HISTORIC RUN FROM BRINDLEY'S WOOD. 115 



him wonderfully well for seven or eight seasons, and 

 scarcely ever made a mistake, and although in her teens, 

 she was still as good and capable as she had ever been. 

 One feels, on such an occasion, inclined to echo the words 

 of Whyte Melville— 



"Am I womanly and weak, 



If the tear was on my cheek 

 For a brotherhood that death could thus divide? 



If, sickened and amazed, 



Through a woful mist I gazed 

 On the place where the old horse died?" 



On March 3rd, 1882, the hounds met at Seighford 

 and had a good gallop, which is thus shortly recorded by 

 Dickins in his diary : 



" Drew the Witches and Williams' Wood blank, but found in the Brickhill 

 Pits. Went away as if for Stafford Castle, turned into Ranton, past the Abbey, 

 and on to Knightle}' ; left it on our left, and into Blakeraere Pool, and on as if 

 for Newport, and killed him. One hour and fifteen minutes. Did not draw 

 again. Mem. — I got a fall. Did not get out for a week." 



Stephen Dickins was a hard customer, and the fall 

 must have been a pretty bad one to keep him away from 

 hunting for a week. The writer remembers hearing of it, 

 though he was not out that day. He believes it was on 

 that day af^.er the accident that the Master first handled 

 the hounds in the field and helped them to kill their fox. 



On March 29th of this year (1882), the dog pack had 

 one of the best and straightest gallops they ever had — a 

 day that deserves, and has already received, honourable 

 mention, for it has been recorded by Mr. Eandall in his 

 excellent history of the Meynell Hunt, where he quotes an 

 account of the run sent up by the present writer at the 

 time to the Staffordshire Advertiser, over the signature 

 " Redcoat." The meet was at the Bird-in-Hand for 

 Draycot Woods. We had a real good sporting field out, 

 including some of the best men from the Meynell and 

 other neighbouring hunts, such as Lord Harrington, Lord 

 Berkeley Paget, Colonel Chandos Pole and his bride, 

 Captain Duncombe, W. D. Fox, W. S. Power, and Charles 

 Leedham, the Meynell huntsman, besides our own regular 



