HLI Chronicle 1910 - The Royal Highland Fusiliers

HIGHLAND LIGHT
INFANTRY CHRONICLE.
31
(18 holes stroke competition under handicap). Scores
as under
Lieut. Bramwell Davi~, . 85 less 2- 83
Lieut. Thackeray, . 89 less 4- 85
Major Hill,·· 101 less 12- 89
Lieut. ·Colonel Kays, 109 less 2Q- 89
I.ieut. Brodle, 109 less 16- 93
Lieut. Farie. . 107 less 10- 97
Major Armstrong, - H5 less 14 -101
Captain Stuart,· 126 less 14-112
About 2 p.m. a weary figure was seen wandering
towards theelub·house. 'rhis turned out to beCaptaill
Murray, who had taken 195 strokes for 15 holes. He
then entered the club-house in a state of collapse.
Captain Murray's score:­
6, 10, H, 18, 8, 15, 14, 10, 20-112
9, 12, 24, 17, 10, 11 -83
195
Iu the afteruoon the bogey competition for Lieut.
Thackeray's (Jup was played off, and won by Lieut·
Colonel Rays, who was 2 up on bogey. The next two
were Lieut. Sir A. C. Gibson Craig. Bt., and Lieut.
Farie, who were all square with bogey.
HUNTING NOTES.
THIS season we have all, or nearly all, been
attacked, with wbat we have christened the
"Hunting Microbe," which has sUIely and
not slowly established a very firm footing
amongst the officers of the Battalion; and
quite lightly too, for have we not had issued
a printed lecture entitled "Hunting as a
Training for War" Is not Wellington supposed
to have said that he preferred 00 have
officers who were fox-hunters as members of
his staff. And does not the immortal J orrocks
call hunting "the sport of kings, the image
of war without its guilt and only 25 per cent.
of its danger." In fact every subaltern ought to
be made to read " Handley Cross" as part of
his education, and I expect there are very few
who have hunted and not read this king of
hunting stOlies. Still, this may catch the eye
of one who has not, and he celtainly will thank
the writer after he has done so. Hunting is
undoubtedly the one time when a man feels
that he is the equal of anyone when all tailor's
bills, winter essays-everything-is forgotten
in the fascination of watching hounds wOlk,
and in the exhilaration of a gallop across
country, especially if one knows that one's
horse is a perfect performer. "'''hat more
glorious moment than that when you hear
welcome Holloa! and "Gone awaY,l" when
hounds burst out, of cover with a chorus that
makes the welkin ling The horses know just
as well as you do. Then is the time you cram
on your hat a bit tighter, shorten your reins,
and look for the best gap out of the field, or
pray heaven that you don't take a toss at the
first fence.
Your saddle you grip, gather bridle and whip,
Give your hunter the office to go ;
In his rush through the air little breath is to
spare
For the cheer of your wild Tally-ho !
There's a scent-you may swea.. by the pace
that they d,.ive-
You must tackle to wc-rk with a will,
For as sute as you stand in your stirrups alive
It's a case of a run and a kill !
So I wish you good speed, a good line, and a
lead,
With the luck of each fence where it's low,
Not the last of the troop may you hear the
Who-whoop!
Well pleased as you heard Tally-ho !
But to go back to Ollr own sport. Up to the
end of the first leave we have hunted chiefly
with the United and the South Union. With
bc·th together we can generally manage to get
four meets in the week within a mode~ate distance
of Cork. Unfcrtunately, throughout
NQvember we had hardly a drop of rain,
cloudless skies, and a frost nearly every night,
consequently there was no soent t·) speak of ;
but latterly soent has been good, and good
sport has been shown with both paoks. We
have generally turned out four or five eaoh
hunting day, the most regular attendants being
Col. Kays, Major Hill, Captains Gaussen and
Pack - Beresford, and Lieuts. Thaokeray,
Davis, Hallswelle, Dalrymple, and Lieut.
Claigie-Halkett was also with us for
about three weeks, and though a hunter
of some experience in other parts of
the world, was initiated into fox-huntinr over
here, and certainly showed a keenness that
would, before the end of the season, either
have made his reputation or broken his neck.
Before the next edition of the Ohronicle is
published we shall have finished the hunting
season, and it is to be h')ped that new nameS
will have been engraved on the Swinton Medal
for the Regimental Point· to-Point, and also on
the Subalterns' Cup, both of which trophies
have passed a long period of rest. With the leave
season over we should be able 00 turn out
about fifteen stalters in the Regimental race.
Falls have not been as frequent as might have
been expected. Lieut. Halkett took a toss at