CHAPTER I. 



If any one were to ask me, "How loDg have you 

 known George Carter ? " the natural answer to the 

 inquiry would be, " Since the beginning of 1846," 

 which was the date of my first coming back to reside 

 in the home of my first childhood and within the limits 

 of the Tedworth Hunt. It was about four years pre- 

 vious to this that George came to Mr. Assheton Smith's, 

 but at that time he acted as kennel-huntsman, and 

 had his own two regiilar days, with the third pack ; 

 and as one of those days in every week (Wednesday) 

 was invariably Wherwell Wood, and • the other 

 (Saturday) on the extreme south part of the country 

 that was rented, or at least hunted, by the Tedworth 

 pack, though belonging to the Kew Forest country, 

 I had but little opportunity of making any very 

 intimate acquaintance with the great huntsman, whose 

 memoirs or recollections I am now endeavouring to 



