212 THE TRINITY FOOT BEAGLES 



Kennels and the purchase of the freehold, with the beginnings of the 

 annual visit to Reaveley in Northumberland, and to various other 

 matters of interest. Did we adhere to chronological order Reaveley 

 should come first, but " business first and pleasure after " is a whole- 

 some motto, so I shall begin with the improvements in the Kennels 

 and the purchase of the site. 



Memorandum entered in the Farmers' Book by N. 0. Walker 



When I became Huntsman in the Easter Term of 1897 the yard 

 was in a shocking state. A subscription was started, and all the old 

 Masters and Whips were asked to subscribe. About £43 was raised 

 in this way and the yard re-cemented at a cost of £45. This was 

 done by Key of Victoria Road, who guaranteed it for five years. 



The next move was to get dwarf walls and railings put up in 

 place of the old (wooden) palings. This Burges (the landlord) 

 agreed to do for us and to charge 4 per cent on the expenditure. 

 He also proposed to make a grant in perpetuity to the Committee or 

 the Huntsman of T.F.B. 



Mr. Burges's letter relative to this matter has fortunately been 

 preserved, and it here follows in extenso : — 



Letter 



St. Stephen Street, Bristol, 

 March 17, 1897. 



Dear Sir — Replying to your letter on the 10th inst., would you 

 kindly obtain an estimate for the wall you require, and I will lay the 

 matter before the Trustees to whom the land the Kennels are built on 

 now belongs, and I feel little doubt that they will accede to your 

 views. I cannot help thinking that, in the interest of the Beagles, 

 the present arrangement should be placed on a more satisfactory 

 basis. As matters stand, I and Mr. Rowland Hunt, when the Beagles 

 were placed on their present footing (originally they were kept in 

 the back yard of a pub. opposite Magdalene, and fed on college scraps 

 at a shilling a head per week by the publican), raised subscriptions 

 to build the present Kennels, get a van, etc. But we could not raise 



