THE MASTERS OF BADMINTON 



perience I had of his Grace in the field, I feel 

 myself in some measure competent for the task. 

 I need scarcely say I was always an admirer of 

 his hounds, although I could not like his country. 

 The greatest improvement I saw in the former, 

 in defiance of all the disadvantages of the latter, 

 convinced me that there was a system at work 

 highly worthy of my consideration. But whence 

 this directing hand I was a long time unable to 

 discover. I doubted it being that of the Duke, not 

 from mistrust of his capacity, but because I had 

 reason to believe the numerous avocations of his 

 station prevented his attending to the minutiae of 

 the kennel, although I did not consider his Grace a 

 sportsman of the first class, in which his hounds 

 certainly stood. I doubted it being that of Philip 

 Payne, for to appearance a duller bit of clay was 

 never moulded by nature. But we should not 

 judge by appearances : I live to confess my error. 

 There was about Philip Payne a steady obser- 

 vance of circumstances which, increasing with the 

 experience of their results, was more useful to him 

 as a breeder of hounds than all the learning of 

 a Porson . . . The establishment was perfect, 

 all but the green plush coats on the men, the 

 regular thistle- whipping colour, which to my eye 

 was offensive. The Duke, as I said in one of my 

 tours, * looked like a Duke,' and his servants looked 

 like servants of the very best description of their 

 line. More civil or generally well conducted men 



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