4 CENTURY OF ENGLISH FOX-HUNTING 



end of the Napoleonic War sounded the death-knell 

 of the Corinthians. The Duke of Wellington and 

 his officers, fresh from the glory of Waterloo, re- 

 turned to England to bring out a second edition of 

 cavalry charges in the pastures of Leicestershire, and 

 fox - hunting was the most popular medium for 

 healthy enjoyment, healthy excitement, and healthy 

 exercise. The time had arrived when patronage 

 of sport included participation in sport. The era 

 which created a Beau Brummel, considered " Old 

 Q.," Duke of Queensberry, to be the leading sports- 

 man of the day, and permitted criminal chicanery 

 to be practised on the turf, was swept aside. 

 The dissipation of the Regency had ceased to 

 be amusing, and had become disgusting. More- 

 over, the unhealthy excitement engendered by the 

 patronage of without the participation in sport 

 had caused many people to become hostile to 

 hunting. There were then, as there are now, and 

 probably always will be, members of the community 

 who are incapable of appreciating healthy amuse- 

 ment. Those members may be divided into two 

 classes, namely, those who practise cruelty and those 

 who profess Puritanism. At the beginning of the 

 century, dog-fighting, cock-fighting, bull-fighting, and 

 the baser form of prize - fighting were not only 

 tolerated, but encouraged by the patrician classes. 

 Fortunately, there were many patricians living in the 

 country far away from the madding crowd that 

 thronged around Carlton House and Almack's. 



