324 THE QUORN HUNT 



Mr. Musters and his fine pack of hounds, together with 

 what the chronicler calls "his motley crew," appeared on 

 the scene. Mr. Musters was the quicker to the holloa, 

 and the two packs of hounds ran the same line. 

 Macbride of the Quorn, then in his second and last 

 season, was only five yards behind the Squire, and the 

 whole forty couples went along as hard as they could go. 

 Some little fun was poked at Mr. Musters's followers, 

 who are described as wearing caps and brown breeches, 

 but the hounds kept well out of the way of the crowd, 

 and eventually ran their fox to ground close to Colston 

 Basset. 



Just about the same time came the announcement 

 of the death of Will Derry, a well-known and highly 

 respected hunt servant. 1 



On the beginning of the season 1872-73, a London 

 daily paper contained an article headed, "The Quorn at 

 Kirby Gate." Therein the writer made mention of the 

 "specially succulent pork pies" of Melton Mowbray, and 

 he proceeded to state that the trade in them was in a 

 great measure provoked by the presence of hunting men, 

 who find that "particular edible, when cut into slices, to 

 be about the most convenient, not to say filling, luncheon 

 which they can carry about with them ! " 



The opening of the year 1873 saw a sa -d accident 

 occur to Lady Ida Hope, of Park House, Melton Mow- 

 bray, who broke her arm while hunting with the Quorn 

 hounds. They met at Brooksby Hall, and in the course 



1 He was second whipper-in to Mr. Musters in Northamptonshire, the 

 first being Tom Smith, afterwards huntsman to the Brocklesby, and it is 

 supposed that the portraits of these two appeared in Aiken's sketch of " The 

 Squire Hunted by his Hounds," as given in Mr. Vyner's Notttia Venatica. 

 From the Pytchley Derry went on to the Quorn, of which pack he was first 

 whip under George Mountford in Mr. Rowland Errington's time. Then, 

 when Lord Chesterfield became master of the Pytchley, Derry went to that 

 country as huntsman, and during that brief but brilliant dynasty he was 

 magnificently horsed, while master and man rode as hard against each other 

 as did "Ginger" Stubbs and Tom Crommelin. When, however, "Gentle- 

 man " Smith took the Pytchley, Derry declined to stop with him. 



