Scarlet. 349 



great good, especially with Daphne and Dowager, 

 who in a run when, as Will's diary lias it, " Guider, 

 Trusty, and Notary were making hits all day over the 

 plough," raced clean out of the pack, and into their 

 fox about fifty yards a-head of everything, after a 

 blazing hour from Humby Wood, and killed him by 

 themselves, two fields from Newton Gorse. Since 

 they got so well set up with Rallywoods, the Belvoir 

 have used but very few stallions from other kennels. 

 Warwickshire Saffron did little for them ; but Fol- 

 jambe's Duster and Finder answered well, and they 

 have the Drake Duster blood in perfection through 

 Songstress and Guider, by whom, at one time, they 

 had three couple of staUions, of whom Gamester was 

 among the foremost. 



Like his sire, who ran seven seasons, g^^^^jj. c^^ius. 

 Grappler was a great finder, and so was 

 Comus, whose stock have been the most persevering 

 of line hunters. There was such a run on him at the 

 kennel, when he was in his zenith, that for nearly a 

 month Will's great bed, which was popularly sup- 

 posed to be able to contain three huntsmen with ease, 

 and four at a pinch, was never empty, as no less than 

 60 couple of bitches were sent to him and his com- 

 peers. He is a remarkably large wiry dog, by Cham- 

 pion by Fitzwilliam Shiner, from Barmaid, with a 

 beautiful forehand, though his roach back rather spoils 

 him. Champion was unusually clear-winded, and it 

 made very little difference to him if he had been in 

 kennel a month. The Brocklesby, Lord Henry's, and 

 Mr. Foljambe's, all had Comus, and Mr. Davenport has 

 since used him. His dam Barmaid was always in 

 high favour with Will Goodall. In her first season, 

 she was so inveterately fond of hare, that she was all 

 but condemned. However, as good luck would have 

 it, the fox was lost after a capital run at Sir Thomas 

 Whichcote's, amid hundreds of hares ; they came to a 

 check, and all passed the smeuse but her. She stopped 



