COL. ANSTRUTHER THOMSON 123 



Cradock and George Moore) told me that on Sir R. 

 Button's taking the Quorn country Lord Stamford 

 and Colonel Wildman (his late guardian) had settled 

 that the Ashby and Leicester Road was in future to 

 be the boundary ; but that the Quorn were still to 

 have the coverts south of the road, and we were to 

 draw them from the ist November till the ist March, 

 and that Mr. Wilson ought to have written to say so. 

 I have since been considering whether the limits of 

 a hunting country can be thus changed by the de- 

 cision of a proprietor. My opinion is it can not. I 

 asked Sir George Chetwynd to consult his brother 

 committeemen, as, of course, it was in their hands, I 

 having made my report officially. 

 Sir Richard Sutton wrote from 



" QUORNDON HALL, i8th February, 1848. 



" MY DEAR SIR, 



" As Master of the Quorndon Hunt I con- 

 sider it my positive duty to protest against your pack 

 drawing the coverts belonging to Lord Stamford 

 north of the Ashby and Leicester Road ; and to add 

 that it is contrary to the agreement which was for- 

 warded to me last spring from the committee assem- 

 bled at Leicester, and on the good faith of which I 

 undertook to hunt this country." 



I replied to Sir Richard : 



" Some time ago when the Atherstone Hounds 

 met at Stewards Hay I was informed by Mr. Martin 

 and Mr. Cradock that Lord Stamford had at your 



