HISTOKY OF THE LINLITHGOW 



of the sunset had turned to grey," and as hounds 

 were tired and horses dead beat, the chase was 

 abandoned.^ 



But Captain Wauchope's mastership was marked 

 by two events distinct from the sport shown — a 

 prolonged snow-storm and frost, happily as seasons 

 go unusual, and the presence of royalty in the 

 field. It was in the end of November 1878, that 

 a spell of hard weather, which lasted for thirteen 

 weeks, set in, and until it broke up in the following 

 month of March, the hounds were hardly out of 

 kennel.^ Mrs Goldfrap remembers when, during 

 this period, sport was impossible, going out with 

 her husband and tracking a fox in the snow and 

 riding home in the great cold with icicles on the 

 horse's heads. The other event, the presence of 

 royalty, occurred in the month of October 1880, 

 when the Princess Mary of Cambridge and the 

 Duke of Teck were the guests of the Countess of 

 Hopetoun. The opening day, which seems to have 

 been purposely accelerated, was fixed to take place 

 at Hopetoun House on Tuesday the 19th of the 

 month ; and the master and his wife stayed there 

 and met the Duke and Duchess. The Duke, who 

 was mounted by Lord Hopetoun, was cautioned 

 not to touch the horse lent to him behind the 

 saddle, but forgetting the warning, did so, and 

 was kicked off at the meet. Notwithstanding this 

 mishap he rode with the hounds all day and, after 

 a fair run, was present when they killed their 



1 ' The Field,' 20th March 1880. 2 Minute-book, vol. i. p. 180. 



252 



