i88 GOOD SPORT 



charm and wildness of scene so befitting a setting 

 for the chase. Those who know Yorkshire, have 

 pronounced the area of some forty miles hunted by 

 Lord Middleton's hounds, some of the most sporting 

 to be found anywhere in England. Purely agri- 

 cultural, a large portion consists of wolds, while the 

 remainder is low-lying vales with heavily-wooded 

 hills, admirably adapted to bring out the hunting 

 qualities of a pack. The present occupants of the 

 benches are descendants of hounds hunted by Sir 

 Tatton Sykes, who was a great breeder of thorough- 

 bred stock, and they have been improved during 

 the past fifty years by Lord Middleton and his 

 father before him. To-day there are few hunting 

 establishments where hunters or hounds can boast 

 longer or stouter pedigrees, and in both departments 

 of the chase there is much to see that will interest 

 those who admire the highly-bred animal, for, after 

 generations of careful selection, a type has been 

 established both in the stable and in the kennel. 



The natural order of things is to begin with the 

 hounds, on whose excellence the fame of a hunt 

 depends, and Tom Bishopp spared no trouble to 

 show us the pick of some fifty-seven couple. Bred 

 for good looks and work, it is a kennel full of quality 

 matched for size and colour, a hound nearer the 

 23-inch standard of height appearing to be the type 

 favoured on the flags at Birdsall. The kennels are 

 about as complete in their arrangements as it is 

 possible to imagine, and were designed about fifty 

 years ago by the late Lord Middleton. The hand- 

 some block, with its roomy day yards and golden 

 fox surmounting the central tower, are about a 

 quarter of a mile from Birdsall House, Lord Middle- 

 ton's home, which stands near an extensive range of 

 old-fashioned stabling. The plan of the kennels has 



