The Grove. 107 



Clumber Park (the seat of the Duke of Newcastle), 

 and Worksop Manor (also the property of the Duke 

 of Newcastle, but the residence of Mr. I. Cookson). 

 Welbeck has a splendid open park in addition to its 

 large coverts ; so has Worksop ; but Clumber, as far 

 as the Grove draw it, is a collection of great woods, 

 mth only a field or so between each — bracken and 

 fern within and cultivated ground without — and only 

 two or three grass meadows by the lake. 



But, beyond the Dukeries — which, after all, are 

 very limited, being only, as the name implies, ducal 

 estates wooded and parked) the Grove is an open, 

 g-ently undulating country, that a mistaken system of 

 agriculture has worked with the plough, and that may 

 yet, under pressure of foreign import, possibly relapse 

 into honest grazing ground. Under present con- 

 ditions it is not high scenting ground. How can it 

 be, when the surface is constantly upset and dis- 

 turbed and infected ? A fox smells sweet to a hound 

 or even a foxhunter. But as well ask the latter to 

 try Chateax Margaux after ^34 port, as ask a fox- 

 hound to do duty to fox while his nose is reeking 

 with the high flavoured assistants that science dictates 

 for soil-improvement. A foxhound does not care for 

 violets, and a sniif of eau de Cologne will make him 

 shun you for a day. But he likes a rich pungent 

 smell — and I am by no means sure that he would not 

 (till taught better) prefer to roll about in a fallow just 

 manured with the overplus of the Lincolnshire fish 

 markets rather than have an hour to himself after the 

 '^biggest fox whatever was seen.^^ From our point 

 of view the fascination working upon his nose is 



