THE ORIGIN AND EARLY HISTORY. 29 



The pages of Fielding tell us how fox-hunting became 

 a part of the life of our country gentlemen during the half- 

 century which succeeded the accession of William III., 

 and there can be no doubt but that in the days of Queen 

 Anne the sport of fox-hunting in its modern development 

 had its origin. But I must protest against Squire Western 

 being taken as a type of the fox-hunter, even of those days. 

 There were doubtless plenty of sportsmen of his type 

 throughout the country, as there were many rough-and-ready 

 sportsmen at a later period, when refinement had become 

 more general. But in the days of Queen Anne, noblemen 

 and gentlemen and statesmen followed hounds as noblemen 

 and gentlemen and statesmen do now ; and I believe it is 

 on record that the great Lord Bolingbroke amused himself 

 by hunting the fox when, on his return from exile, he was 

 no longer permitted to enter the political arena. About 

 this time, country gentlemen of position mostly kept hounds, 

 and though their hunting would scarcely be considered as 

 orthodox by their successors of the present day, it cannot 

 be denied that to them we owe a great deal. The best of 

 our hunting literature comes from the earlier Hanoverian 

 period, and with all our modern improvements we have had 

 none who have written more learnedly or with greater charm 

 about our field sports than William Somervile, who was born 

 before Queen Anne ascended the throne. Beckford's Book, 

 which came somewhat later, must still be looked upon as 

 the hunting classic* 



the result of a fall. Some few years ago the Duke of Richmond revived the 

 Hunt, and the Goodwood hounds were carried on in first-class style, and showed 

 e.xcellent sport. But the country is ill-adapted for fox-hunting in its modern 

 development, and after a time the hounds were given up. It seems a pity that 

 a country with so historic a record should not be hunted ; but when the 

 Duke of Richmond, who had hunted the country at his own expense, gave up, 

 there was no one forthcoming to take them on under similar conditions, and 

 a subscription could not be raised sufficient to cover the expense. 



* Peter Beckford's Thoughts upon Hunting was published in 1781, thirty- 

 nine years after the death of Somervile. 



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