vinegar. Let it stay thus during two hours, then add half a pound of butter, and bake in slow oven for one hour. When cold, pour melted mutton suet over top, and tie down with bladder, &c.

A recapitulation of these ingredients, and the manner of their being employed, render unnecessary the assurance that this indeed

"Was dainty meat to set before a king."

And in similar fashion we continued to arrange the very many packets of fish despatched to England during the course of our agreeable tour. Pickled after the above plan, there is no fear of their heating and spoiling by the time they have performed half a day's journey: present will be preserved in excellent trim for at least a week. Verbum sat piscatori.

your

Whilst engaged in examining an ancient yew tree, still vigorous, though rent in twain, and partly prostrate upon its mother earth, and to which tradition assigns the age of fourteen-hundred years, the Shrewsbury mail drove by and dropped a letter bag. Our portion of its contents, the news it brought, the necessity of scribbling replies, caused the remainder of the day to pass rapidly until bed time.

The morrow being our last day of sojourn in this locality, we were away

"Ere jocund day stood tiptoe
On the misty mountain top,"

to the hills, prepared for an onslaught upon two or three lakes there

existing, viz., Llyn Hêr (" the long lake "), Llyn Gwyddior, and Llyn y Bugail ("the shepherd's pool "). As the plainest route to the former, we ascended by the banks of a precipitous torrent flowing out of it, called, I believe, in Welsh, Nant yr Ira. Under the guidance of an old miller, whose business was to undam a portion of Llyn Hêr, and send it thundering down the torrent bed to turn the wheel of his grist mill, we pursued the easiest and safest path. He was an intelligent old Cambrian; and assured us so soon as the water filled the pools of Nant yr Ira, there was capital angling therein; the trout, which at other times lay concealed under rocks and stones, then roamed fearlessly in search of food.

Having other fish to fry-and noble ones two, if the lake was not belied-we heeded him not, but talked of the Cymri's traditionary lore; and, while resting upon the blackened trunk of a great antediluvian tree, heard a lengthened detail of what he styled the "Brad y cwltwr hêr," or ("murder with the long knives "). He gave the details of this slaughter of Vortigern's nobles with a curious minuteness; mentioning that the present owner of Castle Madoc, in Breconshire, is a lineal descendant of the sole individual who escaped: his name was Madoc, and his home the identical locality where his descendant now resides.

Presently we reached a spot where our guide again halted, and searched about for the spot where, while fishing, a portion of the bank had given way beneath his feet, and two pieces of ancient silver money rolled out into the water. These he secured without having the wit to secure the spot.

"Doubtless," quoth he, "there was a power of treasure more; and when I went shortly afterwards with Colonel Lloyd, of, to search again, the sky suddenly grew black, thunder rolled in awful peals, and the very mountain seemed on fire." They fled; and for long afterwards felt little disposed to rouse again the spirits of flood and fell.

Our miller having thus entered upon the subject of numismatics, luckily, for my tastes, did not stop there. I learned that a certain farmer had, a short time before, turned up with his spade two silver coins from beneath a hedge.

A short distance brought us to the house. The dame alone was chez elle; and, on understanding to what she was indebted for the honour of my visit, quickly ascended to the sleeping loft, to dive into her husband's Sunday breeches pocket, where she expected to find them deposited; but,

Non gravis ære dextra redibat,"

her hand returned empty.

"She (the husband) tak him (the two coins) with her when she change his preeches this morning, and go up mountain to see colts."

A plump, ruddy, handsome, bare-legged lass, was despatched in pursuit. The pater-familias soon showed beneath his roof-tree. Incontinently a bargain was struck at his own price, and I became the possessor of a half-crown and a shilling, temp. James I., A.D. 1586.

Then, continuing our way by a steep "bwtch," or mountain pass, through which descends the great Roman military road to Saguntium, we turned to the right, and took a glance at the well-defined British fortress of Castel Gygarthar. Leaving this, we again dashed straight

onwards, through a horrid bog, to an eminence clothed with heather, startling in our passage more than one pair of grouse. Then again descending to the brook, we suddenly came in view of Llyn Grinwydden (the pool of the withered tree). This water has no lack of perch, tench, carp, and eels, though containing but few trout. My companion, who had purposely brought up with him six or eight large bladders, resolved to stay and spend the day here, fishing after a plan peculiarly his own this was to suspend from each inflated bladder a line of about a yard and a half long, baited with dew worms for carp and tench, and very small fish for the perch. Turning all loose upon the windward side, the breeze, which that day blew great guns, would quickly drift them, to the opposite shore. Meanwhile the owner walks quietly round to remove any fish that may be hooked, and, rebaiting, carries back the whole fleet to its original starting place. He was in high glee at his device, and anticipated glorious sport and plenty of fish.

Leaving him hard at it, I struck off to Llyn Hîr, now also in sight, and about a mile and a half distance; at one end of which, its clear transparent waters broke gently on the gravel, like waves upon the seabeach. I quickly got my rod together, and attached a foot length of five flies, viz., point fly, a brown mallard wing, with body and legs of the same colour, gold tip. 1st. dropper, body formed of strands of grey goose's feather, ribbed with fine silver thread, and silver tip-starling wing; 2nd dropper, cock-y-bonddhu; 3rd do., grouse hackle, dark orange body, gold tip; 4th do., starling wing, dirty orange body, gold tip; 5th do., partridge hackle, brown body ribbed with silver, silver tip. "The brown mallard's feather," mentioned above, grows on the back of that bird; the "dirty orange "will be obtained by a mixture of fine light orange wool and a little of the dark fur with yellow points from the hare's ear. The hooks about No. 6. I will now mention, as a general rule, that the Welsh lakes are to be fished with large flies, and in boisterous weather only, with strong wind and dashing rain. I know not an exception besides Tal y Llyn; there, as will be presently shown, a moderate breeze ensures sport; but Tal y Llyn is a lake sui generis, probably unequalled in Wales. I would say it is worth no man's while to toil three or four miles up to a mountain Llyn, unless assured by the breeze below that its whole surface is clothed in ripple and foam.

Llyn Hîr is a fine piece of water of about forty acres ; peculiar in form, being very long and narrow, as its name imports. It is deepvery deep, too; and, although not a twig now grows within miles of its bleak, boggy shore, the bottom exhibits layer upon layer of enormous prostrate trees; so that what is now a lake, was, at some remote period, a forest glen. Grubs and insects innumerable generate in this decaying timber; the trout are, therefore, over fed and over shy. I have been assured, on decent testimony, that the largest weigh thirteen or fourteen pounds each; and, as the sunken trees render the drawing of a net impossible, we may infer the lake must be well tenanted. Of their shyness I was convinced by a reasonable trial. After spending two hours in the perambulation of its banks, I got only six rises and captured three fish, measuring respectively fourteen, fifteen, and eighteen inches. Of those I missed, one seemed to belong to the giant race, revealed to me by my friend of the grist mill-"Salmo ferox, as sure as a gun." I felt him, when sucking in my second dropper, he tore it