IS -15.] OF HAMPSHIRE. 165 



master of the New Forest hounds, Mr. Nicoii. 

 Mr. Nicoll, succeeded the great John Warde, 

 and has now hunted the country nine seasons, 

 with a subscription of about 1200/. per annum. 

 His taste for hounds is allowed to be very cor- 

 rect, and his bitches have been considered about 

 the standard mark. Mr. Nicoll's country not 

 requiring a strong pack, his kennel is not large, 

 consisting generally of forty couples of hunt- 

 ing hounds, about one-half of which are bred 

 by himself, and the other half by the Duke of 

 Beaufort, whose young drafts Mr. Nicoll has 

 been so fortunate to get for some years past. 

 The celebrated New Forest Justice blood is 

 still going, and nothing can, I believe, excel it. 

 My visit to Sir Hussey extended to the 20th of 

 April, during which time I hunted four times 

 with Mr. Nicoll ; but the same cause (the dry 

 weather) which operated against sport in the 

 country I had just quitted, was in full force 

 there, not a drop of rain having fallen for 

 many weeks. Added to this, there was one 

 other bar, not only to sport, but to all chance 

 of sport, and that was — I am sorry to pronounce 

 it — a lamentable scarcity of foxes. To such an 

 extent, however, I was given to understand, 

 has the unhappy mania for pheasants increased 

 in the precincts of the Forest, that no sooner 



