THE HISTORY OF THE BELVOIR HUNT 



Alvanley, for example, was an intimate friend of Mr. Raikes, 

 but no one would gather from the latter's journals that the 

 former was one of the hardest riders of his day, and I 

 think Mr. Raikes, in his voluminous memoirs, only once 

 mentions Melton at all. Even the sporting magazines gave 

 as much or more prominence to provincial hunts as to 

 Leicestershire. Hunting and gambling were associated with 

 Melton, a place, it is darkly hinted, likely to break the neck 

 or the purse of any unwary youth who might be tempted 

 by a vaulting ambition to visit the hunting capital of the 

 shires. The Meltonians designated the members of other 

 hunts " snob " or " slow top," much as the Greeks called all 

 other nations barbarians, and regarded strangers as fair 

 game. The first Lord Forester, who was a leader in all 

 Melton sports, is said to have been particularly good at 

 " quizzing a slow top " ; this, considering the slightly acid 

 nature of his remarks on his own friends, we can well believe. 

 The great test, as we gather from Nimrod and others, was 

 breeches. Leathers were accounted " dead slow " at Melton, 

 though always in use in Cheshire. On the other hand, 

 pink tops were associated in the minds of many men with 

 national decay, French cookery, the use of the " foreign " 

 knife, and the disuse of the British fist, while brown tops 

 were in some mysterious way connected with manliness, 

 integrity, and a true sporting character. 



Since the beginning of the century there have been many 

 changes in dress. The long-skirted coat has gone out and 

 come back to us, after having been displaced in 1820 by a 

 short-waisted dress coat, which fashion has now been brought 

 back in the Pytchley and Quorn hunts. White leathers were 

 not the fashion for breeches till Lord Wilton (a Cheshire 

 man) and Lord Forester introduced them at Croxton Park. 

 The blue bird's-eye cravat came in with the cutaway coat. 

 For some time now the hat has superseded the cap, and is 

 probably, if not without inconveniences, the best possible pro- 

 tection to the neck. The white hunting tie is neat, but will 

 probably never entirely supplant a neat collar and scarf 

 Dogskin gloves are quite as comfortable though less smart 



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