328 THE MEYNELL HOUNDS. [1872 



left by Bentley Hall, over the brook, and perfectly straight by Stydd up to the 

 Hollywood, Snelston, where he was viewed, dead beat; but a fresh fox jumped 

 up, and we lost him. Time, up to the first check in the Boylstone Lane, twenty- 

 three minutes ; distance, close on five miles. Time, up to the Hollywood, 

 Snelston, fifty-three minutes, and the distance ten miles. 



Saturday, Novemler 30th, Bramshall village. — Found a fox in Philips' 

 Gorse, ran up to Carry Coppice and through the covert, out at the top end, over 

 the lane between Field Hall and Painley Hill, over the railway to Withington, 

 on to Park Hall, leaving Leigh on the left, down to Checkley ; here he bore to 

 the right past High bridges and Broadgate Hall, through Broadmoor plantation 

 by Sandy Lane and Light Oaks, to the right of Free Hay, crossed Moss Lane by 

 Light Wood, through Monks Wood, and, leaving Hales Hall to the left, went on 

 to Woodhouse, through Gibriding Wood, over the Churnet to Jackson's Wood, 

 where he turned to the left, and was killed close to the railway at Rake Edge. 

 Distance, fifteen miles, and the time one hour and fifty minutes. The field could 

 not get over the Churnet, so they had to go round by Oakamoor, and the hounds 

 had killed their fox fully twenty minutes before any one got to them. We had 

 out twenty-seven and a half couples of bitches, of which number twenty-seven 

 couples crossed the Churnet and killed the fox : the one absentee being old 

 Rachel, who had been lame for a fortnight and was short of work, and she only 

 stopped at Woodhouse. The first part of the run, up to Checkley, was over a 

 beautiful grass country, and quite fast enough for the state of the giound. After 

 that the country was rough and the hunting slower, and, curiously enough, had 

 we known of it, there was a ford over the Churnet within one field of where the 

 fox crossed the river. A hound carried the fox's head all the way back to Hoar 

 Cross. 



Monday, December 2nd, Blithhury. — Pear Tree Gorse blank. Found a fox 

 in Pipe Wood, ran him round the covert four times, and killed him. A brace in 

 Laurence's Wood ; went away with one over the Blythe, along the side of which 

 he ran for a bit, and then re-crossed the river, which we could not do, as it was 

 bank fiill, so the hounds ran clean away from us, and we never got to them till 

 they had raced into their fox and broken him up by St. Stephen's HUl, near 

 Blithfield. The hounds positively flew up the meadows, and they must have run 

 into their fox in about fifteen minutes. There was evidently another fox before 

 the hounds, for they got on a fresh line at once and ran within a field of Moreton 

 Gorse, wliich we left on the right, and ran up the meadows to within three fields 

 of Chartley, which was evidently his point (we had come through Blithfield and 

 by Newton village, and changed foxes once if not twice). Here he was headed 

 and turned back by Newton Gorse, and ran into Bagot's Woods. Got on a fresh 

 fox again there, ran back to Newton Gorse, almost up to Chartley, and back by 

 Moreton Gorse, as if they were going to Bishton, where we stopped the hounds, 

 as it was almost dark, the horses were all tired, and every one had gone home. 

 From the time we went away from Laurence's Wood till we gave over, we were 

 running three hours and forty-five minutes. 



Tuesday, December 3rd, Braihford. — No foxes in any of the coverts at 

 Brailsford. Found at Ednaston, ran a ring for twenty-five minutes, and to 

 ground in a rabbit-hole in the gorse. Country very heavy and boggy. Culland 

 plantation blank. Found in the Reeve's Moor at Longford, raced up to the 

 car, but the brute would not go away for a long time, and, at last, when he did, 

 he went to ground in an old earth by the Icehouse. 



Thursday, December 5th, Badbvrne. — Frost. 



Saturday, December 7th, Cation. — Two or three foxes in Catton Wood. One, 



