198 COURSING 



who had ' leave ' over all the best ground in South Northum- 

 berland, and whose meetings were numerous and largely 

 patronised. There must, however, have been something wrong 

 with the customs in existence at their gatherings, for about 

 1850 the club died out, and, as far as Bothal is concerned, 

 the Newcastle, Northumberland, and Durham Union took its 

 place The newcomer did not last long, but was soon merged 

 into the North of England Club, and then, after a short 

 interval, the Bothal Club, well supported by the tenants on 

 the estate, sprang into existence. The promoters of the new 

 venture were Mr. Ellis, the rector of the parish, a relation of 

 the then Duke of Portland, whose property Bothal was, and 

 Mr. Angus of Whitfield, one of the largest tenants on the 

 estate. These gentlemen actually succeeded in organising 

 fortnightly private meetings, which at once ' caught on ' with 

 the inhabitants of the district. In 1866 the first public meet- 

 ing was held, fifty-four greyhounds taking part in the puppy 

 stakes, and victory going to Mr. Ellis's El Soudan, among 

 the defeated lot being such a first-rate after-performer as 

 Hyslop's Strange Idea, a subsequent winner of the Waterloo 

 Plate, and the sire of a Waterloo Cup hero, in Sea Cove, 

 two years later. The succeeding years saw an enormous in- 

 crease in the Bothal entries, and as the place became more 

 widely known, so much the more did it grow fashionable as a 

 trial ground for puppies ; indeed, such produce stakes in the 

 open were never equalled elsewhere, the entry in 1870, when 

 Cottage Girl and Charming Belle divided, reaching 345 for 

 one of them. This enormous number of subscribers caused 

 a division of dogs and bitches, with the result that in 1871 

 the former numbered 209, the bitches reaching the gigantic 

 total of 242. The big entries were found to be quite unwork- 

 able, and, consequently, the next year the stake was limited to 

 members only. Even then 259 names were set down. At this 

 period there were five members' meetings in a year. With the 

 victory of Gallant Foe in 1 8 7 5 the early history of the club ceases, 

 as for some years afterwards the meetings were in abeyance. 



