THE NORTH DURHAM COUNTRY. 35 



and the smaller portion were throwing their tongues lustily 

 on the banks when the bigger lot got away, hounds went to 

 Hill Top, Kackwoodside, Hall Hill, and, passing to the east of 

 Satley, caught their fox on the road a mile beyond the village, 

 and just beyond the Broomshields Lodge. In the other hunt 

 they ran by Barras Hill, Foalfoot, Cold Park, Burnhopeside, 

 and Greenwell Ford to Colepike, and both gallops were equally 

 good and with a long point. The main London toi Edinburgh 

 line is on an embankment above the end of Red House Gill, 

 and just where foxes used generally to break, and if hounds 

 ^ot over it without being observed and went straight on it 

 was not an easy matter to catch them. Towards the end of 

 his mastership Mr. Maynard used to remain near this vital 

 spot, where there is a farm road under the railway, and would 

 not leave it until all chance of a fox crossing the line seemed 

 to have disappeared. The Arbour House coverts. Bog Wood, 

 the Black Dene at Southill — close by Plawsworth station — 

 Potter House Wood, Barras Hill, The Hermitage covers, 

 and a few small places at Whitehill conclude the tally of 

 coverts in this part of the hunt, for the North Durham no 

 longer go to Lambton Castle or Ravensworth, as they did, 

 occasionally, in Mr. Maynard's time. South and east of the 

 Wear much of the country which used to be hunted has been 

 given up owing to industrialism. This applies chiefly to the 

 ccuntry about Penshaw, Silksworth, Burdon, Rough Deaie, and 

 so forth. The Cock en coverts are still hunted, and the south 

 side of the river from Shincliffe to Whitworth, this including 

 Croxdale, where foxes are numerous, Tudhoe, and Whitworth. 

 There is a bit of nice country immediately south of Croxdale, 

 but the best part of the North Durham south of the river is 

 round about Shadforth, west and south of Elemore. This is 

 good riding country, and very open ; but hounds do not go 

 there so often as they once did, and lately I have observed 

 that at least three meets out of every four are on the 

 north side, and nearly half of them in the western end of 

 the country. 



Having described the country, I may go on to say that the 

 North Durham Hunt was established in 1872. Before that 

 date the Durham County hounds hunted what are now the 

 North and South Durham countries, and I do not intend to 



