36 HUNTING IN MANY COUNTRIES. 



write much about what took plsice previous to the division 

 of the country. The bare facts as to the roll of Masters and 

 so forth are to be found in Mr. Richard Ord's book Sedgefield 

 in the 'Seventies and 'Eighties, and also in Bmly's Hunting 

 Directory ; but since the division of the country I have known 

 the North Durham intimately, and, as I have explained, I 

 had a full season with the Durham County before the division 

 took place, and scores of days in Christmas and Easter holi- 

 days. My very earliest recollection of the Durham goes back 

 to the late 'fifties, when as an infant I saw hounds at Wood- 

 lauds, and scrambled after them on a pony. I think Tom 

 Harrison must have been huntsman then, but I did not really 

 know any huntsman until Dowdeswell came in 1867. Tom 

 Harrison (whose nam© wets John) committed suicide in 1860, 

 being afraid of going blind, and there was a quaint story cir- 

 culated in the hunt for long enough afterwards to the effect 

 that hounds were brought to a meet one morning by the two 

 whippers-in. Up came the Master — Colonel Johnson — and 

 asked where Tom was. " Please, sir, he's put himself down," 

 answered the whip, sawing away at his cap, and v.'hen inquiries 

 were made it was found that the story was true, and hounds 

 were sent home. Colonel Johnson gave up the mastership at 

 the end of the 1860-61 season, and was succeeded by the late 

 Mr. John Henderson, M.P., for Durham City, who was only 

 in office for a single season, and who was followed by a com- 

 mittee, which w£ts in existence for two seasons. In 1865 Mr. 

 Henderson came forward again in conjunction with Mr. John 

 Harvey, of Newcastle-on-Tyne, and the joint mastership lasted 

 until 1872, when the country was divided, and Mr. Harvey 

 became the first Master of the South Durham. It was during 

 this joint mastership that I had my first real spell of hunting, 

 and as I always thought hunting the one great be all and end 

 all of life, it will be understood that things impressed them- 

 selves on my memory even more forcibly than they have since 

 done. I can aictually remember certain hunts which took 

 place in the season of 1867-8 almost field by field, and I can 

 recall to mind nearly everyone who was hunting with the pack, 

 how they rode, and so forth ; and one pathetic and yet comic 

 scene I can remember which took place in Long Edge lane, 

 just west of Browney Bank. Hounds had met at the place 



