74 



THE WARWICKSHIRE HOUNDS. 



A gallant mem- 

 ber of the tribe. 



A brilliant day 

 from Meon 

 Hill. 



Mr. TdlRNHiLL. a spell of ill-luck been voted slow, regained his former 

 -1- * fame. One judicious point Mr. Thornhill made was of 

 fixing his meets at some distance from the coverts he 

 meant to draw. As, for example, Princethorpe for Deb- 

 dale, Gaydon Inn for Ladbroke and Radbourn Gorse, 

 and thus reducing the disturbance which the coverts 

 received from people assembling at them before the 

 hounds arrived. The first mentioned covert, Debdale, 

 provided some of the finest runs of Mr. Thornhill's 

 opening season. One fox — it being to all appearances 

 the same — gave them three good runs into North- 

 amptonshire from there, finishing once at Crick, and 

 another time at Watford. The third time, however, 

 after running for about an hour on almost exactly the 

 same line as he had done before,he was pulled down in 

 the open. 



December 2nd, 1833, is said to have been the most 

 brilliant day "the Warwickshire " had seen for years. 

 The meet was at Ilmington village, the fine dog pack 

 being out. Foxcote was the order for the day, but 

 complaints having been received of an annoying 

 individual at Meon Hill the • hounds were 

 taken there. After drawing one or two little 

 plantations, a fox was started with the hounds on 

 capital terms, taking his way into the beautiful vale of 

 Evesham. Lower Quinton was left on the right and 

 Pebworth on his left, and he passed through Marston 

 Grounds and crossed the brook, just skirting Marston 

 village and leaving Dorsington on his right. From 

 this point he went on for Ullington Farm where 

 he found himself distressed and tried threading two 

 or three of the farm yards and out buildings. He 

 then boldly faced the large enclosures of Pebworth 

 and skirting the Gorse made a good run for life, but 

 was most gallantly run into in the open on the top of 

 Rumer Hill. It was a brilliant run of one hour and 

 five minutes, without a check or the hounds being cast 

 once during the whole time. The pace throughout 



