8 A BAGGED FOX IN 1792. 



Sport gave out, or the weather became inclement, hunts- 

 men and hounds would wend their way home, sometimes not 

 returning for ten weeks at a stretch ; for instance, on the 

 3rd January 1792, Jones states " the hounds met at Gumley 

 Wood, and on the 5th at Langton Hall," but not until 

 the following March 19th, do we read of them again as 

 far south as the Uppingham Road, which may be called 

 the dividing line, east of Leicester, when, having met at 

 Barkby Holt, they tried and found at Billesdon Coplow, 

 the whole intervening period being given up to fixtures in 

 the northern section, leaving the south quite " out in the 

 cold." Of course occasionally hounds ran in a southerly 

 direction, as on 30th January same year, when they " met 

 •' at Syston, found at Berry Clift, and lost him at Loseby " ; 

 again on 13th February, meeting at same place, they 

 " found at Queniborough gorse, went away and killed at a 

 " house near Barkby Holt ; also found at Barkby Holt ; 

 " went away by Beeby and Hungarton to the Coplow, ran 

 " into Mr. Palmer's house, and bagged him ; turned him up 

 " coming home ; the hounds ran another for a while in the 

 " Coplow and killed." 



One more instance from this source of information ma)'- 

 be cited : on November ist, 1794, hounds met at Marston 

 Wood, but there was no other appearance in the direction 

 of the "line" until 20th January, 1795, when, to the 

 credit of Jones, he had been " twice in the snow to 

 Billesdon Coplow to disturb the foxes." But such spas- 

 modic efforts could scarcely be regarded as a serious 

 attempt to hunt the country. Indeed the Dalesmen amongst 

 the precipitous snow-clad hills of the North Riding of York- 

 shire, where at times it is only possible to follow on foot, 

 managed even in those days to provide a better average of 

 sport, and that with only a scratch pack of old and young 

 hounds, quite a promiscuous assembly, often brought by 

 twos and threes to the trysting place ; squire, parson, 

 farmer, and innkeeper all contributing their quota, neces- 

 sarily requiring more than a crack of the whip to induce 

 anything like order or obedience. 



