COL. ANSTRUTHER THOMSON 359 



the hounds were still the property of Lord Henry 

 Bentinck : — 



" Dear Thomson, — 



" I send with your man seventeen and a 

 half couple, I think, of puppies — two and a half 

 Goddard has hung ; some small ones ; seven couple 

 we have marked with a clip on the throat. These 

 are the lot we should have handed over to Auger- 

 stein." 



They all arrived in the last stage of distemper. 

 I wrote : — 



" You were right when you said they were a bad 

 lot. I never saw one like them — one died on the 

 journey ; three died last night ; one is dying now ; 

 I expect two or three more will die before morning. 

 What am I to do about paying for them? Surely 

 you don't expect me to pay for the dead bodies and 

 skins .f* I must really ask you and Goddard what 

 you expect me to do about the settlement for the 

 draft. Seven couple died in the first two days, and 

 I believe they are now all dead except three and a 

 half couple." 



" Reepham Kennels, 



" 10th March, 1866. 



" HoNRD. Sir, — 



"His Lordship gave me the letter that you 

 wrote to him about the draft. I was sorry to hear 

 that you had lost so many of them, i only have a part 

 of the draft and Charles Hawtin the other part. It 

 his a very Bad Job for me having such a few to 



