THE WARD UNION HOUNDS. 95 



regiment, Deputy-Ranger of the Curragh, and the 

 member of our " Irish household," which best con- 

 nects us with the " pleasant part." 



When the war broke out, the military proposed 

 to give the Ward managers ^200 per annum, if they 

 would give an extra day each week (the Wards were 

 then a bi-weekly pack) ; the offer was gladly accepted, 

 and the arrangement is still In force, albeit the 

 annual subscription is a somewhat fluctuating quan- 

 tity. Mr. Peter Alley kept the hounds till 1863, and 

 at his death his brother Charles became master, and 

 held the title for a year, when the delicate state of his 

 health obliged him to resign. The Messrs. Alley 

 deserve great praise for the manner in which they 

 acted during their reign as masters of the *' Wards." 



In 1864, the pack was handed over to a Com- 

 mittee, and Captain Montgomery, late of the 5th 

 Dragoon Guards, was appointed master. He resigned 

 in 1866, and a Committee of three have managed 

 them ever since with great success. On Mondays the 

 meet is usually some miles distant from the city, 

 but, thanks to the liberality of the managers and 

 directors of the Midland Great Western line, horses 

 and their owners are conveyed by special train to the 

 nearest station. The trains start from and return to 

 the Broadstone at convenient hours, and horse, owner, 

 , and servants are brought down and back for the mode- 

 rate tariff of 10^. The owner, of course, travels first 

 class. If other lines followed the example shown 

 them by the executive of this one, they would be 

 " wise in their generation," and confer a benefit on the 

 shareholders, hunting men, and a large section of the 

 community. In a financial point of view, as well as in 



