MOTHER HUNT 105 



present Lord Darnley as his partner, and was also in the School 

 Shooting XI. 



Hunt succeeded to the Mastership of the Eton Beagles in 1876. 

 His Mastership was a memorable one, as he not only improved the 

 pack, but also showed most extraordinary sport and knowledge of 

 hunting and hound work, killing, I think, 15 hares in the first season 

 and 17 in his second.^ 



On leaving Eton he went to America for two years, where he 

 roughed it on a ranch, and was laid up for weeks with a badly 

 broken leg which gave him trouble for long after. 



On his father's death he returned home to Boreatton Park, 

 and shortly after came up to Magdalene. I think he must have 

 made a compact with the Dons there, or else Magdalene was a very 

 easy-going place in those days,- as lie certainly never wasted much 

 time in attending lectures, chapel, or hall. I believe he did go in for 

 and pass Part I. of the Little-go, which quite satisfied his aspirations 

 for academic honours. 



He w^as also in the Northants Mihtia for ten years. 



1 do not propose going into how he became Master of the Beagles, 

 as that is dealt with in another chapter, but to try and give some of 

 the many anecdotes of him. 



The main point in his character and one of the principal items of 

 his success as Master was due to his extraordinarily taking manner 

 and personality which, combined with his tact, won the hearts of the 

 farmers and his field. This is perhaps the more remarkable, as he 

 made use of the most quaint and extraordinary expressions to one and 

 all. The facsimile on p. 106 of an invitation to lunch is an instance, 

 and the expressions he used to farmers must have seemed very 

 extraordinary, but they got used to it, and there was nothing they 

 would not do for him. His principal difficulty was to fill the 

 numerous invitations showered on him — so much so that he took to 

 having bye days once a week as long as the hounds would stand it, 

 usually close home and often in the morning. The following cutting 



' Only one term each season. 



2 It, i.e. Magdalene College, certainly went easy five years later, and one of the 

 chief grievances against it was that it would take no "migrants." — F. C. K. 



