COL. ANSTRUTHER THOMSON 325 



asked if the hounds liked Payne, replied, " They 

 hate him ". The hounds were capital in chase, but 

 with a bad scent they did not half get on, and bumbled 

 about like pointers. 



Payne had a pretty considerable idea of his own 

 importance. On being asked who the new master 

 was to be, he said, "It don't matter, if he has plenty 

 of money I can manage the hounds". He had 

 perquisites of all sorts, ^130 wages, 10 for 

 clothes, 9 for drugs, g for milk for the puppies, 

 bones, hides, and draft hounds, and silk lashes and 

 thongs for whips, every quarter. 



On going into the' kennel one morning I noticed 

 that there was no sign of milk in the trough in which 

 the puppies were fed. On speaking to the feeder, 

 he said, "They do very well without milk if the 

 flesh is fresh ". When I met Payne I said, " Charles, 

 how much milk had the puppies this morning ? " 

 " Milk, sir ; oh, sir, not much, sir." " But how 

 much? a gallon?" "A gallon, sir, no, sir, not a 

 gallon." "Well a quart?" "No, sir, not a quart, 

 sir." " Had they any ? " " No, sir." " Why not ? " 

 " Please, sir, my cow has not calved." " Very well ; 

 I will have a cow of my own. Let me know what 

 you consider the amount you receive altogether." 

 He gave me a memorandum amounting to ^260. I 

 said, " You have put it rather too high. I will give 

 you ^250 and no perquisites of any sort everything 

 belongs to me." He accepted this. 



I bought a little Welsh cow and put it into the 

 kennel-field. Some time after my wife went to visit 



