REMINISCENCES OF BERT DRAGE 



I felt that he should do this. ** Oh I " he said, 

 " I like to meet my old friends." 



When I was very young, I rode down to Kelmarsh 

 several times to take a horse out hunting with the 

 Fernie Hounds. He belonged to Mr. R. C. Naylor. 

 He was Master of the Pytchley for a few years. 

 I was to try to sell the horse, and I was to have all 

 I could make over £300. As I said, I was very 

 young and inexperienced, and really had no earthly 

 chance of making £300 of the horse, but I was 

 keen and, anyhow, enjoyed hunting on the horse. 



I once got up very early in the morning to go out 

 with the Quorn cub hunting. I had arranged to 

 try a horse that belonged to, I think, the present 

 Lord Radnor. The then Lady Helena Fitzwilliam 

 had arranged it all. I liked the horse very much, 

 but I found that he was a slight whistler. So I 

 told Lady Helena that she must reduce the price. 

 Funny that I should remember her reply. She 

 said Lord Radnor was adamant about that being 

 the lowest price, so I had to give it, and he turned 

 out very well and paid us a good profit. 



I think it was in the year the war broke out in 1939 

 that there was going to be a change in the Mastership 

 of the Quorn. The present Lord Beatty had 

 agreed to be Master. I remember we stood 

 together as hounds were drawing Ashby pasture. 

 Lord Beatty was telling me that he would like to 

 rely on me to find all the Hunt horses. They 

 found a fox and, early in the hunt, Lord Beatty 



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