174 THE COMPLETE FOXHUNTER 



from a riding point of view to attract strangers, for in all 

 of them there is more plough than grass, and excessive 

 game preservation is a feature of many districts in 

 each of these hunts. The following in each is fairly 

 local, but very good sport is at times obtained, and 

 both the present and the lately retired master of the 

 Essex and Suffolk are great enthusiasts and most suc- 

 cessful breeders of hounds. Perhaps the Cambridge- 

 shire has more grass than the Essex countries, and 

 not only has this pack a fine history, but it has 

 some famous names on its bead-roll of past masters, 

 and it can boast of being almost entirely free from 

 wire. 



The Newmarket and Thurlow country was hunted 

 at one time by the famous Mr. George Osbaldeston, 

 who held the then Thurlow country concurrently with 

 the Pytchley, and journeyed to and fro the two 

 countries, travelling at night, and very often doing 

 the distance on hacks, which had been sent forward 

 to various towns on the road. Saffron Walden, it 

 may be mentioned, is almost at the junction of this 

 hunt, the Essex, and the Puckeridge, and any one 

 living there can command the Puckeridge Monday 

 country, some of their Tuesday or Wednesday country, 

 one day with the Newmarket and Thurlow (generally 

 Thursday), while the Essex Fridays are always close at 

 hand. There is something comic about the idea of 

 Saffron Walden being a good hunting centre, but for a 

 man who must be in town two days a week, and can 

 hunt on the other four, it is by no means to be despised, 

 and personally we have seen rattling good sport, both 

 with the Puckeridge and Essex, within a few miles of 

 the town. 



On the west side of London, in addition to the Old 



