CHAPTER V 



TOM HILLS 



TNSEPARABLY associated with the history of the Old 

 *- Surrey hounds is the name of that famous huntsman, 

 Tom Hills. As a boy he worked in the quarries at God- 

 stone, but in the year 1816, after riding as second horse- 

 man and acting as whip, he was promoted to the position 

 of huntsman to these hounds. He held that position with 

 great success till 1861, and it is worthy of remark that he 

 hunted the Old Surrey pack before he was twenty, being, 

 perhaps, the youngest huntsman on record. He died on 

 14 February, 1873, aged 77. 



A very cheery character and a sportsman to the back- 

 bone, Tom Hills was universally liked and esteemed. He 

 was a fine horseman, albeit not a light-weight, and it is 

 not too much to say that he was a born huntsman. He 

 consistently showed good sport for many years in a 

 difficult country ; his heart was in the work, which was play 

 to him all the time; and he gave his followers a large 

 number of splendid runs, winding up with a kill in 

 workmanlike style. He lived, indeed, to take a very high 

 rank in the science of hunting, and his fame is, in the 

 sporting sense, imperishable. 



A contemporary of his, whom we may accept as an 



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