NOTABLE RUNS, i2i 



C. T. Dixon's account. 



The meet of our little pack, on January iith, iSgo, was at the Glcgg Arms, 

 Gayton, aiul as we had an exceptionally f;ood run, we will endeavour to f:;ivc 

 a few particulars of tlie day's sport, for the benefit of those who had not the 

 },'ood luck to be out ; anion.ij whom, wc arc sorry to say, three or four of the best 

 men with these hounds nmst be counted. Some forty to fifty members and 

 visitors, amon.i,' the latter a i,Miodly show of the fair sex, welcomed the Master ; 

 and as Jonathan Cole, the huntsman, and thirteen and a half couple were ready, 

 we threw off about 1-20 p.m.. and first drew a fallow alongside Barnston Towers 

 (the residence of our good friend. Jolin Sherwood), then up towards Heswall 

 Hill. We then took a turn. o\er part of the common and on to two fallows, 

 towards Barnston village : hereabout the hounds spoke to a quest, and though 

 they kept hitting it here and there, leaving no doubt that a hare had been on the 

 move, it was not until our worthy Master was fortunate enough to beat out a 

 gorse clump with his '• wee stick." that his keen eye had spotted as a likely place 

 for a hare to lie up in after tlu> storm of {he previous night, that up she jumped, 

 and one of the right sort, as the following will prove. " Gone away !" soon 

 brought the hounds, which, as puss had got away without a view, were laid on 

 quietly by the huntsman, and the moment they touched the line it was plainly 

 seen what the scent was like, as they raced away at once and took us towards 

 Barnston Towers. The hare, evidently being headed at the road, turned to the 

 right and up over the hill, as if going for Heswall village, then, bearing to the 

 left, she made a point straight as if for Ashfield, keeping two fields on the Dee 

 side of the Hoylake and Chester road all the way till abreast of Westwood, 

 when she turned sharp to the left and crossed the above-named road, passing 

 on the left of Westwood, where some splendid hound-work was done by the 

 little pack, as she made some very sharp doubles. Fresh hares also were on 

 foot, but they did not leave the line, and took it across the road into Mr. Kynas- 

 ton's farm-yard, then through the orchard and into the gardens, where she 

 happened to be turned at the lodge gate. She made several doubles in the 

 grounds, eventually going out through the orchard again, and away pointing for 

 Raby. The hounds were a bit at fault in the garden, and this being the first 

 check from the start, let up a considerable number of the field. 



A judicious cast round the big meadow at the back of the house put us on 

 the line again, and hounds ran as if going for Thornton, but doubled to the 

 right down by the stream side for some distance, then crossed it and up 

 through Stanacres (Mr. Grainger's) and forward, pointing straight for Raby 

 Mere, passing on the right of W. H. Cochran's house and over the road by the 

 bridge in the dip at Raby Vale ; then on for some three hundred yards, and 

 then turned sharp to the right. Here a jolly farmer (Mr. Milton — a good friend 

 to sport), out on his land on a good useful sort of a nag, could not resist 

 showing the way over several fences in good style ; indeed some of us felt as if 

 we would rather be in his position than on " shanks' nag," as hounds were 

 running breast high. The line taken from here lay nearly straight for Lydiate, 

 but when about a field past Raby House (G. Eaton's), puss had doubled sharp 

 to the left and crossed between there and Willaston Mill. At this point George 

 Katon, one of our good members, who always has a hare for us, being about 

 with his son, joined in, and having stolen a march on the rest of the field, the 

 hounds being a long way ahead, led us well for a mile or so. Here it seemed 

 as if puss were going to the left of Hooton, but bore away a little to the right 

 down to within two hundred j-ards of Hooton Station, where she got on the 

 high road. A field or so back from here wc saw a resident of these parts (a 

 light weight) on a good-looking pony ; he evidently wished to sec more of the 



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