The meet was at the Tramway, at a point about a couple of hundred yards from the Rifle Butts, and at the time appointed for the start thirty-one ponies were assembled, the well-known severity of the Hongkew country no doubt deterring many of the more inferior mounts from putting in an appearanés, Neither were there so many spectators as usual, but those absent lost nothing in the shape of sport, the first two or three jumps being very easy, though the paper afterwards led over several of more than ordinary difficulty, of which the wet and muddy appearance of sume of those who rode through to the finish gave ample proof. 'The country, too, seemed to bea terra incognita even' to some of these, for the only description obtainable was that the run was circuitous and about nine miles in extent. Almost immediately after starting, there were some checks, owing to the paper being scattered by the wind, Dut afterwards the hunt was pretty clear, and the pace was made too hot for many of the rearmost ponies. Mr. Howie was successful in finding the paper in several instances, and led the hunt for a cou-siderable distance, followed by Messrs. Daniels, Nickels, Walker, and one or two others, the rest tailing and straggling. At one of the more dillicult jumps, a wide water-course bordered by trees, Mr. Macgregor's Wildjire came to temporary tief, giving his rider a more-than gratifying taste of water and mud; and some distance Eurther on, Forward Ho! his name, by coming to " dead stop, and helping his rider to a thorough sousing in a sort of tank, Both riders, however, remounted, came through the hunt, and made a respectable finish, The last two miles were somewhat trying to the ponies, the paper leading over soft cultivated ground and a wide tract of rough-ploughed land, in the midst of which a few good clean-cut jumps were met with. These combined difficulties had the effect of further thinning the field, until on arriving at the last jump from home, not more than a dozen ponies were up. Mr. Howie was leading up to this point, but the uneven ground just before the take off compelling him to slacken his pace, enabled Mr. Nickels to come up, and the two took the jump almost abreast. Between this leap and the final one, there day a clear reach of good fallow, extending about three hundred yards, and here the pace became very fast, considering the hard work previously accomplished. Mr. Nickels, on Bellerose, led; followed by Mr. Howie, on Steam Whistle, second; Mr. Walker, on Apollyon, third; Mr. Limby, on Cheiah, fourth, with Mr. Hinckley, on Fei-yen, close attendance, and nothing else near. In this order, the last jump, an easily negotiable ditch, near the Stone Bridge, was crossed, Mr. Nickels, a heavy-weight, taking the' prize. Only three or four others, including Messrs. Macgregor and Reynell, came so far; and these straggled in at intervals, each taking the Teap only one slight mishap, and so ended the sixth hunt of the season.—There were a large number of spectators at the finish, including many ladies, and the only way into the main road being through a cross street of Sinza village, the sight of s0 many foreigners passing at one time, both on horseback and on foot, appeared to astonish the villagers in no small degree, for they lined the street in great numbers, seemingly much amused at the unwonted invasion.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.