1836J THE FIRST WILL SMITH. 63 



to Riby Cross Koacls. There were ten starters, and the 

 race was won by Mr. Coates' Cannon Ball, ridden by Mr. 

 Grantham. 



Sir Richard Sutton was out at Utterby on March 18th, 

 but the best of the fun came at the end of the day, when 

 he and a lot of South Wold men had gone home. This 

 was a fine run from Hell Furze to Tetney, and by Waithe 

 and Grainsby Healing back over Hawerby to Peterhills, 

 where hounds were stopped at 5.30. 



The season came to an end on April 9th. Up to 

 Christmas the sport was excellent, and Smith says he 

 never saw his hounds work better. But after Christmas 

 he had to use new meal for them, and then all went wrong ; 

 they went amiss inside, their stomachs becoming inflamed, 

 while their coats looked bad, and they did not do their 

 work nearly as well. Smith says after that experience he 

 should never ao-ain use new meal in the huntinoj season. 

 Some hounds completely lost their action, and for a long 

 time many appeared to be sore all over. 



In July, 183(3, Smith received orders from Lord Yar- 

 borough, who was then ill in London, to reduce the pack 

 from fifty-five couples to forty couples, and to hunt three 

 instead of four days a week, " a cutting stroke to a man fond 

 of hounds and fox-hunting," he observes. Li September, 

 instructions arrived to do away with the earth stoppers, 

 as the gentlemen and farmers would see to the stopping ; 

 and as the countrv was found to be too bis^ for a three- 

 days-a-week pack, many coverts were destroyed, and the 

 most distant country, such as Thonock, Louth, Hainton, 

 and Nor Woods were given up. 



In consequence of the changes in the Hunt arrange- 

 ments there was a late start cub-hunting, September 13th 

 being the first day. Scents were not particularly good, 

 but it was a satisfactory period of education on the whole, 

 hounds killing seventeen foxes in twenty days, and the 

 huntsman was well satisfied with the promise shown by 

 the young entry. Regular hunting began on October 24th. 

 It was a bad scenting season to begin with, and harvest 



