THE SHIRES. 223 



his hounds with him from Yorkshire. It was in his reign that 

 Assheton Smith, then in his sixty-fifth year, brought his hounds 

 from Tedworth for a fortnight into Leicestershire. The opening 

 day was at Rollestone, when it is calculated upwards of 2,000 

 people were present, but there was, perhaps of course, no sport. 

 After Mr. Hodgson came Mr. Greene, of Rollestone, a fine 

 sportsman, who figures in the great ' Quarterly ' run as skimming 

 over the Whissendine on his bay mare, ' like a swallow on a 

 summer's evening.' In 1847 he retired in favour of Sir Richard 

 Button, who had won a great name in the Burton and Cottes- 

 more countries. In 1857 the latter took the Donnington 

 country back, and then finding the whole rather too large to be 

 properly hunted by one pack, he handed a part of it over to 

 his son Mr. Richard Sutton, building him kennels at Skeffing- 

 ton and furnishing him with hounds. No man ever showed 

 better sport in Leicestershire than Sir Richard, and when he 

 died at the beginning of the season of 1855, it was a bad day 

 for the Quorn. Young Sir Richard and Captain Frank Sutton 

 finished the season, and then Lord Stamford came to the front, 

 with a pack composeo) largely of old hounds and a good draft 

 from Mr. Anstruther Thomson's kennels. In this mastership 

 Mr. Tailby took a part of the Quorn country together with a 

 slice of the Cottesmore, and showed rare sport up to 1871, when 

 the latter, according to agreement, reverted to its original lords, 

 and Mr. Tailby continued for some seasons longer to content 

 himself with two days a week in the diminished province now 

 governed by Sir Bache Cunard. Aftei Lord Stamford, who kept 

 the hounds for seven seasons, Mr. Clowes followed for three, 

 and then the rather casual reign of the Marquis of Hastings, 

 which lasted for two. Mr. Musters came next, with a good 

 pack of hounds out of South Nottinghamshire. After three 

 years he divided his country with Mr. Coupland, and after 

 two more took his pack with him back to his own tents, and 

 Mr. Coupland was left to his own resources. He was unlucky at 

 first, having bought the Craven pack, which was too slow for 

 Leicestershire. But the famous Tom Firr came to him in 1872 

 from the North Warwickshire, and matters soon became mere 



