A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



STAGHOUNDS 



Mr. Gerard's hounds, established in 1863, 

 have their kennels at Wrightington Hall, the 

 residence of the master, the Hon. Robert Joseph 

 Gerard-Dicconson. The pack consists of twenty 

 couples of hounds, and they hunt twice a 

 week. Their quarry is the wild deer — not the 

 red-deer of the West Country, but the fallow- 

 deer — and their country extends nearly to the 

 Ribble. 



The Oxenholme Hunt was established in 

 1887 and has its kennels at Endmoor, Kendal. 

 The pack consists of twenty couples of hounds 

 which are a cross between the bloodhound and 

 the foxhound. They hunt the carted deer and 

 escaped deer ranging at large. The meets are 

 held twice a week throughout the season. 



Lord Ribblesdale's pack was started in the 

 season 1906-7 by Lord Ribblesdale and Mr. 

 Peter Ormrod, and the quarry is neither the 

 red, fallow, nor roe-deer, but a kind of black 

 deer which has been turned down for that 

 purpose. 



The pack formerly known as Mr. Peter 

 Ormrod's, which had its kennels near Scorton, 

 and was established in 1899, is now dispersed. 

 It consisted of thirty couples of hounds, and 

 hunted three days a week. These hounds also 

 paid periodical visits to North Devon for the 

 purpose of hunting a part of the Devon and 

 Somerset country. 



HARRIERS 



The following extract ' on hare hunting 

 clearly shows the difficulties that are referred 

 to above : — 



A hare had for several years frequented a particular 

 corner of Maghull. This hare was repeatedly seen in 

 the garden belonging to Henry Meadows, the 

 village blacksmith. She had many times beaten the 

 greyhounds, and in the winter of 1824-5 she was 

 repeatedly run by the harriers of R. Seed esq., as 

 w^ll as coursed by greyhounds. The writer, who 

 generally followed the harriers above mentioned, 

 was upon one occasion accidentally afforded an 

 opportunity of observing this hare's manoeuvres. She 

 was one day pressed so hard by the staunch little 

 harriers that, after a long and hard run, she was 

 under the necessity of crossing the canal, which saved 

 her life. She was always to be found at home, and 

 when the harriers were at the loss for a diversion 

 they knew where to procure a run. 



One of the murderous coursing crew who lived in 

 the neighbouring township was very fond of his 

 greyhounds ; he visited Maghull, and found the hare 

 but was beaten by her. A few days afterwards he 

 ran her with a leash of greyhounds, and two couple of 

 beagles, but she yet escaped. Bent on her destruction, 

 however, the courser, a few days afterwards again 

 visited Maghull, this time accompanied by two 



couples of greyhounds, and three couples of beagles. 

 Six beagles and four greyhounds against one poor 

 little hare ! The hare as usual was easily found, and 

 beat the four greyhounds handsomely, but the business 

 was not to end here ; the poor hare was again put 

 up by the beagles, and again she beat the tremendous 

 odds against her. Again the beagles were put upon 

 her foot, again she was viewed, and as a last re- 

 source made her way to the garden of Henry 

 Meadows. Here she was surrounded, and the poor 

 animal thus unfairly lost its life, was thus miserably 

 murdered. 



The Holcombe Harriers are kennelled at 

 Holcombe, Ramsbottom. The pack, consisting 

 of twenty couples of hounds, meet three days a 

 week, and the master is Major W. M, Hard- 

 castle. 



This is a very ancient pack, having been in 

 kennels for over 200 years, and trencher fed 

 before that for 100 years. There is a tradi- 

 tion'' that James I, while resting at Hoghton 

 Tower on his way to York, hunted one day 

 with the Holcombe, and was so pleased with 

 the sport that he granted to these hounds per- 

 mission to hunt three days a year for ever in 

 the township of Quarlton, which was part of 

 the manor of Tottington. This fine old- 

 fashioned pack has rather a curious custom in 

 that the huntsman, as well as the whip, are 

 pedestrians, whereas the northern packs, which 

 hunt a great deal in hilly country, usually have 

 the kennel huntsman on foot, as well as a 

 mounted huntsman. The attire of the 

 Holcombe huntsman consists of cord breeches, 

 cord leggings, buttoned down the side, a cut- 

 away red coat, and tall hat. He carries a horn, 

 shaped like a coach-horn, measuring 3 ft. in 

 length, which has been in the possession of the 

 hunt for over 200 years. 



There are no records of the Kirkham Harriers 

 before 1822, in or about which year they seem 

 to have been established. The kennels are at 

 Treales, Kirkham, and the master, to whom the 

 pack now belongs, is Mr. Charles Addison 

 Birley of Bartle Hall. The country hunted is 

 entirely in Lancashire, roughly speaking from 

 the Wyre to the Ribble, from Chipping in the 

 north-east to Lytham in the south-west. The 

 greater part of this country is known as the 

 Fylde. There is but little difference, between 

 the number of hares killed now and those 

 accounted for before the Ground Game Act 

 came into force. The season of 1897-8 was 

 the best that the pack has had under the 

 present master, whose property it has been for 

 forty years. 



The pack consists of twenty couples of hounds, 

 and they hunt over a country which is almost 

 entiftly pasture land with a number of ditches, 

 especially in the Fylde district. The meets 

 are fairly well attended, and the fields as a rule 



' Johnson's Sporting Dictionary, 183 i. 



' Hon. A. Bryden, Hare Hunting and Harrieri. 



470 



