by a strong division of Mr. Swindell's supporters, who, on a show of hands being taken, elected, by a large majority, Mr. Swindell Master of the Puckeridge Hunt. Most of Mr. Gosling's supporters, having had some previous inkling of the turn that things would be likely to take at this meeting, and that Mr. Swindell would, as a foregone conclusion, be proposed as future Master, abstained from attending the meeting, and satisfied themselves by handing in a written protest signed by owners of land, amounting to 60,000 acres in the country, against the appointment of Mr. Swindell, on the ground that it was not the voice of, nor acceptable to, the entire country, and at the same time stating (as their only means of giving effect to their protest) that if Mr. Swindell were appointed they would not allow him to draw their coverts or hunt over their land.

Such are the simple facts of the present state of this unhappy dispute; and we are afraid, notwithstanding all the endeavours hitherto made for pacific arrangements, notwithstanding the recommendation of the committee of the Masters of Foxhounds Association, that matters have not improved. Surely it is most unfortunate for fox-hunting in general, and for this neighbourhood in particular, that this country could not have been placed under the charge of a Master free from the taint of partisanship, and acceptable to all; and thus have ended what has, for a long time past, been a fruitful source of discord and jealousies amongst excellent friends and neighbours, and have reunited an old-fashioned sporting country, such as the Puckeridge heretofore has always been. All fox-hunters know how absolutely necessary it is for an entire country to be in accord to carry on their sport satisfactorily, and this need, owing to various reasons, becomes daily more apparent. All sportsmen equally well know how fatal to sport is the abandonment of any part of a country that has once been hunted. Foxes are destroyed, as a matter of course, and thus become extinct; and the whole machinery which hitherto has worked smoothly is thrown out of gear, and it is with the greatest difficulty, if ever, that it can be restored to its pristine condition. We are afraid that many are too anxious, from various motives, to take advantage of any dispute in a country for an excuse to drive a nail into the coffin of this noble sport, and in these days of party and political strife, of wire-fencing, etc., we want no other hands, no friends of our own household, so to speak, to help to maim or to destroy the chief and most popular amusement of Great Britain.

66

1890.

"Our Van."

"The new face at the door and the new foot on the floor" hardly come to us jocundly. How could we welcome the child, smile he ever so kindly, in the gloomy days and nights of his advent? It would have almost required a Mark Tapley power of being "jolly" to have done so. And yet we think some members of the body politic did enjoy themselves: the people who went to theatres for pleasure, and the people who went to them because it was their business. The aspect of Drury Lane and Her Majesty's on the opening days and nights of last month was wonderful-probably is wonderful still. The densely packed mass of faces in the auditorium; the smiling and bewitching princes, princesses, fairies and elves on the stage; the bowing manager or inventor at the wings, responding to an unanimous call"; the thought of the sums of money these houses represented at each performance-here was something cheering, especially to the managers. The coining of money is an occupation that will, we believe, live down any amount of fag, worry, or "prevailing epidemic." The faces of the illustrious brothers, Mr. Augustus and Mr. Charles Harris, as they bowed their acknowledgments to hundreds of delighted spectators, showed that their labours over and done, they were reaping their reward. The aspect of the tiny mites of children on the vast stage; their evident delight in what they were doing, was cheering too; and would have made, we trust, if they had seen it, some prominent agitators for the nonemployment of children in theatres somewhat ashamed of themselves, that is, if anything can make a professional agitator with a fixed idea in his or her head, ashamed of anything. So, in the midst of mud, fog, and epidemic, we come to the conclusion that the theatres had the pull.

Exchanging mutual confidences with a friend as The Pantomimes. we struggled out of Her Majesty's one afternoon, after four hours and a half hard sitting, with cramped limbs and aching eyes, we both declared that we never wanted to see a pantomime again. Not from disgust or disappointment-oh dear no! It was satiety. We had fed to the full on one of the most brilliant stage spectacles ever witnessed. Bewildered by a succession of pictures, processions, artistically-contrasted colours, and crowds of pretty women, we welcomed the fog that we found in possession outside as a relief. For Cinderella, as arranged at Her Majesty's, gives a spectator no respite. The story is as nothing. Prince and lady-love, wicked sisters, Baron and Baroness, come like shadows (substantial ones, some), and so depart. We should fancy a very deaf person would enjoy Cinderella hugely. He would not be tortured by the perpetual band—he would not hear the topical songs, or the not too brilliant dialogue. He might feel his eyeballs inflamed with the perpetual kaleidoscope passing before him, but, beyond that, would take no harm. He would think "Insect Island the most lovely tableau he had ever beheld, until

"

the Royal Ball Room," and the Shakesperean business therein, eclipsed it; and perhaps, after all was over, he would come away with bewildered and mixed ideas, unable to say to which or what he could accord the palm. We do not accuse Mr. Charles Harris of, in malice prepense, trying to confuse us with a dream of splendour, but he certainly has done so; and how it can ever be surpassed, even in these wonderful days of perpetually-beaten records, we do not see. And to which of the two brothers, Augustus or Charles, shall the prize be given? Which wins, Jack and the Beanstalk or Cinderella? Ah, he would be a bold man who would give a decided reply. With Sir Francis Wronghead, in the old comedy, we feel "there is much to be said on both sides." We are quite unable to say that Minnie Palmer is superior to Harriet Vernon, or that Violet Cameron (when she appears) makes Agnes Hewitt take a back seat. We were unfortunate in not seeing Miss Cameron when we were at Her Majesty's, but we think, with all due deference to the other ladies, that she must be very hard to beat. In the matter of comic power, certainly Drury Lane has the best of the battle. Harry Nicholls and Herbert Campbell are far superior to anybody at Her Majesty's; though, by the way, Sheil Barry is in Cinderella. The grand scene at the "Lane" is, without question, Olympus, with the gods and goddesses of the Heathen Mythology. Here is another beaten record, for we cannot remember anything more beautiful, or, indeed, at all coming up to it, under the present "Lane" dynasty. One thing is certain-both are gorgeous and artistic spectacles. We fortunately are not the judges of their respective merits; we can only, in the words of the polite showman, request the public to pay their money and take their choice.

But there were other enlivenments to the dull, Among the Pelicans. depressing weather besides pantomimes.

There

were ructions. Of course, the wretched and disgraceful affair in Belgium, termed by courtesy a prize-fight, wherein the so-called "champion of England" covered himself with such dishonour, could not pass altogether unnoticed by the Pelican Club, which, though taking care to remind its members and the outside public that it has nothing whatever to do with prize-fighting, and in its corporate capacity rather passes by on the other side, yet from the circumstance of one of its employés being Smith's manager, felt itself bound to take action. The well-known idiosyncrasy of more than one or two of its members-the fact that the Club had from the first taken the noble art of self-defence under its special patronage and protection, and that the disgraced "champion" had not long before figured in a much-talked-about glove fight not entirely to his credit, doubtless contributed to its moving in the matter. We need not recall the circumstances of the Bruges fight, but only the action taken by the committee of the Pelican Club, to discover whence came the money that secured the services of the roughs at Smith's corner. If they did not succeed in this, they were able to at least establish the innocence of their employé, Mr. John Fleming, of any complicity in those disgraceful proceedings. So far so good. But then the committee had to skate over some very thin ice, and here we are of opinion that they broke down. The name of a well-known sportsman, a member of the club and a backer of

Smith's, had been brought before the committee during their investigations, but nothing to convict Mr. Abington Baird of anything beyond the use of some racing language (which "your committee deeply regretted ") could be brought home to him. Now, racing language is varied and peculiar. For a good specimen of the same, and we mean really forcible language, we think we should go to the half-crown ring on a big day, certainly not to the paddock where gentlemen of Mr. Abington Baird's position are to be found.

We can give no opinion on the language said to have been used by the gentleman in question, because, we are thankful to say, we were not at Bruges; but as the committee found it to be strong, strong we suppose it was. The mistake they made was, according to Lord Queensberry's statement, that, with fresh evidence brought before them on the previous day, they had not carried the investigation further. What that evidence was we are, of course, ignorant of. Before these pages are in print probably it will be known. What the opinion of the large majority of the members was, the division showed. Many rumours outside the Pelican world are afloat, one of which sounds probable, if not true. It is to the effect that the present club will be dissolved, and that the Pelican, like the fabled Phoenix, will rise from its ashes, a more vigorous and healthy bird. So might it be!

We have received the following peep into futurity The Outlook of Great from a correspondent :

Races in 1890. "That the racing season of 1890 bids fair to eclipse in brilliancy its immediate predecessors, we have every reason to expect, although it is hardly to be supposed that the gross total in value of prizes of 1889, £480,800, will be reached, seeing we have no Eclipse Stakes to look forward to this year, nor shall we have the big Kempton Prize of 1889. To make up, however, for this we shall have the Prince of Wales' Stakes of £8,500 to be run for at the Leicester Meeting in July, and we shall have more money given at Ascot than ever has been before, while the new venture of the Moulsey Hurst Club, under Grand National rules, as well as the fast rising Ludlow Hunt Club, will help to swell the cross-country coffers.

That racing will be more international than heretofore is certain, as, in addition to the two Australian three-year-olds now in training at Newmarket, we shall have the best that France and Hungary can send over; one or two may come from Italy; and who knows how soon South America may not send us back some of their costly purchases to pick up a part of the crumbs which they left scattered about before their departure? Donovan is still in training, and in addition to the Lancashire Plate, has engagements at Ascot. He has thrown down the gauntlet for the Gold Cup, and if he proves that after all he is clear in his wind, it will take the smartest of our three-year-olds all their time to lower his colours, especially as they are generally run off their legs at this time of the season, and we positively have no cup horses. Our three-year-olds are far and away a better lot, judged by their two-year-old form and good looks, than were those of 1889. Signorina alone stands out well in front of them, and seems to have the majority of her eight engagements at her mercy, beginning with the One Thousand Guineas, in which she meets Semolina,

Dearest, and Memoir only. She may, like Achievement, find something in the Oaks capable of beating her for the first time, although to name that fortunate animal would be difficult. Riviera-Heresy, or Ornament are bred to stay, and may be marked dangerous. Curiously enough she steers clear of the best colts of the year, except in the Grand Prize at Epsom and at Paris, where probably few of them will run. That Signor Ginistrelli is confident of her staying powers is proved by his putting her in the Gold Cup at Ascot, where she will have to beat Donovan at weight for age.

"The Two Thousand Guineas this year ought to be a most interesting race, as all our best colts are engaged, except Surefoot and Garter. Le Nord, to my thinking, is all over a Guineas horse; he will be less peacocky as a three-year-old, and I see nothing likely to lower his colours, although Alloway, Golden Gate, Loup, Right Away, Blue Green, St. Serf, and Far Niente, with perhaps an Australian, will be in the field. The Newmarket Stakes, to be run on the 21st May, will be a most interesting race, and Heaume will probably do duty for the Rothschild stable, meeting Riviera, Semolina, St. Serf, Grand Prior, Garter, Right Away, Alloway, Martagon, Water Mint (if she can be trained), and Östrogoth, besides Sacramento, Polonius, and others. He ought just to do the trick, but I don't think it will be an easy matter.

"For the Derby luckily we have no big names left out. The Newmarket winners will now have a hard task set them to beat Surefoot, who, on public form, justly holds the favouritism. It is run this year on the 4th of June, an historic day. Despite the rumours about Surefoot, I believe him to be quite right, and as a Woodcote and New Stakes winner, and the conqueror of Heaume, of staying blood, and a commanding horse, he is bound to be a public fancy. That he would have beaten Le Nord, however, when the latter won the Dewhurst Plate, I much doubt. The Epsom gradients may suit the son of Wisdom, and so the course will animals like Riviera, Loup, Heaume, Golden Gate, and Garter. Nor must Rathbeal be forgotten, as he is a charming colt, and nearly first-class. There are at least thirty animals that look like having an outside chance for the Blue Riband this year; and if I include the two Australians, I do so only because I admire their owners for having sent them to show what fine powerful horses the Antipodes can produce. There is Vermilion, in Hayhoe's stable, that may turn out to be near the top of the tree this year; his breeding is first-rate. And Mr. Milner has a couple of dark ones in the Grand Prior and Janissary. To be a prophet is not my ambition, and so I leave the issue to Surefoot and Le Nord, with Golden Gate and Garter to fight for places.

"In the Prince of Wales' Stakes at Leicester, in July, the best of the above try conclusions once more at a mile, where Le Nord again, if he has not been run off his legs in previous races, must be dangerous, Probably, however, the second class will have a chance here, and St. Serf or Blue Green may fight out the battle with the second string of Hayhoe's stable and Golden Gate. In the St. Leger we rejoice to say that again there is a representative field, and at least thirty-six can be picked out as having a chance of being starters. Le Nord is not entered, but Heaume is, and so is Surefoot and Riviera, as well as Semolina and St. Serf, with Golden