LEICESTERSHIRE 7 



himself unable to get horses that could carry him up to his hounds 

 when they went their best pace, and for that reason he gave them 

 up, and took to the road ; where his merits are too well known to 

 require any observation from me, he being allowed to be one of the 

 steadiest and most masterly coachmen in England. 



When Lord Sefton retired from the sporting world, it lost one of 

 its brightest stars. The splendour of his establishment gave to 

 spectators more the idea of an imperial hunting party in a foreign 

 counti-y than that of an English pack of fox-hounds. It brought to 

 our recollection Dido's hunting party to the godlike ^Eneas. If the 

 covert was accessible to a carriage, he always appeared in his 

 barouche-and-four, accompanied by several others ; and ladies were 

 often of the party, though they never quitted the carriages. His 

 hounds were perfect, and well might they be so. The celebrated 

 John Eaven hunted one pack ; and the no less celebrated Stephen 

 Goodall (afterwards many years huntsman to Sir Thomas Mostyn), 

 hunted the other, both pupils of Mr. Meynell. 



Mr. Beckford observes, that were he obliged to have either a good 

 huntsman and a bad whipper-in, or a bad huntsman and a good 

 whipper-in, he should decidedly prefer the latter. Of what impor- 

 tance then must he have considered a good whipper-in ; and what 

 advantages must Lord Sefton's hounds have possessed in having 

 two such whippers-in as Joe Harrison and Tom Wingfield, besides 

 other assistance ; for a feeder was always out well-mounted, as also 

 Young Raven, on one of Lord Sefton's spare horses, both ready to 

 act when wanting. 



The command which these hounds were in could only be com- 

 pared to that of a regiment on parade. A whip was scarcely ever 

 used ; and as far as a " yo-go-it " could be heard, nothing more was 

 wanting to bring them back. A horn also was scarcely ever heard 

 to sound. I was particularly struck with the latter circumstance, 

 having never heard it for six days in succession ; and it was only 

 had recourse to on the seventh, in consequence of Stephen Goodall, 

 whose voice was never strong, giving a blow for a hound, called 

 " Cruiser," who was missing in a fog. This, in some degree, is 

 connected with the nature of the country, for we all know that in 

 woodlands a horn is as necessary as a hound. 



