BEAUFORT HUNT: PAST AND PRESENT. 53 



motor then, and the foui-horse van conveyed the hounds. His 

 Grace invariably took me with him when lie drove to Sutton Benger 

 or elsewhere, and it took us much longer to come home when we 

 left off at Bynol or Bushton, and then had to come to Sutton. But 

 it was as pleasant as it could be, and if we had had an extra good day 

 we had time to discuss all the merits attending it. On Friday 

 Nov. 30th, 1900, when we met at Erlestoke, we had a long day and a 

 good one. We had a capital gallop in the morning, and killed the 

 first fox after running over the Steeple Ashton Vale, then later found 

 in Erlestoke Wood, and ran over a lot of country to Lavington, 

 and finally over the Downs ; some splendid hound work, which 

 included some rare work over a large tract of new plough. A good 

 bitch named Harriet stuck persistently to the fox, which I viewed 

 a good way ahead, and we finally killed him in the open at Tilshed 

 after a two hours' run, and we had to come to Melksham to the van, 

 then home to Badminton, altogether about 32 miles. This was when 

 we were hunting eight times a week by twice in the week having 

 two packs out a day. So that it required some thought and something 

 to do at home. But we always did it, and liked it. I made a practice 

 of being up in the morning early, which is always essential in a 

 big establishment. 



The number of good runs would fill a volume themselves, were 

 I to relate them all. The foxes have not made the good points 

 over the Vale in Dauntsey District as they did before the new railway 

 came, but there are plenty of good foxes in the hunt. There is no 

 country like it. It is needless to relate how the pack has improved 

 since 1896. Having all the best pedigrees at my finger ends, and 

 knowing all the best working sorts, I set about them, and having 

 such a good hound authority as His Grace as Master, it is nothing 

 to be wondered that the Pack got to the present state of perfection. 

 By introducing the best of Brocklesby and the best old Belvoir 

 blood, combined with the old strains of Lord H. Bentinck, and 

 having seen and known all the best workers since the sixties (I myself 

 commencing my career as Huntsman under such a Master of the 

 science as Mr. Frank Foljambe), it need only be expected that such 

 good results in hound breeding would have happy results. Being 

 such a devoted lover of hounds and their work, the work and trouble 

 that has been taken has shown for itself. 



Yours respectfully, 



Will Dale. 



