THE LATE MR. R. S. D, R. ROPER'S DIARIES: 



VARIED SPORT FROM 1842—54. 



Harking back to the time of Frank Coates' huntsmanship of 

 the Hurworth there were, as has already been stated, no diaries 

 kept by the Wilkinson family after the death of Mr. Thomas 

 Wilkinson, in 1823, till Mrs. Wilkinson commenced her records 

 in 1854. We have, however, been fortunate enough to have 

 loaned to us " the accounts of sport for the years 1842 and 

 onwards," kept by the late Mr. R. S. D. R. Roper, who was 

 about this epoch " one of the main men " with the Hurworth, 

 Wynyard and South Durham, and the Duke of Cleveland's. In 

 addition to riding regularly with these packs, the late Mr. Roper, 

 who lived at Heighington at the time he began his diaries, 

 kept a pack of harriers with which he enjoyed sport on " ofif 

 days." He was an all-round sportsman, and accounts of 

 hunting are frequently interspersed with details of shooting 

 days which make interesting reading to-day. As mentioned in 

 the previous chapter, Mr. Roper was known as a good horse- 

 man, as was his brother-in-law, Mr. George Gilpin-Brown, 

 whose name is deep writ in Northern hunting history about 

 this period. Mr. Roper died on February 15th, 1867, and was 

 buried at Gilling. His son, Mr. George Roper, of The Lodge, 

 Gilling West, Richmond, has followed in the footsteps of his 

 father and, as will be seen from the excerpts from the diaries, 

 began his sporting career so long ago as 1846, when he had his 

 initiatory day, at the age of five, with the Duke of Cleveland's 

 foxhounds and was presented vAth. the brush. In his day Mr. 

 George Roper was well known with the Raby Hunt, when Mr. 



