THE HISTORY OF THE BELVOIR HUNT 



often fifty couples would come in from their walk, while only 

 some fourteen and a half couples would be considered worthy 

 of the Belvoir benches. Accordingly we find that Goodall 

 adopted a system of marking hounds according to their 

 performances. The first day of the season 1854-55 was at 

 Caythorpe, on the Lincolnshire side, and on the borders of 

 the present Blankney country, then under the mastership of 

 Lord Henry Bentinck, one of the very best and soundest 

 judges of hounds or hunting that ever lived. 



''Friday, November 24.thy 1854. — Caythorpe. Find in 

 General Reeve's Gorse ; pointed for Wellingore ; by the 

 little covert in the bottom he turned short away to the 

 left toward Brant, between Broughton and Brandon ; bore to 

 right as if for Bruton Bottom covert, still to the left, leaving 

 Beckingham on his right, to Stapleford ; ran rides from end 

 to end without stopping ; away once more for a quarter of an 

 hour as hard as they could drive him ; ran him into the open at 

 Norton Disney after a most magnificent run of an hour and 

 twenty minutes. This was a bitter cold morning with a north- 

 east wind and rising glass, and heavy snowstorms falling very 

 close upon each other all the morning ; a most capital scent 

 all through. I never followed a stouter fox ; it's a fox Lord 

 Henry Bentinck's hounds have found these last five years, 

 but he always beat us. I rode Greathead all through ; he 

 carried me splendid. Hounds out [with Will Goodall's marks] : 

 Solitude (xxx), Comus (did not get away). Fugleman (xx), 

 Fortune, Falstaff (xx), Gamer, Gaylass, Destiny (xx), Dainty, 

 Guider (xxx), Nabob (xxx), Notary (xxxx), Solon, Tuneful 

 (x). Boaster (x). Blameless (x). Bachelor (x), Foiler (x), 

 Lucifer (xxx), Lictor (xxxxxxxx). Bloomer (xxxxxx), 

 Charity (x), Grappler (xx), Gambler (xx). Sultan (xxxx), 

 Sepoy (xxxxxx). Sparkler, Factor (xxxx). Freeman, Nigel 

 (x), Nathan (x). Needless (xxxxxx), Trimbush, Trusty (x)." 1 



If we take the names with the most marks we shall note 



a bitch. Needless, of that year's entry. This hound joined 



the ranks of the kennel matrons both on account of her 



pedigree and her performances. She goes right back to 



* Goodall's Diary. 



178 



