Breeding of Himters. 3 1 9 



In later times no better pair crossed Cheshire than 

 Mr. John White on his Merry Lad. Although he was 

 upwards of sixteen-one, he had action like a pony, 

 and at timber there was nothing to touch him. He 

 was hired at first from Mr. Tilbury, who furnished 

 fifteen to twenty horses for the season when Mr. 

 White took the Cheshire country, and was afterwards 

 purchased for 200 guineas. 



The Cheshire Pack is generally supposed to have 

 been established about two hundred years ago, and 

 nearly all the first hounds were red tan, a colour 

 which is still often to be found in the kennel ; while 

 the blue pie, which was first introduced by the Duke 

 of Rutland's Saladin, appears at intervals by breed- 

 ing. The name of this hound was nearly as dear to 

 the Cheshire huntsmen as Ranger, one of Earl Fitz- 

 william's blood, was to the late Tom Carter's father. 

 In fact, when the latter had ridden over for a few 

 days' stay with Lord Scarboro's huntsman, he would 

 put down his glass in an evening, and shout, "Ranger! 

 hoy ! Ranger /" unceasingly for as long as a short 

 burst. Early in the century the noted Bill Gaff hunted 

 them, and at that time they went one week out of 

 the four, during the season, to the Woore kennels, 

 with a host of scarlets in their train. There was very 

 little bed for Bill that week, but he used to snatch 

 some two or three hours from his pipe and his blue 

 ruin, of which he could drink enough to float a man 

 of war, and turn out with his boots oiled, and himself 

 "all right," at cockcrow. Sir Peter Warburton, of 

 Arley Hall, was then the master ; his hounds were 

 large and slashing, and his glass of ale the best in the 

 county. The runs used to be of immense length. 

 One day they gave up so far from home, that Gaff, 

 having a fixture on the Forest early next day, took 

 the freshest horse and went back during the night, 

 leaving the wearied whips and hounds to follow at 

 leisure. Having no other resource, he thrust the 



