WITH THE NORTH COTSWOLD HOUNDS 117 



Mr. Gerald Hardy when he moved on to the Meynell 

 mastership, went for another £3000. Our pleasurable 

 mission to the North Cotswold kennel was to paint 

 the picture of this beautiful bitch pack, subscribed 

 for and presented by the farmers to Mr. McNeill on 

 his retirement. 



Probably the most remarkable family in the 

 kennel was a litter of four couple of sisters in 1905, 

 by Belvoir Handel ('99) from Atherstone Pitiful ('99). 

 These included a couple who afterwards won cham- 

 pion honours at the Peterborough and Reigate 

 hound shows, the names of the full litter being 

 Piteous, Pilgrim, Pin-tail, Pittance, Pie-crust, Piety, 

 Pillage, and Pitiless. The most distinguished of 

 these was Pilgrim, a massive bitch standing on 

 beautiful legs and feet, showing the gayest Belvoir 

 colouring, who latterly threw a litter of whelps 

 to Brocklesby Armlet, and won champion honours 

 at Peterborough for Sir John Hume Campbell in 

 1908. If we had been asked to select seven couple 

 at the end of season 1905-6, we should have taken 

 Pilgrim, Piteous, Pin-tail, Dairymaid, Negative, 

 Necklace, Gadfly, Dazzle, Gratitude, Trifle, Pittance, 

 Havoc, Daring, and Blissful, all of whom come into 

 the picture. But there were many more so close up, 

 that another opinion might have reversed the de- 

 cision all through. No wonder that such a sport- 

 loving community were delighted when they knew 

 the pack was to remain in the country. It was 

 surprising to all how well the hounds' legs and feet 

 stood the hard going and the strain of jumping stone 

 walls, proving the worth of good bone and breeding, 

 which, like first-class machinery, can go at the highest 

 pressure and last. Mr. McNeill told us that hounds 

 light of bone below the knee or long in their feet, 

 were of no use to wear in such a country. Still it 



