284 LEAVES FROM A HUNTING DIARY 



On Saturday, January 27th, after a prolonged and ineffectual attempt to 

 get a fox away from C. E. Ridley's new gorse, and after drawing the whole 

 Pleshey country blank, at 3.20 p.m. they found themselves at Screens, and 

 had a rare good run from that covert of an hour and thirty minutes, run- 

 ning through Roxwell, where those who plunged in and out of the brook, 

 led by Hilliard, had a great advantage, and on through Lady Grove, with 

 very pretty hunting up to Lea Wood and Writtle Park, thence through 

 King Wood to Hylands Park, where the fox went close to the lake near 

 the house, and perhaps because he was frightened by a shooting party, 

 who were probably having their last treat for the season, went on and across 

 the river and close up to the Dye Works at Chelmsford, where information 

 was received that the fox had gone on to the railway, but being dusk the 

 chase was abandoned. The day finished with a participation in the 

 generous hospitality of Mr. T. Usborne, M.P., followed by a ride home 

 through a night of Stygian darkness, hounds not reaching the kennels 

 till nearly g o'clock. 



Monday, January 2gth. We met at Dudbrook, where Mr. and Mrs. 

 Grossman very hospitably entertained us all before hounds moved off. 



For many years the Dudbrook coverts have been noted for 

 their dearth of foxes, the late tenant, Mr. David P. Sellar, 

 never having taken any interest in their preservation. Now, 

 however, with the advent of two such keen fox-hunters as 

 Mr. and Mrs. Grossman we may hope for better things in 

 the future. That we did not find upon this occasion was a 

 great chsappointment to them both, as it was well known that 

 there were foxes at Dudbrook, and before the day was over we 

 brought one of them back from Curtis Mill Green and then 

 put up another. 



It was a bitterly cold morning. All those who had driven 

 to the meet looked perished, and required very little persuasion 

 to try the hot coffee, or orange or cherry brandy. Mr. and 

 Mrs. Arkwright and J. Pelly were staying in the house, while 

 among those present at the first meet that had been held at 

 Dudbrook for probably nigh half a century were Mrs. and Miss 

 Bowlby, Mr. C. E. Green, Major and Mrs. Ricardo, Mr. and 

 Mrs. R. F. Ball, Mr. E. A. Ball (about his third appearance at 

 the covert side this season), Golonel Lockwood, Miss M. 

 Morgan, Mr. Tyndale White and his son, Mr. R. W'altham, Mr. 

 F. Avila, Miss T. Buxton, Mr. A. W. Graig, Gaptain Wood, 

 Messrs. Ford Barclay, Jones, Brown, Bevan, Lee, Gockett, 

 Fitch, E. Savill, E. Lobb, L. Marriage, Miss Jones, Mrs. 

 Barron, Mrs. Bennett, Mr., Mrs. and Miss Waters, Sir Gharles 

 Smith and his two sons, Golonel and Mrs. Fane, Mrs. W. R. 

 Glarke, Mr. F. Green, Miss M. Green, Miss E. Pelly, Miss G. 

 Pelly. Mr. L. Pelly, Miss Savill. 



A brief scurry from Gurtis Mill Green to Dudbrook 

 warmed us up at mid-day. This is always a sporting line of 



