The Origin of Fox-hunting 



many contemporaries in the next twenty years 

 (which brought the date up to 1770) who were 

 quite as keen about hound-breeding as himself 

 — Mr. Charles Pelham, afterwards first Lord Yar- 

 borough, Lord Granby, Sir Roland Winn, Sir 

 Thomas Gascoign, Sir Walter Vavasour, Mr. 

 Willoughby, and Mr. E. Legard forming quite a 

 little band in giving their strenuous efforts towards 

 the improvement of the foxhound. Mr. Hugo 

 Meynell, though, was the first to give the foxhound 

 the opportunity to show his true character in 

 hunting a fox. He was observant of the forward 

 cast, and when hounds raced on a line the fox in 

 front of them went straighter and faster. The 

 dash of the foxhound was thus assured, and the 

 try back of the southern hound or harrier entirely 

 superseded. Then, again, Mr. Meynell devised 

 how hounds should be ridden to. Always driving 

 in front, there was nothing to prevent horsemen 

 living with them, and so came about the boldness 

 and skill in getting over a country that has been 

 unique to the Briton born. Melton became the 

 metropolis of the new system by about 1780, when 

 men were riding harder than Mr. Meynell alto- 

 gether liked, as they rode over his hounds. The 

 sport, though, had become immensely popular and 

 was spreading everywhere. Foxhounds, by their 

 deeds in the field, had got into extraordinary 



repute, and it appeared to be pretty generally 



II 



