CRISES I\ ITS HISTORY. is 



was only at the end of Sei)teiubrr that thov waitid upon inc, and even then 

 did not say they intended to liunt upon the beaj^Ic country. 



The beagles have iinntcd the lowir i lul of the Hundred of W'irral for a 

 quarter of a century. I hope always in a gentlemanly niainicr. During the 

 whole of this period, there has been the best and kindest feeling between the 

 farmers and the members of the Hunt, and not a single farmer has ever made 

 any serious complaint of damage being done. 



It is perfectly clear to me that in this lower end of the Hundred there is 

 neither sufficient land nor sufficient hares for two packs of hounds. In fact, 

 there is barely enough for one pack, and I think it is my duty as Master of 

 the Beagles to protect as far as I can the sport which is enjoyed, not only 

 by the members of the Beagle Hunt, but by a great number of other gentlemen 

 also, and which sport will be entirely ruined if the harriers hunt the country. 



With reference to the question of " right " to the country, which I consider 

 the Beagle Hunt have, and \\ hiih I contend the Harrier Club have not, I am 

 quite aware that this right simply means a privilege granted by the kindness 

 of the landowners and the farmers, and I would most respectfully ask these 

 gentlemen for their favourable consideration of this question, which I have 

 now the honour to lay before them. Your faithful servant, 



V. A. King. 



Park Road West, Birkenhead, 24th Nov., 1S68. 

 Dear Col. King, — You would oblige me and the members of the Wirral 

 Harrier Club generally if you would kindly furnish me with your fixtures for the 

 next month. We are most anxious to avoid clashing with your arrangements or 

 interfering with your sport in any way, and it is solely with a view to this object 

 that I wish, and am instructed to make, what I trust will not be deemed an 

 unwarrantable request, Belie\e me, yours sincerely, 



J, K, Court. 

 Lieut. -Col. King, 



Oxton, Birkenhead, 25th Nov,, 1868. 



Dear Sir, — I have to thank you for your note of yesterday, asking me, on 

 behalf of the Wirral Harrier Club, for the Beagle fixtures, to avoid clashing 

 with our arrangements or interfering with our sport. 



I beg to express my obligations for this kind feeling on the part of your club; 

 but, permit me to say, that I have always understood, since I had the pleasure 

 of seeing your deputation, that your club proposed to hunt upon the country 

 near to Chester, and not at all upon our country at the lower end of the Hun- 

 dred, and of course if you do this it is useless to give you our fixtures, as j'ou 

 cannot by any possibility interfere with our sport, and, therefore, I confess I 

 cannot quite understand the object of your note. 



If, however, the request contained in it means that your club propose to 

 hunt upon the country which the Beagles have hunted over for a quarter of a 

 century, then I can only reply to you now as I did when the deputation above 

 referred to did me the honour to wait upon me, that I believe there is a law, 

 which may be called a law of that high courtesy which governs all the relations 

 of gentlemen between each other, and which plainly says, that under no circum- 

 stances whatever shall any pack of hounds interfere with the country hunted 

 by an older pack. 



If your club violate this law, then it will be with feelings of deep pain 

 that I shall most reluctantly be obliged to decline to acknowledge them as 

 sportsmen. 



E 



