THE REV. ROBERT SYMONDS 59 



the pleasure of seeing you every day for this week 

 past, but finding you quitted the place yesterday 

 without seeing him, he desires me to state to you 

 what he thinks on the subject we talked over at 

 Beckett, and his ultimate opinion respecting the 

 terms on which he bought Mr. Loder's hounds, 

 which are the following : — 



ist — Pusey Furze to be a neutral cover for ever, 

 and every other cover more distant from this place 

 which Mr. Loder has ever hunted, to be neutral for 

 the space of three years, in which time, should Mr. 

 Bowes give up the hounds, you were to give him the 

 three hundred guineas back which he gave for them, 

 he of course losing the Harriers which you had in 

 exchange, and if he kept the hounds beyond those 

 three years, he was to pay one hundred guineas 

 more, and if you gave up the hounds then he was 

 to have the whole country. 



2nd — Cokethorpe and the Bampton Covers were to 

 be his to endeavour to make an exchange with the 

 Duke of Beaufort for Bradwell Grove. He is ex- 

 tremely sorry that there has been the smallest mis- 

 understanding between you and me, and he affirms 

 that I regularly conversed with him, upon any plan 

 you proposed, and he is positive that Pusey Furze 

 was to be the line drawn and that you were not to 

 hunt Hatford, Rosey, and that line of country to 

 Uffington Wood. He says he should be ashamed 

 of asking for more country than he is entitled to, 

 but that it is really quite ridiculous to suppose that 

 he should give 300 guineas, a pack of Harriers, 

 and 100 guineas more if he kept them beyond three 

 years without any country to hunt, and that it 

 appears much more ridiculous (if Mr. Loder has 

 still a claim on these hounds and which you affirm) 

 that Mr. Bowes, who is Mr. Loder's representative, 

 should allow you to hunt all the country. 



