The Meynell 173 



THE MEYNELL.* 



To tlie north-west of Leicestersliire lies the pleasant 

 arass country of The Meynell, occupying all of Derby- 

 shire that is huntable west of the River Derwent — 

 together with a well-wooded portion of Staffordshire. 

 The Meynell Country is touched on the south by the 

 South Staffordshire (the River Trent dividing the two); 

 it runs over the Trent to meet the Atherstone, and 

 again returns within the river at the fork formed by 

 the Trent and Derwent,, where Lord Ferrers meets it on 

 the south-east. The South Notts runs up the whole of 

 its eastern side ; on the north it merges into a hilly 

 blank where only harriers are seen, and on the west is 

 the North Staffordshire. 



The Meynell Hounds are one of the oldest existiDg 

 packs — their Kennel Book containing uninterrupted 

 yearly entries from 1818, and there were nine-season 

 hounds in that year's list. During the whole of this 

 time, and up to Mr. MeynelFs death about 1870, the 

 hounds were kennelled at Hoar Cross, his place in 

 Staffordshire, and, the Derbyshire side of his country 

 being distant from home, was only hunted during tiie 



* Vide " Stanford's Large Scale Railway Map," Sheet 9; also, 

 Hobson's Foxhuntme: Atlas." 



