SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN 



'fifties, but Baron Lionel outlived his brothers, 

 who died in 1877 and 1876 respectively, and 

 retained office single-handed till his death in 1879. 

 He was succeeded by Lord Rothschild and 

 Mr. Leopold de Rothschild as joint masters, 

 who for a long time divided field duty, the 

 former officiating on Thursdays, the latter on 

 Mondays. For some years past, however, 

 Lord Rothschild has been unable to hunt, and 

 his place is generally taken by the Hon. Walter 

 Rothschild, M.P. 



Roffey remained for a few seasons as huntsman, 

 and retiring gave place to Barwick, from Earl 

 Fitzwilliam's, who was succeeded in 1852 by 

 Tom Ball. Ball was followed about 1860 by 

 Fred Cox, who had turned hounds to him for 

 three or four seasons ; and Cox continued to 

 carry the horn until 1894, when he retired after 

 45 years' service. To succeed him Lord Roths- 

 child engaged John Boore from the Warwickshire; 

 he retired after the season of 1905-6 by reason, 

 principally, of disablement caused by a bad fall 

 over wire at the end of the previous season. 

 William Gaskin, for many years whipper-in, took 

 his place. 



The pack purchased by Baron Lionel in 1839 

 consisted almost entirely of Cheshire blood ; 

 since then it has been strengthened in number, 

 about thirty couples being usually kennelled at 

 Ascott, and immensely improved by importation 

 of the best blood in England ; the Belvoir, Fitz- 

 william, Brocklesby, Bramham Moor, and other 

 kennels having been tapped. 



It was customary in former days to enlarge a 

 few deer on the Dunstable side of the country, 

 and in October give the young hounds a run 

 with blood at the finish. The deer paddocks 

 have been supplied from most of the principal 

 parks in the kingdom ; the best were those 

 obtained from Savernake. Some very long runs 

 have been given by these deer at various times ; 

 a few of from 22 to 24 miles are recorded. Lord 

 Rothschild maintains the staghounds entirely at 

 his own cost. The Vale of Aylesbury, in which 

 the deer are usually enlarged, is practically all 

 sound old grass, and is one of the finest hunting 

 grounds in the kingdom, though it rides deep in 

 wet weather ; the number of brooks and ditches 

 make a bold water jumper essential. Very little 

 wire occurs in the Vale ; the hunt is immensely 

 popular with the farmers, a committee of whom 

 is in charge of the arrangements for the removal 

 of any wire that exists. 



EARL CARRINGTON'S BLOODHOUNDS 



This is one of the few counties in England 

 which has seen the chase of the deer by blood- 

 hounds. In 1880 Lord Wolvcrton gave to Earl 

 Carrington the packof sixteen or seventeen couples 

 of bloodhounds which he had hunted for six or 

 seven seasons in Dorset. Their new owner 



built kennels at Wycombe, and obtaining the 

 support of the landowners and farmers, hunted 

 the carted deer for one season, enlarging at points 

 between the kennels and Uxbridge. Several 

 good runs were enjoyed, one fast gallop of 15 

 miles in March, 1881, being noteworthy; but at 

 the end of his first season, Earl Carrington, 

 who had hunted the pack himself, decided to 

 give it up, and the hounds were sold to go 

 abroad. 



HARRIERS 



The North Bucks Harriers were established in 

 1896. Mr. E. A. Milne, then master of the 

 Trinity Foot Beagles, brought his hounds to 

 Shenley for the Christmas vacation 1894-5, and, 

 having shown the neighbouring farmers good 

 sport with them, responded to their request that 

 he would hunt the hare regularly, an J founded the 

 North Bucks pack with twenty couples of ig-inch 

 harriers in the following year. Mr. Milne, who 

 had now taken holy orders and lived at Shenley 

 Rectory, assumed the mastership and carried the 

 horn himself, hunting two days a week. In 

 1900 he resigned the harriers to take the master- 

 ship of the Cattistock foxhounds, and was 

 succeeded by Mr. W. F. Fuller, of Dagnall, 

 Berkhampstead, who also hunted the pack him- 

 self. Under Mr. Fuller's mastership, the hunting 

 days were reduced to Friday and an occasional 

 bye. In 1905 Mr. Fuller resigned to become 

 joint master of the Cattistock with the Rev. E. A. 

 Milne, and Mr. S. J. Green, of Luton, Bed- 

 fordshire, took the vacant office, which he continues 

 to hold, hunting the pack as his predecessors had 

 done. The harriers, which are maintained by 

 subscription, hunt the country for about 10 miles 

 north of Bletchley and 20 miles south, meeting 

 in Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire as well as 

 in Buckinghamshire. In 1902 the hounds were 

 moved from Shenley to Dagnall, where they are 

 still kennelled. 



The Berks and Bucks, converted in 1901 into 

 staghounds, had a long record as harriers. The 

 pack was established in the reign of George IV 

 as a royal hunt, and there is record of hunting 

 turned-down hares in Windsor Great Park for 

 the delectation of the Duke of Brunswick and 

 his suite in 1832 ; the father of the famous 

 royal huntsman, Charles Davis, being the hunts- 

 H.R.H. the Prince Consort became 



man. 



master of the pack about 1842, having obtained 

 from a Mr. Smith in the Isle of Wight 15 

 couples of harriers 'vhich were kennelled at 

 Cumberland Lodge. His Majesty, as Prince of 

 Wales, followed his father in the mastership, and 

 he was succeeded in turn by Sir Robert Harvey, 

 Mr. Grenfell, Mr. Phipps, Captain Cotton, and 

 Mr. P. E. Barthropp. The date at which the 

 Berks and Bucks ceased to be ' Royal ' and became 

 a subscription pack is not known. 



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