DATES OF THE PRINCIPAL HUNTS 13 



of the Pelham (Lord Yarborough's) family. The 

 Brocklesby Hound Lists probably take the pedigree 

 foxhound further back than any other lists which are 

 in existence, and it- is hardly necessary to mention that 

 the blood always has been, and still is, of extraordinary 

 value. 



The Bel voir Hunt dates from 1750, and is supposed 

 to have become p. foxhound pack (exclusively) in 1762. 

 The hounds have always been owned by the reigning 

 Duke of Rutland, and the mastership has been held in 

 the family, except for two periods, viz. between 1830 

 and 1857, when Lord Forester held office, and since 

 1896, when Sir Gilbert Greenall (the present master) 

 took command, hounds and kennels being lent to him 

 by the Duke of Rutland. That Belvoir blood has 

 been for the last fifty years, and still is, the best in the 

 world is a fact which hardly admits of dispute, but it 

 came originally, in a great degree, from the Brocklesby, 

 which in earlier days was almost the adjoining hunt, 

 the Burton — of which the present Blankney is a part — 

 being the only intervener. 



At what remote date hounds were first kept at Bad- 

 minton there is no record to show, nor is it known 

 when the pack changed from stag to fox. But the fifth 

 Duke of Beaufort had foxhounds in the year 1786, and 

 since that date the pack has been regularly maintained 

 by four Dukes of Beaufort in succession. In many 

 ways the Badminton establishment is unique, more 

 especiall'"' in the amount of sport which is afforded. 

 For many seasons past hounds have hunted on every 

 possible day, and at times two packs are out on the same 

 day in different parts of the country, while on occasions an 

 early morning hunt with one pack has been followed by 

 another hunt with another pack later in the day. The 



