30 The Hunting Field With Horse and Hound 



snobbishness among American sportsmen. It is indeed a pleas- 

 ure to find a club like the Rose Tree, practising true democracy 

 as a democratic people in a democratic nation should. It is as 

 delightful as it is simple. It is at least the writer's idea of what 

 a thoroughbred Ainerican sportsman is Mke. Long live the 

 Rose Tree Hunt, to preserve and transmit examples of un- 

 adulterated Americanism, pure American hospitahty and true 

 American sportsmanship. 



This club hunts nothing but the wild fox, of which there 

 are fortunately plenty. The club rules forbid the use of the 

 hounds for drag hunts. It is a hunt club pure and simple ; the 

 best of good fellowship prevails; the farmer and his son are 

 welcome guests at the club house and in the runs, where every 

 man is on an equal footing. Visitors are always welcome and 

 one is always sure of a good day's sport. 



The writer rode out with the Rose Tree Hounds from the 

 kennels for a short run. As there was snow on the ground 

 the hounds were somewhat slow in finding, and as the writer 

 had made an appointment with Jolm Valentine, ]M. F. H. of 

 the Radnor Hunt, to spend the afternoon with his hounds, 

 he was obliged to quit early in the day. As luck would have it, 

 he missed the hunt of the season with the Rose Tree, as will 

 be seen from the foUowdng letter, which he received a few days 

 later from Mr. Hey, who gives such a dehghtful description 

 of the run, that it would be a pity to omit it from these pages. 

 It reads as follows : 



My Dear Mr. Peer: 



You may regret as long as you live missing the experience 

 of last Saturday. After you left us, we had one of the most 

 enjoyable days to hounds it has ever been my good fortune to 

 get into. 



We left the kennels as you know, about eight, and started 

 for the west Chester Barrens, a covert about five miles from 



