SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN 



should be painted by Sir Francis Grant. The 

 portrait was presented at a dinner given to 

 Captain Thomson at the George Hotel. 



Mr. John Albert Craven, of Whilton 

 Lodge, near Daventry, took the country when 

 Captain Thomson retired, in 1869, and re- 

 tained office for three years. Dick Roake, 

 who had been second whip under Charles 

 Payne, became first whip in 1863, when Lord 

 Spencer was master, and when Mr. Craven 

 took the hounds and Charles Payne left he 

 was promoted to the post of huntsman. 



Mr. Richard Christopher Naylor, of Kel- 

 marsh Hall, succeeded Mr. Craven for two 

 years only, from 1872 to 1874. When Mr. 

 R. C. Naylor resigned his mastership. Lord 

 Spencer, who had just returned from his first 

 Irish viceroyalty, came forward a second time 

 and took the hounds. He appointed the late 

 William Goodall his huntsman, and presented 

 him with a silver horn inscribed, 'Will Good- 

 all, from Spencer, 1874.' 



During the year 1875 Lord Spencer purchased 

 a good many couple of old hounds from Lord 

 Doneraile, among them the noted hound Archer, 

 by Lord Doneraile's Tarquin — his Abigail. 



In 1876 the empress of Austria, being 

 resident at Eaton Park, asked Lord Spencer 

 for a bye day. Accordingly a meet was 

 appointed at Althorp on 9 March at 2 o'clock. 

 Her Majesty lunching at the house, and being 

 accompanied by Count Larisch and others. 

 A fox was found at Brington Gorse, and he 

 ran close to Buckby, and to ground near 

 Whilton osier bed. The hounds went at a 

 good driving pace. The empress rode a 

 beautiful bay, Merry Andrew, and followed 

 Captain Middleton, who was riding Mas- 

 querade ; she jumped everything, and was 

 in the very first flight all the way. 



The 20 January, 1877, was a red-letter 

 day. His present Majesty, then Prince of 

 Wales, was staying at Kimbolton Castle 

 to hunt with the Fitzwilliam, but a 

 death in the family prevented these hounds 

 going out. The duke of Manchester there- 

 fore telegraphed to Lord Spencer that the 

 prince would hunt with the Pytchley, and 

 His Royal Highness and party came to 

 Oxendon, where the meet took place. The 

 first fox was found at Waterloo Gorse, but he 

 went to ground directly. The second fox 

 was found in Loatland Wood ; he ran nicely 

 back through Waterloo, and swinging round 

 by Arthingworth he ran through Loatland 

 and on to Rothwell, where he beat them. 

 Another fox was found at Mawsley Wood ; 

 he went away at a rattling pace by Orton 

 and Harringworth, through Loatland Wood 

 again, as if for Braybrook, but he turned to 



the left, and leaving Waterloo Gorse to the 

 right, ' the hounds raced him over the grass 

 down the Oxendon station, where they ran 

 from scent to view, and killed him just in 

 front of his Royal Highness, after about 

 40 minutes.' 



This season of 1 876-7 was a very good 

 one for sport, scent being excellent. Early 

 in 1878 the empress of Austria took the Hall 

 at Cottesbrooke, and hunted from there for 

 about six weeks, keeping some thirty magnifi- 

 cent hunters in the stables. Whilst in this 

 country her pilot was the late Captain, better 

 known as ' Bay,' Middleton — a first flight 

 man and a perfect horseman. The empress 

 had fine hands, a strong seat, and exceedingly 

 good nerve ; and where her pilot led she 

 followed without hesitation. On leaving the 

 country she presented Goodall with a very 

 handsome scarf pin. 



Lord Spencer gave up the hounds in 1878, 

 and Mr., now Sir, Herbert Hay Langham was 

 appointed master. He had a consummate 

 knowledge of hunting in all its phases, was a 

 good judge of hounds, a fine horseman, and 

 was withal as popular a master as ever hunted 

 the Pytchley. 



On 12 March, 1880, the hounds met 

 at Brockhall, and after a little drawing they 

 went back to Vanderplank. They found in 

 this covert and went away through Watford, 

 leaving Kilsby Tunnel on the left, and back 

 to Crick Covert. Then on very fast by Yel- 

 vertoft, and leaving Claycoton to the left 

 they crossed the Market Harborough railway, 

 midway between Lilbourne and Yelvertoft 

 stations. The fox went on by Swinford 

 Covert, leaving Stanford Park to his left, on 

 as if for South Kilworth, bearing to the left 

 nearly to Walcot, then again to the left by 

 Mr. Gilbert's house. Hounds raced him down 

 to the railway as if back for Lilbourne; turning 

 down the valley by Clifton mill they ran 

 into him between there and Rugby. The 

 distance as the crow flies was 10 miles, and 

 as hounds ran 22 miles, and the time 2 hours 

 and 20 minutes. Major Curtis, Mr. F., now 

 Lord Henley, and Captain Soames were the 

 only three gentlemen who rode it. Goodall 

 picked up his fox, after running about a mile 

 and crossing the river by a foot plank. The 

 master said this was the best nm during his 

 term of office. 



The season of 1 88 1-2 was very open, and 

 many good runs were enjoyed. The most 

 remarkable feature was that seventy-one and a 

 half brace of foxes were brought to hand, 

 being twenty or thirty head more than the 

 average. Hunting was only stopped on three 

 days ; the hounds having been out forty-eight 



365 



