258 The Hunting Countries of England, 



riden, also Admirals Gorse (no longer gorse^ but oak 

 scrub), Arrows Wood, and Checkley Wood — the last 

 being a strong, holding covert, with Wrine Hill only a 

 few fields away. Towards Adderley — Mr. Corbett's 

 own place, the right of drawing which was surrendered 

 by the North Staffordshire on the occasion of his 

 dividing The Cheshire country with Capt. Park Yates 

 — we come to Bruerton Gorse (again no actual gorse), 

 which provided a fox weekly throughout all the latter 

 half of last season. Mr. Corbett has made for the 

 N. S. a very nice gorse covert at Highfield. Sir 

 George Chetwood also has plenty of foxes at Oakley 

 Hall, and they are equally numerous at Betton Hall 

 (Mr. Norcop^s). 



Leaving this Cheshire and Shropshire vale, you find 

 the ground at once begin to rise as you move eastward ; 

 and so it continues to rise until the hills of Derbyshire 

 are reached. The same style of grass culture either 

 already extends, or is gradually creeping into vogue, 

 across the country, till it blends with a similar class of 

 farming in southern Derbyshire. On certain hills below 

 the Kennels at Trentham there is still some little 

 plough of a light description; but as a rule dairy- 

 farming is found to be preferable to corn growing, 

 and year by year more arable has given way to grass 

 — till now nearly all the North Staffordshire hunting 

 ground is laid down with turf. Thus round the big 

 woods which we now reach, grass is generally found. 

 These great coverts lie upon, or between, ridges of hills 

 running north and south; and occupy, in broken 

 periods, an extent of country some ten miles square — 

 commencing at Madeley and Trentham and reaching 



