CFTAP. I.] Lord AltJiorp^ Master, 1808. 13 



and faster hounds^ tliat they were in lai^h favour with all 

 who enjoyed hunting' for hunting's sake. One of the 

 great runs of Mr. Wardens time was from Marston Wood 

 to Skeffington in Leicestershire. It would seem from 

 the subjoined letter of Lord Althorp to his father, dated 

 May 28th, 1804, that there must have been some 

 difficulties between Mr. Warde and certain members of 

 the hunt, on the withdrawal of the hounds from Pytchley 

 to Boughton. In it he writes: ^^At the Pytchley 

 meeting on Saturday, Doughty, Carter, Cartwright and 

 Thornton, desired to take their names out of the list ; but 

 we agreed not to do it until they had heard what we settled 

 about the hounds going to Pytchley. We agreed that 

 the first meeting should begin the first Monday in 

 November, and last four weeks : and that the second 

 should begin the second week in February, and last six 

 weeks. John Warde said that the hounds should hunt 

 from the Pytchley kennels during the whole of bof h these 

 m.eetings, though I confess that I do not think that he is 

 pledged to it so completely as I could wish. I hope^ 

 however, that you will be able to settle the arrange- 

 ment completely when you see him.'^ 



Four years afterwards, writing from Delapi-e Abbey to 

 his father. Lord Althorp says : " Feb. 12th, 1808. Dear 

 Father, — I have to tell you that I have concluded the 

 bargain with John Warde, and am to give him a 

 thousand pounds for the hounds, and not to have any- 

 thing to do with the horses. I have done this because 

 I should not have felt comfortable if, after all the 

 civilities he has all along shown me, he had any excuse 

 whatever to complain of my conduct towards him." A 

 fortnight after this we read in a letter dated ^^ Pytchley, 



