The Badsworth. 3 



did not go a hunting, lie would probably be driven to 

 the skittle-ground to kill the day : and consequently 

 on a Saturday Wakefield, Sheffield, Barnsley, Don- 

 caster and Pontefract turn him and his masters in 

 great numbers to the hunting-field. 



The Badsworth Hunt dates as far back as 1720; 

 and the present pack (the property of the country) 

 was founded in 1817 by Mr. Thomas Hodgson, from 

 the Kennels of Lord Lonsdale, Lord Yarborough, Sir 

 Bellingham Graham, Mr. Fox, Mr. Villebois, Lord 

 Fitzwilliam, etc. etc. Just previous -to this period, 

 Mr. Cha worth Musters (grandpere), and Sir Belling- 

 ham Grraham had each brought his pack to the country 

 for a couple of seasons. 



There are now some sixty couple of hounds in the 

 kennels at Badsworth, about three miles from Ponte- 

 fract. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday 

 are the hunting days — with an occasional bye-day, 

 which the Master takes himself with a pack of which 

 the nucleus is kept for this special purpose. Mr. 

 Wright assumed the Mastership on the death of Mr. 

 Hope-Barton in 1876 ; manages the country and 

 maintains the establishment with the greatest 

 liberality. It is safe to say that no M.F.H. in 

 England^ keeps up a stable of such proportions. He 

 has sometimes no less than a hundred and twenty 

 horses in his stable ! 



The country, like most of Yorkshire^ acknowledges 

 to a good deal of plough — though it is by no means 

 entirely arable, nor is this arable particularly holding. 

 On the whole it is a fair scenting country, especially 

 on the east and west, where it treats itself more freely 



B 2 



