MEYNELL WORTHIES. 35 



Andrew Kniveton, by Alderman Francis Meynell. In 

 1753, being only eighteen years of age, he bought 'Lord 

 Ferrers' hounds, and commenced his career as M.F.H. 

 at Langton Hall, on the borders of Leicestershire and 

 Northamptonshire. Mr. Boothby, "Prince" Boothby, 

 as he was called, lived with him, and he, with Lord 

 R. Cavendish, contributed towards the expenses of 

 hunting the country. For forty-seven years was JNIr. 

 Meynell staunch to his first love. It was only natural 

 that such devotion should have great results. The out- 

 come of it is the modern system of foxhunting. This 

 he achieved by hunting later in the day than his pre- 

 decessors, so that his fox was fit to run through having 

 by that time digested his supper. To meet this advan- 

 tage to the fox, he paid such attention to breeding hounds 

 for nose, stoutness, and speed, and was so successful in the 

 attempt, that his pack became the fountain-head from 

 which flowed the best blood in every kennel. He paid 

 the greatest attention to feeding and conditioning, always 

 attending to the former personally, and was very careful 

 about walks for his puppies. Hard riding was not in his 

 line, and it is said that the modern style of crossing a 

 country introduced by the Flying Cliilde of Kinlet, by no 

 means met with his approval. Yet he gave a lot of 

 money for his horses, and contrived, as a rule, to be witli 

 hounds, being as anxious to secure a good start as any 

 thruster of to-day at Ranksboro' Gorse. 



They tell a story of a wonderful run, from some- 

 where in what was once known as the Donington country, 

 ending with a kill on Leicester racecourse, and of how, 

 towards the end, a Leedham, who was riding the second 

 horse, parallel with an impervious bullfinch, remarked 

 to his companion, " We shan't see the old squire 

 again ! " When the Master's voice from the other side 

 of the bullfinch exclaimed sarcastically, " Won't you, 

 though ? " 



Everybody has written of his teacupful of veal for 

 breakfast ; of the tincture of rhubarb in his flask ; of his 



