OF THE SADDLE AND SIRLOIN CLUB 129 



THE LAIRD OF NETHERHALL 



46. The shrewdest practitioner in animal types and bloodlines 

 since the earliest masters, perhaps the shrewdest of all because 

 his material already had passed the refiner's fire, was the Laird 

 of Netherhall, Andrew Montgomery. Bom in the late forties of 

 the last century, he was attaining manhood when the superlative 

 Prince of Wales (673) was foaled, and grew into his indepen- 

 dence in husbandry as this founder of bloodlines developed his 

 prestige in showyard and breeding paddock. But even as he 

 shaped his career as a breeder of Clydesdales, the star of Darnley 

 shone on his firmament, and he was called to make the decision 

 the master must always make — what materials, what blood he 

 should use. In spite of the enormous prices and popularity of the 

 Prince of Wales' sons, he allied himself with the Darnley blood. 

 Rightly had he interpreted the brood successes of Darnley's 

 daughters to the cover of Prince of Wales, rightly did he reason 

 that some son of Darnley must transmit the same merits that the 

 daughters had bequeathed. As a yearling he acquired Macgregor, 

 bluntly declaring at the outset that he had found what he sought. 

 And he builded well. A new type of .draught economy arose in 

 the Macgregor progeny, and a new supreme justice of the Clydes- 

 dale court arose in the land. The genius of Netherhall's laird 

 overshadowed the pronouncements of those noble veterans, David 

 RiDDELL an4 Lawrence Drew. 



Montgomery's ultimate triumph was founded in the acquiring 

 of Baron's Pride. This latter horse, foaled May 8, 1890, sprang 

 from the loins of Darnley's rugged grandson. Sir Everard, leading 

 showyard sire of his generation. Darnley fathered three notable 

 sons, Macgregor, already mentioned, Flashwood and Topgallant. 

 Although of powerful make, the last named was the least known 

 of these in his day, but through his son Sir Everard and Andrew 

 Montgomery's skillful booking of Baron's Pride, he was the 

 choice of the three to carry forward the torch of improvement. 



