YORK AND AINSTY HUNTSMEN. 255 



enough to daunt any ordinary man, but Will Danby was not 

 an ordinary man, and nothing daunted him. When Sir 

 Charles Slingsby took the hounds Danby retired, and a 

 testimonial was presented to him, but his retirement was 

 not for long, and he soon went to hunt the Hurworth for 

 Mr. Wilkinson. After he had been there a season or two 

 Mr. Thomas Parrington hunted them, but still Will stuck to 

 the hounds and was kennel-huntsman for a year or two, and 

 then he finally retired full of years and honours. He was, 

 I believe, upwards of ninety when he died. 



An anecdote is told of Will, which is worth relating, 

 though I have been unable to verify it. It seems that he 

 was not very partial to hunting parsons, and especially was 

 one of them an object of his aversion, for he was constantly 

 seeking his advice on matters connected with the stable. 

 On one occasion he began to ask Will what he should give 

 his horse, at the same time explaining the symptoms minutely. 

 Will eyed the horse, who had a very ragged coat, carefully, 



and said, ' / think, Air. , yoti must keep your horses 



on chopped sarmons.' 



When Sir Charles Slingsby took hold of the hounds he 

 engaged as his kennel-huntsman and first whipper-in Will 

 Orvis, who had been in a good school under Mr. Conyers in 

 Essex. Where Orvis first commenced his hunting career 

 I am not able to say, but he was for some seasons first 

 whipper-in to that fine huntsman, Jim Morgan, and when 

 the latter left the Essex country to hunt the Essex Union, 

 he was promoted to the huntsman's place. This was in 

 1848, and for five seasons he showed excellent sport in 

 a country which tries the skill and perseverance of a hunts- 

 man no little. He then went to the York and Ainsty, where 

 he won golden opinions from all who came in contact with 

 him. He was a capital man in the kennel, as indeed he 

 could scarcely fail to be ; a quick man to hounds, with a 



