74 CHASING AND RACING 



Granville Gordon, were beaux gar$ons^ and good all 

 round sportsmen. 



What Hugh Lonsdale does not know about fox- 

 hounds and the breeding and hunting thereof is, to use 

 a vulgarism, not worth knowing. For hours after the 

 others had retired to rest I would, metaphorically 

 speaking, sit at his feet garnering knowledge, which 

 later on served me in good stead. So it was from my 

 noble friend that I sought advice when the question of 

 acquiring a pack to hunt the O.B.H. country arose. 

 My appeal met with a ready response ; for when we 

 met, he informed me that he had arranged with Mr. 

 (afterwards Viscount) Chaplin to lend me his Blankney 

 hounds. This was indeed a godsend ! I called on 

 the Minister of Agriculture that was to be at Suther- 

 land House, St. James', which had been lent him by 

 his brother-in-law, the Duke. I was received in the 

 kindest manner, and the Squire of Blankney gave me 

 details and many useful hints as to the merits of the 

 hounds and the lines on which he had gone in breeding 

 them. It seems that my friend Lonsdale had taken 

 unto himself the pick of the bitch pack, but there were 

 some useful hounds in the mixed lot left over ; quite 

 sufficient for my purposes, and forming a nucleus from 

 which, with various couples picked up at auction, would 

 enable me to get together a level pack in the course of 

 time. The young dog entry, which his lordship had 

 not touched, contained some first-class hounds, bred 

 from Belvoir and Broklesby strains, judiciously blended 



