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Leader (1850-1860), 20th February 1858, Edition 2 of 2, Page 20, NEW NOVELS. Margaret * Hamilton: a Novel...

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      Sporting In Both Hemispheres. Sjiorting ...

      scribes to have been at the confluence of a brook with the river , in front of the noble old Elizabethan , mansion at Charlcote Park . The Squire of Charlcote , says Mr . D'Ewes , was the wonder and amusement of the country round . He excluded all visitors from the hall , living there * like hermit poor / on the venison and wild rabbits of its spacious park . Although a clergyman by profession , and educated at Oxford , he indulged in the most extraordinary liberties with the Queen ' s vernacular . Once a vear—and once only—he issued to the surrounding gentry cards of invitation to what he styled * a cold collection ; ' when calling attention to the ancestral portraits suspended round the walls of the apartment , he regularly introduced them to his visitors with the following remarkable speech : " These , ladies and gentlemen , are my postasses . " Passing a summer on the coast , it was his boast that he had evaded the knavish designs of hotel and lodging-house keepers upon the wealthy Lord of Charlcote , by travelling ' in a cog . ' A poor exiled Frenchman resided in his village , quietly pursuing the profession of an artist . By the joint warrant of the then Lord Warwick—another Dogberry—and his own , he commits him to prison under the conviction that he had caged the conqueror of Marengo in disguise . Young D'Ewes , desirous of propitiating this second Master ShalloAV , used to introduce himself and basket , stored with an offering of pike and perch newly taken from the brook , exactly at noon , by a modest ring at the hall bell . A matronly serving woman conducted Mm to the parlour , where sat the lord and lady

      of Charlcote , discussing a dish of deer ' s fry , and he was always invited to partake . Then followed a glass of home-made wine , a present of sixpence for schoolboy disbursement , and what the little fisherman prized more than all , unreserved permission to explore every nook and corner of the beautiful stream that meandered through the park , and the green meadows beyond , which was the object of his visit . " Peace be to their manes !'' adds the recipient of these hospitalities . " Their memory is associated with some of the happiest moments of my life ; and although the mysterious economy of the old hall has been replaced by the profuse and noble expenditure of the present race , and errant schoolboys are no longer free to poach in the preserves , or lunch on deer ' s fry with its proprietor , still there is a lingering charm about the olden time of , which no modern magnificence can

      dispel . ** Being appointed to an Indian cadetship , he was stationed at Wallajjabad , where the swamps and paddy fields afford the best snipe shooting in the Madras Presidency . Four different species of this description of game are found in India : the large or solitary snipe , nearly the size of a woodcock ; the common full snipe ; the painted snipe , rather larger , of beautiful dark , variegated plumage , slow of flight ,, and not much esteemed for the table ; and the jack , or half snipe . An indifferent shot may bag from twenty-five to fifty couple during the morning ' s shooting , ' washing out his gun as often as it becomes heated , and restoring his own energies with a little cold brandy pawnee . ' An instinctive dread of snakes mars his enjoyment of these sporting rambles . The hideous cobra , so frightfully domestic in its habits , often

      creeps into the officers' beds , and is met with coiled up on the stone steps of their quarters ; and once being pitched off his pony , that fell in leaping a nullah , or ditch , on gathering himself up , D'JEwes saw a cobra capella sneaking off within a few yards from the spot where he lay . A drunken soldier confined in the black-hole , felt as he lay stretched upon the straw something gliding over him , which from its movements he well knew to be a snake . He dared not move , or touch it with his fingers . The reptile having crept up to his breast , insinuated itself beneath his military undress jacket , and curled itself up comfortably to repose . With a nervous system debilitated by habitual intemperance , the soldier endured hours of mental torture , knowing that every attempt to free himself from his dreadful position would be at the risk of life . The period of his confinement having expired , and

      the door when thrown open admitting a strong glare of sunlight , the cobra hastily glided from its nest to an obscure corner of the prison . The man rushed out , a deplorable picture of emaciation and terror . His hair , which twenty-four hours previously had been of a dark colour , had turned perfectly grey , and he died in a few weeks . Among the wild animals infesting the neighbourhood of Visiapoor , are numberless hyenas , and Mr . D'Ewes witnessed a curious proof of the toughness of that animal's hide . A hyena had been seen to enter a hole in some ruins , and a shikaree volunteered for a trifling recompense to either catch the beast , or cause it to .. bolt from its , lair , as we pleased . He commenced operations by making a second opening in the earth , whence a low growl was heard , and a large duinmel gundy made his appearance at the mouth of the

      bole , from wnicu he natt no sooner projected nan me usngiu o » ms uouy than several spears were thrown or poked at him , but which , although sharp as penknives , bounded off his hide like ; a racket-ball , and had only the effect of accelerating his pace when he emerged into daylight . The author on another occasion planted a hog-spear , sharpened to the finest edge , right between the shoulders of one no hud ridden down on the plains near Jaulnah , without being able to pjerce the impenetrable hide , and was glad , after the experiment , to make off himself . On his return to Europe , he visited France , to enjoy the chase of the stag and wild boar in the royal hunting establishments adjacent to Paris , then under the able superintendence of M . le Comte de Girardin . He says that

      his first excursion to mingle in these sylvan pastimes was in company with ft well-known English sportsman and master of hounds , George Templar , of Devonshire . Hunting during July—a Pnria July—greatly outraged the English prejudices of Templar ; but he made up his mind when at Korao to ^ QhitneJnjwUhJ ^ pJSojwnng . iJ * oJ * ° , ^ forcd a jl ° * se to ^ ° brought to him at Armanvilliers , the ' appointed reiidez-vow de chasse " . No " * h " orse ~ how _ flver-arrivedy and , steadily refusing to accept one of those belonging to his friends , he resolved to hunt on foot , convinced ho knew how to see as much of the chase an the best-mounted cavalier out that day . " With a thorough contempt for the artificial aid of dress , and in sober contradistinction to the bright scarlet coats und gaudy trappings of the French sportsmen , ho was attired in a full suit of black , and but for the jovial expression of his countenance and tho merry twinkle of his eye , looked far more like a wellconditioned member of tho Established Church than what ho really was—

      perhaps the best practical sportsman in England . The hunted deer usually -made for a large piece of water in the forest , and thither the author and his party turned their horses' heads . Tha approaching sounds of the music of the pack and the horns of the picqueurs , showed they were in the right track , and on arriving within sight of the efang , the first object , that met their eyes was the stag nobly breasting the waves with the whole pack in full cry after him . On the bank stood George Templar , mopping his bead and good-humoured countenance , which the sun and exercise had tinged with " the deepest vermilion , and giving the death halloo with the intonation of a true British sportsman . Presently Monseigneur rode up , and " requested to be informed who was the individual in black , whose voice woke the echoes of the forest and could be heard even above the noise of the French horns . Upon being told he was one of the most celebrated masters of hounds in England , he treated him with much courtesy , lar informed him that the huntsmen

      and was greatly amused when Temp and picqueurs whom he had frequently met in his short cuts on foot through the woods ( guided by the wind and his own thorough knowledge of the chase ) , had taken him for an English priest—unprelre anglais—and had interpreted one or two British hunting halloos which he could not refrain , as vociferous benedictions or loud curses upon the sport he was pursuing . " This was in the time of Charles X ., who spent a great portion of the latter years of his reign in hunting and shooting at Fontainebleau and St . Cloud . It was at the close of an unsuccessful chase at Rambouillet , and after the king had returned to the latter place ,, as he stood looking towards the * Avenue de Paris , ' that the Comte de Girardin , the chief huntsman , suddenly directed his attention to a courier advancing at full gallop down the Avenue . Charles X . remained motionless . In another minute he was at the King's feet . Every eye turned on him with a look of mournful inquiry . The courier muttered only a few words . He had brought the news from Paris , of July 26 th , 1830 , five minutes p . m . The Ordonnances had been promulgated , and the revolution was begun .

      We give but a very cursory analysis of this book , which may serve as a guide to those readers who desire to combine an economical residence on the Continent with unlimited hunting , shooting , and angling . Brittany , Huy , on the Meuse , Offenburg , and several portions of Germany , seem to possess these desirable requisites . Mr . D'Ewes also travelled and sported in Australia and China .

      188 . The Leade&. |~Ko. 413, February 20...

      188 . THE LEADE & . |~ Ko . 413 , February 20 , 1858 .

      New Novels. Margaret * Hamilton: A Novel...

      NEW NOVELS . Margaret * Hamilton : a Novel . By Mrs . C . J . Newby .. 3 vols . ( Bentley . ) —Margaret Hamilton is an interesting novel , and Mrs . Newby writes with great vivacity ; but the book has one serious defect . It is false as a view of life . Regarding it from only one point of view , as it bears—which it does strongly- —on the question of frugal marriages , we must say that if Mrs . Newby ' s icjea of household economy were not absurd , happiness would be impossible among persons with incomes of less than a thousand a year . It is fair to acknowledge that we are turning a scapegoat into , the desert , and that Mrs . Newby has had many predecessors in the sin of disclaiming all practical acquaintance with poor people ; but young readers are apt to be impressed by the teachings of the circulating library , and it is necessary at times to suggest that the reports of novelists upon society must be received with some reserve . We had , not long ago , a romance from a

      fashionable lady ' s pen , which depicted the miseries of a married couple with one child on five hundred a year . Tney lived on black chops , scrags of mutton , and potatoes ; when they attempted a dinner party everything was dark , greasy , and unwholesome . The husband walked hungry from hi 3 club and the wife was compelled at Christmas to turn an ancient silk gown , which was her only stock and store Of that material . All this has a very -vicious effect , and Mrs . Newby , if not among the worst specimens of the preachers in derision of poverty , is unconsciously , in the same sense , a bad instructor . It is true that her theme is virtue battling against a cold , proud , and rich world ; but mark how she distributes a salary of 130 / . a year , the income Of a broken banker who has been forced to accept a clerkship and live in Islington : rent , 321 . ; taxes and rates , 8 / . ; housekeeping , 521 . ' Fred's schooling and other necessary expenses , ' 231 . ; and Mary's wages , ' 15 / . ! The little family has to limit its bread-and-butter , to make fourteen

      cups of tea out of two spoonfuls , to * bring Fred ' s appetite within compass , and to suffer occasional ' hunger and faintness . ' Margaret eats * as little as possible , ' and denies herself * the temptingly thick slice of bread-and-butter . ' Apart from these exaggerations the story of Margaret Hamilton is wholesome and entertaining . Uncle Ralph : a Tale . By the Author of 4 Dorothy , ' * Still Waters , ' & o . ( J . W . Parker and Son . )—We have in Uncle Ralph a very good example of romantic family history . The writer has not a perplexed plot to disentangle , and seldom forces a startling incident into her narrative , though there are situations sufficiently striking to carry the reader along ; but she paints a large group , in which every figure ia naturally and distinctly individualized . This skill in tho delineation of character is her principal merit , accompanied as it is by a tender and touching sympathy with all that asks for affection and for charity in human life . Wo think Uncle Ralph will become a general favourite .

      Publications And Republications. W» Mere...

      PUBLICATIONS AND REPUBLICATIONS . W » merely announce this week the publication by Messrs , Longman anu Co . of Essays , Biographical , Historical , and Miscellaneous , contributed chiefly toHhe ~ Edinburgh ~ and ~ QuartcrXy-Menim & i ^ yJh * J ^ R- Gleig . Mr . Gleig statqs that they form but a fragment of the essays the nutlrdrship-ot which he would be entitled to claim . , The Children * s Bower ( Longmans ) , so fur as wo may judgo by a first ana rapid glanco at its pages , appears to bo as full of fine feeling , delicate ana subtle fancy , rich , and various learning , scholarly refinement , and high chivalrous spirit , as all tho former works of Mr . Kenelm H . Digby , wuo ( albeit a Catholic ) is , to our thinking , certain peculiarities apart , one of tho most graceful and gonial of guides , philosophers , and friends . Ho conducts

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Feb. 20, 1858, page 20, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_20021858/page/20/