"No, Oy's sure, Oy dinna ken him."

"Dinna ken him," repeated Mr. Jorrocks, "dinna ken him-vot does that mean?"

"But surely you've heard of him-Nimrod! every body's heard of Nimrod-the mighty and immortal Nimrod!"

"Not Oy," replied Pigg. "Is he a skewlmaster?"

"No; he's a master of 'unting-not an M.F.H., or Master of Fox 'Ounds like me, mind, but a man wot makes obserwations on packs and their attendants, and writes in a printed book all that he sees, hears, or thinks about them."

Pigg" Ye dinna say se!"

“Quite true, I assure you," replied Mr. Jorrocks, "and if by any adwerse chance he should condemn a pack, or blame an 'untsman (not that he ever does though), it would be all dickey with them for ever, for no living man dare contradict him, and every body swears by wot he says."

"My !" replied Pigg, "we maun be uncommon kittle then, Oy guess." "You must exert your h'utmost powers to do the trick, for dash my vig, if we fail, I, even I-John Jorrocks himself—will go perfectly mad with wexation and disappointment."

"Does he ken all about the nags and dogs and huntin?" inquired Pigg in an evident state of uneasiness.

"Oh, yes!" replied Mr. Jorrocks, catching a little of Pigg's alarm, "all, all, every thing-at least he writes about them, and, right or wrong, nobody ever disputes the pint-Oh, dear! oh, dear! I've sometimes doubted whether the world would not have been 'appier without the mighty Nimrod. Butter, soap, sugar, all that sort of thing is werry pleasant to be sure; but then, oh, 'orror! to think of being rubbed the wrong way by Nimrod! Death itself would be better."

"Hout, tout," replied Pigg, cheering up his master, "I dare say there will be nowt to boggle a man after all. If Oi was ye, with all yee'r brass, Oi wad not care for nebody."

Jorrocks.-"Ah! but Pigg, remember fame !-think of hambition! -think of that something after life wot prompts men to great hactions. Here, for three-and-twenty years have I been a h'ardent follower of the chase-loved it, oh, 'eavens! for its own sake, and not for any longing after for h'mmortality; and now, ven greatness has been thrust upon me-ven I shines forth an M.F.H.-to think that before Friday night all-all-may be dashed away from me with one dash of Nimrod's pen, and instead of reigning King of 'Andley Cross-instead of being the great and illustrious John Jorrocks-I may be flung back to 'blivion ! Oh! Pigg, h'ambition is a dreadful thing!"

"Hout, tout, fear nowt. Does he ride the runs, or nabbut (only) looks at pack at cover-soide loike ?"

Both, both-first, he'll come and look us all over, ax the name of that 'ound, and then of that-call 'em level-enquire 'ow each is bredtalk of H'osbaldeston's Furrier, Corbet's Trojan, or Meynell's Gusman -look at this nag-then at that-ax their pedigree !—their h'agestheir prices-their h'every things-vether we summers them in the 'ouse or the field-do a little bit about hard meat-'ow much corn they get -vether we split our beans, or give them whole-then ven we throws off he marks each motion-sees vether we put in at the right end of the cover-observes vether the men have 'ands equal to their nerves, or nerves equal to their 'ands; books their seats and names—not their seats by coach, mind-but their seats in the saddle. To read his accounts of the runs you'd fancy he was every where at once, both before, behind, and above-with the fox-with the 'ounds-with the first, and with the last man in the field-so knowingly does he describe every twist, every turn, every bend of the run. Oh! Pigg, now that the day approaches, and I see's the full brightness of my indiscretion staring me in the face; I begins to repent having ax'd him to come. Vot can fame do for Jorrocks? I have neither wife that delights in the deeds of her husband, nor son to succeed to the reputation of his sire. Would that I was well over the complications of Friday."

"Never fear," replied Pigg, "here be good loike hounds; if your nags can but go, and we do but find a fox, the deuce be in it if we don't cook him up a run."

"Oh Pigg!" exclaimed Mr. Jorrocks, "those ifs are the werry deuce and all in unting-There's the rub you see! If we find a fox, there's the difficulty in getting well away with him; or if we do get well away with him, there's the chance of his being 'eaded back; or if there being no scent, or of his taking a bad line, or of his being chased by a cur, or of his gaining an earth we don't know of, or of his beating us disgracefully at the far end-all, all these things are dreadful to the anxious mind of an M. F. H. at all times, but 'orrible, most 'orrible, on an occasion like the present."

"Dinna fear," replied Pigg, "dinna fear-you'll see he'll be nout but mortal man after all. If you want to kill a fox quickly, gan to a large wood, and have somebody there with black bitch.”

"Black bitch," said Mr. Jorrocks, "black bitch-Vot should we want with black bitch when we have all the 'ounds out ?"

"Hout thou fondey!" said Pigg, "doesn't thou ken what black bitch is ?"

"No I doesn't-unless it be a female dog."

"A female dog!" roared Pigg; "Ne sike thing. It's a gun, man!

Just pop a few shot corns into fox's hind legs, and it's a wonderful help to hounds.

ment.

"My vig!" exclaimed Mr. Jorrocks, with an air of sudden enlighten"I've often seen chaps in welweteen with guns at cover sides, but never knew what they were there for. Ah," but added he with a shake of his head, "Nimrod will be up to the black bitch rig-No, no, that vont do- —no use trying to 'oax him-it must be summut more genuine. Oh Pigg, if you could but manage to give him a real tickler, so that he might have summut good to put in his book, the gratitude of John Jorrocks should be with you for ever and ever-you should drink brandy in pint pots-quarts, if you like!"

"Hang'd if I ken what to de," replied Pigg, thoughtfully. "Yes, I de too. Canst keep a secret?”

"My own or any man's," replied Mr. Jorrocks.

"Seest thou then what's there," rejoined Pigg, opening the feeding room door and pointing to a large basket hanging from a hook in the ceiling. There's an ould grey beggar of a fox in there, brush like a bozzum (besom), tusks like a tiger, run a drag-shek him at end— whohoop! old Ramrod never know-give him brush-twig eh?" looking at Mr. Jorrocks with an air of triumph.

"That von't do! you carn't deceive him. No, no, it must be a genuine find-Talliho! yonder he goes! away! away! away! blow the 'orn-then elbows and legs, elbows and legs." Mr. Jorrocks suiting the action to the word, and straddling as though he were on horseback.

"Trust me for his finding out," replied Pigg. "Mony a dragand mony a drag again oi've run, and never been suspected even, let alone fund out. Big wood-big loup at starting-give em summut to glower at instead of fox."

"I vish I dirst," replied Mr. Jorrocks, doubtingly; "but consider, Pigg, consider, if he should 'appen to smell a rat, 'ow he would trounce us, not only for trying to do him, but to show his own cuteness in finding us out."

"You're nout to fear! Had (hold) thy jaw nabbut and I'll cook him a run.

"I vish I dirst," repeated Mr. Jorrocks, jingling a handful of silver in his breeches pocket. "I vish I dirst-'ow fine to see the darlings tearing away, and leaving old Nimrod in the lurch. Here's Binjimin at the gate, open it."

"Now Binjimin," said Mr. Jorrocks, looking at the whipper-in with a scrutinizing eye, and speaking with great dignity; "now Binjimin," repeated he, “ you are on the eve of a most momentous crisis!"

NO. XCIV.-VOL. XVI.

"Yes, sir," replied Benjamin, wondering what sort of a shaped thing it was.

"That renowned man, Mr. Nimrod, 'unts on Friday with our unrivalled 'ounds, and I would fain give him a tickler."

"Yes, sir," replied Benjamin.

"Now then you see, Binjimin, James Pigg is a mighty 'unter, keen, and game to the back bone, and thinks he can 'stonish him. Now, Binjimin, you must lend us an 'and.”

"Yes, sir."

"You are fond of marmeylad."

"Uncommon!" replied Benjamin with a grin of delight.

"Well then you see, Binjimin, if you act well your part, obey James Pigg, and do all wot he tells you, if all goes on smoothly and well— vich oh 'eavens grant may be the case! ven you comes home in the evening, I'll give you a pot of marmeylad as big as your 'ead !"

Crikey oh!" exclaimed Benjamin in ecstacies.

"But hark to me again, Binjimin," resumed Mr. Jorrocks, holding up his fore finger and knitting his brows at the boy; "if by any chance you bitch the thing-if all does not go smoothly and well on your part, so far from giving you any marmeylad, I'll take you to one of the new fangled matrimony shops, and tie you up with such a lady ' with a small independence of her own,' as 'ill find you in tons of misfortune and black language, fresh from the pit's mouth, from now till the first Monday after eternity!"

"Oh!" groaned Benjamin at the thought.

"Now then disperse," said Mr. Jorrocks, and get the cloth laid for dinner, while Pigg and I make our arrangements."

These were soon done. Pigg insisted upon running a drag of aniseed and red herring, and turning down the fox at the end in some convenient unsuspicious-looking place; and Mr. Jorrocks, with many qualms of fear, and many entreaties to exertion, at length consented to entrust the entire management of the day's sport to the huntsman and Matt. Maltby, who were to concert a find, a run, and a finish, in a suitable and convenient country. This they accomplished to their mutual satisfaction; and the evening before Nimrod was to arrive, the line was fully explained to Mr. Jorrocks and Benjamin, and the time fixed at which Maltby should start away with the drag.

CHAPTER XIV.

A thick white rind powdered the face of nature through the night, and Mr. Jorrocks found himself with a beautifully silver-foliaged window in the morning. Still the evergreens in the garden into which his bed-room window looked exhibited no symptoms of a nipping, and as the night clouds cleared off and the sun stood forth all lurid in the firmament, Mr. Jorrocks congratulated himself on the appearance of opening day. Mrs. Jorrocks, Belinda, Betsey, and Benjamin, were up with the lark, all busy preparing breakfast for the Quarterly Reviewer. A fly was despatched to the Datton station of the lilywhite-sand-railway to meet him, and punctual to his time, Nimrod turned out at Diana cottage, enveloped in shawls, numerous great coats, and a pair of French jointed clogs to keep his feet warm. Mutual salutations being over, and having got rid of his husks, breakfast was attacked with a true railway appetite-kidneys, chops, eggs, muffins, crumpets, toast, red herrings, delicacies in short, that inake one's mouth water to write, vanished in succession, aided by large draughts of undeniable tea and coffee from "the Lane," as Mr. Jorrocks calls his place of business. At length they completely topped up, and after begging some brandy to put in his pocket flask, Nimrod rose from his seat and began pacing about the room and looking out of the window, as men are in the habit of doing, when they want to be commencing a " New Series" of the periodical occupations of life.

Ten o'clock came, and as it struck, James Pigg and Benjamin appeared outside the white rails before Diana Lodge, clad in their new habiliments, mounted, and each leading a horse. Uncommonly spicey they all looked, for Pigg determined on doing up the thing in style, and had, regardless of expense, generously divided a penny's worth of ginger among the four, so that their tails stuck up like hat pegs-and, as if in sympathy with the horses, Gabriel Junks, the peacock, flew on to the summit of the gateway arch, and expanded a glorious tail to the rays of the sun, at the same time setting up a scream that startled all the horses. Forth sallied Nimrod and Jorrocks; up went the bedroom window for Betsey to look out, Mrs. Jorrocks appeared framed in the lower one, with a face of most rubicund hue, while Belinda peeped past the green and white chintz curtain, and had her glimpse of the scene.

"There," said Mr. Jorrocks, pulling up short and pointing to his stud, "there are a lot of nags for you-none of your cat-legged, tumble-down, kick-me-off, run-away, break-my-neck devils, but real seasoned hunters, sure and steady, with an eye for each foot, and one