122 ROYAL ROCK BEAGLE HUXT. 



run. but his mount was not of the same mind, as we left him the wrong side of 

 a fence and ditch, which from appearances seemed hkelv to give him amuse- 

 ment for the rest of the afternoon. Puss now ran the road for a considerable 

 distance towards Willaston village, Driver and Baneful, two trusty hounds, 

 speaking to it nearly all the time. Once she turned off the road to the left and 

 got on the grass, the hounds ran breast high again, and it was plain — bar the 

 chance of changing hares — that we were getting on good terms with her, as she 

 commenced to make short doubles. The hounds worked splendidly, and came 

 up to her clapped on a field close to the railway near Hadlow Road Station, put 

 her up, but she was so beat they ran into her in the open a field ahead of any 

 of the hunt. She was saved, and ha\ing had her mask and pads taken off was 

 given to the hounds, and richly they deserved their worry, as the run from find 

 to kill was one hour and fifty minutes, with only one real check. Not being 

 good at distances, those who know the country can judge for themselves the 

 ground covered : from point to point it is five miles. We were very glad to see 

 some of the young contingent going right well ; there were also one or two 

 veterans who took a good place in the first flight. 



During the latter part of the run, a keen sportsman (S. Comerford) who is 

 well-known with hounds, and also " between the flags," joined us. We hope he 

 enjoyed the sport, as he took a good line of his own and went well, though on 

 this occasion on the same class of nag as the rest of us. 



W'e cannot finish this without saying how pleased we all were to see one of 

 our whips (J. Gould Smyth) out for the first time after his illness, and with him 

 his son Charlie, who is a '' chip of the old block," without doubt. Storm. 



[Note. — Tiie absent runners referred to above, were Joseph Ravenscrof: and Stuart 

 Smyth, who were away in .South America.] 



Account of the same rln by X. Caine. 



On Saturday, nth January, iSgo, the hounds met at Gayton. After drawing 

 over a few fields to Pensby, the Master (J. W. Macfie), with his well-known 

 leaping-pole, beat up a hare out of a bush beside a pit hole. The hounds were 

 then quietly put on the line, and went away with a good scent towards Gayton 

 old mill. Some people scattered about (who wisely kept quite quiet) turned the 

 hare towards Heswall, but after passing them she made her point towards the 

 mill. The hounds here came to a check in a turnip field, but soon finding the 

 line with a good cast by the huntsman (Cole), they went away at racing pace, 

 almost straight for a mile and a half, towards Ashfield. They then swept sharply 

 to the left to Westwood, where the hare had evidently made a turn for home, 

 but was headed by a chance passer-by, and continued her line past Thornton 

 Hough. The hounds came to a check at Westwood, for about a quarter of an 

 hour, and we had a narrow escape of being put on to a fresh hare by a zealous 

 county police officer ; but the Master kept the huntsman to his cast, the hounds 

 presently took up the line, and went merrily along the stream through Raby 

 Vale for nearly two miles, then turning sharply to the right went over the rise 

 past Willaston mill, leaving it half a mile on our right hand. Before crossing 

 the high-road between Willaston and Hooton there was a short check, but a 

 little judicious assistance by the senior whip (Dixon) put the hounds again on 

 the line, and they hunted steadily to a kill, within a field of the Parkgate rail- 

 way, a quarter of a mile from Hadlow Road station. 



This run, from point to point, was four and seven-eighths miles, as the crow 

 flies, and with the turns was fully nine miles, occupying one hour and forty 

 minutes from find to kill. By this time those of the field who had come up to 



