66 Modern Dogs. 



alone might entitle him to be selected among the celebrated 

 twelve to be considered as a pillar of the hound stud book. 

 There is, however, something else to boast of to the memory 

 of Contest, as he was the sire of Harry Ayris's favourite Cromwell, 

 and the blood of the latter runs through the Badminton, the 

 Croome particularly, through Lord Coventry's Rambler, and it 

 is also largely represented in the Quorn, besides, as a matter 

 of course, being mixed up in all the Berkeley Castle pedigrees. 

 Cromwell was bred from at Berkeley Castle in the same sort of 

 proportion as Furrier was used by Osbaldeston, as the entries 

 during his lifetime show, and he was noted for getting excellent 

 workers. 



The beautiful colours of the Senators may not be due to 

 Contest, as I think I have been told that he was a grey-pied 

 hound, and Cromwell was that colour, as I have seen his skin. 

 The goodness of Contest, however is explained in his noble 

 owner's diary, as, if there was one particular favourite with Lord 

 Henry more than another, it was Contest, considered by him to be 

 the best of foxhounds in any part of a run ; and, as in the case of 

 Mr. Corbet's Trojan, Contest was an extraordinary wall and gate 

 jumper. His blood can be traced to the three good-looking 

 sisters that made up the two couples of the Warwickshire in the 

 older bitch class at Peterborough namely, Factious, Fair Maid, 

 and Faultless, as Archibald, their sire, was out of a bitch by Lord 

 Coventry's Rambler. 



I have mentioned the Osbaldeston Furrier, the Grove Barrister, 

 the Drake Duster, the Burton Dorimont, the Belvoir Guider, the 

 Belvoir Senator, the Burton Contest, and the Berkeley Castle 

 Cromwell in this article as the most celebrated foxhounds to be 

 traced to throughout all records. This makes up eight out of my 

 proposed party of twelve ; and I have no hesitation in giving as 

 additions the Burton Regulus and the Wynnstay Royal. It would 

 be impossible to enlarge too much upon the good such hounds 

 have done ; and it would be impossible to say which of the two 

 has influenced high breeding most. Royal is represented to 



