SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN 



of the hunt was then once more altered to Earl 

 Fitzwilliam's (Grove), although by Lord Galway's 

 permission hounds are still kennelled at Serlby. 

 Earl Fitzwilliam purchased the pack and is now 

 (1908) master, with Frank Bartlett as huntsman. 

 Bartlett was huntsman to Lord Fitzwilliam's 

 from 1884 to 1907, and before that was with 

 the Cambridgeshire for a season. 



During the past season (1907-8) followers of 

 the Grove have enjoyed some of the best sport 

 provided by the pack in recent years. Hounds 

 met on Friday, 1 3 December, at South Leverton 

 and found a fox at Watkin's Willows which 

 ran parallel with the River Trent. The pace 

 was good nearly up to Burton Willows, where 

 a brief check occurred ; but hounds soon hit off 

 the line again and ran over grass between these 

 willows and Sturton-le-Steeple, crossed the 

 Great Central Railway at Bole, and went on 

 as if for Wheatley Wood. They next ran over 

 grass past the Bungalow to the foot of Sturton 

 Highhouse Hill, where they recrossed the railway 

 to Caddow Gorse, again crossed the railway, 

 and hunted past Morman's Holt towards North 

 Wheatley, but before reaching this village the 

 fox turned back and hounds were at fault. The 

 fox was viewed across a fallow field, but several 

 valuable minutes were spent before the pack 

 arrived, and scent had completely failed. The 

 time of this run was seventy minutes, fifty 

 minutes being done at a good hunting pace. A 

 fresh fox found at Morman's Holt gave a gallop 

 of thirty minutes by North Wheatley to the 

 railway near Sturton station, when a storm of 

 rain set in and scent gave out. On the following 

 Monday Scaftworth was the fixture, and many 

 acres of land in the Idle Valley were under 

 water, so the order was given to draw the hills. 

 A fox found at Barrow Hill was hunted for 

 fifteen minutes before he went away, and gave 

 a fast thirty minutes. He ran over Gibson's 

 pasture farm and Everton Carrs, across the 

 Bawtry-Gringley road to Pusto Hill, then passed 

 over the grasses, which were wet and near the 

 river under water, to Wiseton Low Covert, 

 where he went to ground. Wiseton New 

 Covert provided a fresh fox, which went away 

 at the top end as if for Freeman's Gorse, but 

 soon veered to the left, and hounds were in 

 difficulties near the farmstead. They were soon 

 running, however, at a good pace over the grass 

 on Red Hill towards Clayworth Wood, then 

 bent over Gringley Grange farm and the grass 

 nearly to Walkeringham Brickyards. Here- 



abouts they crossed the canal and ran down 

 Gringley Carrs to Wainwright's farm, where 

 they turned over the canal at Scott's Wood, 

 the run to this point having lasted forty-five 

 minutes. The fox was viewed over the road, 

 and hunted slowly towards Walkeringham and 

 the Gringley-Beckingham road at Pear Tree 

 Hill, where hounds were at fault. After a 

 fruitless cast towards Beckingham Wood, Bart- 

 lett swung round into Gringley Gorse, where 

 the pack ran up to their hunted fox and soon 

 brought him to hand. 1 



The present constitution (1908) of Lord 

 Fitzwilliam's Grove pack is fifty-five couples of 

 hounds, kennelled at Serlby near Bawtry, with 

 the Earl himself as master, and Frank Bartlett 

 as huntsman. Hitherto Sam Morgan, now 

 huntsman to Lord Fitzwilliam's Wentworth 

 pack, had assisted Viscount Gal way in hunting 

 the pack or acting in his lordship's stead when 

 absent. Frank Bartlett, who was with the 

 Wentworth pack until the 1907 season, went 

 to the Grove on the making of the new arrange- 

 ment consequent on the retirement of Lord 

 Galway. Bartlett has taken with him his two 

 whips, Tom Lockey and W. Pitta way, from 

 Wentworth to Serlby. The honorary secretary 

 of the general purposes committee, Mr. R. C. 

 Otter of Royston Manor, remains ; and Mr. 

 John J. Beevor, The Mantles, Ranskill, Bawtry, 

 is honorary secretary to the hunt as before. Days 

 of meeting aie still four a week, while the Went- 

 worth pack meets twice a week instead of three 

 times, as formerly. 



The Grove country is situated in Nottingham- 

 shire, Yorkshire, and Derbyshire, and covers a 

 large area of about 700 square miles. It is 

 bounded on the north by the Holderness, and 

 on the north-west by the Badsworth. To the 

 east are the Lincolnshire packs, the Brocklesby, 

 the Burton, and the Blankney, while on the 

 south is the Rufford territory. Earl Fitzwilliam's 

 (Wentworth) adjoins on the west, and the 

 Barlow are to the south-west. 



Part of the Grove territory is heavy, but 

 there is a large area of sandy soil, and some 

 limestone country. There is a fair amount of 

 grass with good galloping, and a moderate 

 jumper with staying power is the most useful 

 kind of horse. Wire exists in places, but the 

 matter is dealt with by Mr. Otter's committee, 

 and most of it is taken down early in the season. 



1 Field, 21 Dec. 1907. 



387 



