SEASON 1880-81 147 



huntsman, and whatever turned up in the morning's 

 correspondence, in the way of claims for poultry 

 or damage, was handed over to Frank to deal with. 

 The bye day on Thursday was the time and oppor- 

 tunity to personally investigate all such claims, and 

 the huntsman would jump on a hack, ride off to see 

 what could be done, making an offer to meet such 

 damage as soon as he had heard all particulars. 

 Before parting with any money he always complied 

 with the express wishes of the Duke by asking, 

 " Are you satisfied with what I offer you? You are 

 quite sure that you are satisfied with the amount. 

 We part friends ? " No wonder the Duke and his 

 huntsman were so deservedly popular, and Gillard 

 adds, " Claims from the Lincolnshire side were very 

 few." On some mornings the Duke was to be found 

 reading the accounts of the previous day's sport, 

 which often amused him immensely, and referring 

 to the quaint wording, he would say, " I read that 

 yesterday you were hunting a pug ; I hope hounds 

 liked his taste when they caught him." 



Continuous bad weather was succeeded by a 

 stop for frost during half the month of January, 

 but the first day out hounds scored a nice gallop 

 of thirty-five minutes from Newman's Gorse. 

 Amongst the field out was a fat American gentle- 

 man who saw hounds for the first time, and his 

 friends insisted that he should be blooded with all 

 due ceremony befitting so important a debut. 

 Amongst the many presents and tokens of regard 

 Gillard received during his time from friends at a 

 distance, was a jackal's tooth mounted as a scarf-pin, 



