Gnosall — Cound — Whitchurch. 89 



received her quietus instantly, but the hounds soon 

 settled on to a grand dog fox that went away over the 

 brook by Deep Dale, and turned to Ercall 'Heath. They 

 raced him through it, and over the river at Tibberton 

 osier bed, pointing for Shray Hill. Here a false halloa 

 lost us an important ten minutes, and our fox ran the 

 road towards the Wild Moors. Thatcher, however, held 

 the hounds forward to the big covert, and hit his line 

 again heel way. The knowing ones declared it was a 

 fresh fox, but Thatcher stood his ground quietly in spite 

 of the murmurers, had the hounds turned to him, and 

 proved himself a huntsman (a rej)roof to the scoffers) by 

 setting us right all through the Wild Moors, where 

 hounds ran splendidly up to Eyton Mill. Here our fox 

 had lain down, p.nd they raced him to ground in the 

 Parson's garden at Kynnersley — got him out and ate him, 

 as the hounds richly deserved blood after such a good 

 hunting run of two hours and twenty minutes, the greater 

 part of it straight. Mr. Borough has reason to be proud 

 of having found them such a fine old fox. 



Tuesday, at Gnosall Station, I hear that Ranton pro- 

 duced the same fox as on previous occasions had defeated 

 them, and his tactics were as devious and successful as 

 heretofore. Of the afternoon run I could get no par- 

 ticulars, as my informant had a train to catch. 



My Cheshire Tuesday budget has not come to hand, but 

 no doubt Mr. Corbet gave an excellent entertainment, in 

 fact it was so good, the papers say, that it nearly killed 

 Captain Park Yates, his neigbouring M. F. H. in North 

 Cheshire, an d considerably shook up Lord Alexander Paget. 



The Shropshire, Wednesday, at Cound was, I under- 

 stand the scene of a good hunting run, which eventually 

 found its termination beyond Cressage Park, where a 

 staunch fox beat them. 



Thiu-sday at Whitchurch. Probably the last, and by 

 no means the least eventful of the season. When we say 

 that Ash Wood was the first piece in the play it is equal to 

 asserting that the morning was not wasted in coffee- 

 housing. In fact a fox was so quickly away, and Good all 

 after him with a few couple of hounds, that a part of t he 

 field who were listening to the rest running another in 

 covert, had to be satisfied with a back seat over that nice 

 bit of jumping country to Cloverley big wood. Here 

 forces Were joined, and a fox hunted on through the Park 



