18G3] MR. E. J. BIRD. 229 



Mr. Bird's father hunted with the Puckeridge in Mr. 

 Hanbury's and Mr. Parry's time, his great hunting ally 

 being the celebrated " Dick " Gurney, to whom Mr. Bird 

 (senior) sold the equally famous, Sober Robin (vide " Scot 

 and Sebright," p. 343). The uncle of " our " Mr. Bird was 

 Squire Dobede, of Exning House, Newmarket, and a great 

 character on the Heath. It was at his death that the 

 Jockey Club acquired the Exning estate. 



Since this was written Mr. Harry Bird, who has been 

 mentioned above, died of typhoid fever in Gibraltar, 

 where he was immensely popular. He was considered the 

 best gentleman jockey on the Rock. 



The season of 1863-64 opened on October 26th, at 

 Sudbury Coppice, where they had what is described as 

 a good day's cub-hunting, and killed a brace. In this year 

 the young squire married the Hon. Emily Wood, eldest 

 daughter of Viscount Halifax, and went to live at Cross 

 Hays, Hoar Cross, which had been built for them. So 

 another lady was added to the very limited number who 

 went out with the Hoar Cross hounds in those days. 

 Being Yorkshire bred, it was only natural that she should 

 ride and be fond of hunting, and Tom was in high glee 

 one day, when hounds ran very hard from Eaton Wood, 

 to find only three others, besides himself, with them, 

 especially as one of them was his young mistress on Micky 

 Free. The other two were the Hon. E. Coke and Mr. 

 Michael Bass. 



There were certain celebrities out with the hounds 

 this year, including Lord Granville, Colonel Anstruther 

 Thomson, Count Hall, Lady E. Villiers, Lady G. Talbot, 

 Lady G. Hamilton, Lady E. Mount Edgecumbe, Lady 

 Blanche Egerton, Mr. Corbet, and others mentioned else- 

 where. During the early part of the season there was not 

 much sport, but on December 14th, hounds dropped on 

 to one of the good old-fashioned hill foxes in an osier bed 

 below Hope Wood. It was a nice calm morning, but 

 scent was none of the best, for they came to a long check 

 by Roston village, and so only hunted slowly to Snelston, 



