SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN 



March, i860. Referring to this stake, the pro- 

 gramme of the meeting says : — 



by permission of Lord Sefton and the Altcar Club the 

 seven dogs which divided the Talbot Stakes at the 

 February meeting of the Ridgway Club, will run off 

 the ties for the piece of jewellery added to that stake, 

 with a fresh entry of ^^4 10/. each. 



Though the Altcar Club is essentially Lancas- 

 trian in its origin and its home, and has had many 

 supporters from within the county, it has also had 

 many from without. A look through lists of mem- 

 bers of various dates gives names so well known 

 in Lancashire as Molyneux, Stanley, Formby, 

 Hesketh, Hornby, Willis, Ireland-Blackburne, 

 Hoghton, Blundell, Legh, and Rawstorne, and its 

 first list of members includes as ' honorary 

 members' the Earl of Sefton, Mr. Creevy, Mr. 

 Hopwood, and Mr. Heywood. To the foregoing 

 may be added the names of Fleetwood, Brock- 

 hole, Patten, Horrocks, Pedder, and Weld-Blun- 

 dell. Amongst well-known coursers of their 

 day can be found the names of Borron, Ridgway, 

 Sir James Boswell, Sir Piers Mostyn, Capt. 

 Spencer, G. E. Cooke, A. Graham, and probably 

 the full list of members for 1878 will give as 

 strong a membership^ as the club has ever had. 

 The strength, too, of the club in the past is-evi- 

 denced by the successes gained in the great 

 matches against 'the world' held at Ashdown Park 

 in i860 and at Amesbury in 1864. In the former 

 the contest was confined to the Craven Chal- 

 lenge Cup, and the club obtained first and second 

 places, Mr. C. Randell's Rosy Morn winning 

 and Lord Sefton's Sweetbriar ' running up. In 

 the match at Amesbury there were three stakes, 

 and the club members were first and second in 

 the bitch puppy Challenge Bracelet and the all- 

 aged Challenge Cup, whilst 'the world' divided 

 the Challenge Bracelet No. 2, for dog puppies. 

 The names of the club-winning owners were 

 C. Randell, G. A. Thompson, T. T. C. Lister, 

 and W. G. Borron and their dogs respectively. 

 Rising Star, Theatre Royal, Cheer Boys, and Bit 

 of Fashion, 



' The Duke of Hamilton, the Earls of Sefton, Stair 

 and Haddington, Earl Grosvenor, Lords Lurgan, 

 Calthorpe, and Fermoy, Sir T. Metcalfe, bart. and Sir 

 C. Molyneux, bart., Messrs. R. W. Abbotts, G. T. 

 Alexander, and R. Anderton, Capt. Archdale. Col. 

 Bathurst, Messrs. J. Bayly, S. J. Binning, G. Blan- 

 shard, W. G. Borron, J. Briggs, T. Brocklebank, J. 

 Brundrit, T. H. Clifton M.P., J. Coulthurst, W. D. 

 Deighton, M. Fletcher, Col. Goodlake, Messrs. T. 

 Henderson, E. G. S. Hornby, T. D. Hornby, W. 

 Irving, R. Jardine, F. Johnston, J. Johnston, A. H. 

 Jones, W. J. Legh, M.P., S. C. Lister, T. T. C. Lis- 

 ter, C. E. Marfleet, W. Mather, D. J. Paterson, L. 

 Pilkington, T. L. Reed, G. Robinson, T. Stone, J. 

 R. Thomson, R. C. Vyner, A. Walker, and C. Weld- 

 Blundell, with C. Randell an honorary member. 



' Sweetbriar, Theatre Royal, and Cheer Boys were 

 winners over Altcar. 



Since these matches took place we find among 

 others such well-known coursers and their dogs as 

 G. Robinson and Raphoe, B. H, Jones and Jem 

 Mace, J. Brundrit and Blue Violet, R. Jardine 

 and Progress, T. H. Clifton and Canteen, T. D. 

 Hornby and Handicraft, T. Stone and Stitch in 

 Time, Lord Haddington and Hornpipe, R. F. 

 Gladstone and Greentick, Sir W. C. Anstruther 

 and Anguish, T. Brocklebank and Bacchante as 

 winners of some of the chief events. During the 

 last twenty years other names and other dogs can 

 easily be found, but perhaps we need only note 

 the great success of Mr. Pilkington and the 

 Messrs Fawcett. Waterloo Cups, Club Cups, 

 Members' Cups and Plate, each have won in 

 plenty, and as accounting for Mr. Pilkington's 

 successes we need only name Burnaby, Thought- 

 less Beauty and her sons and daughters, Pene- 

 lope II with Don't be Headstrong, Jack o' the 

 Green, Picnic, and Palmer. 



As to the Messrs. Fawcett and their well- 

 named F.F.'s, space permits no more than a bare 

 mention of Fabulous Fortune, Fearless Footsteps, 

 Farndon Ferry, and Father Flint amongst their 

 many winners. 



Their renowned brood bitch, Fair Fortune, 

 must not be forgotten. One has only to name her 

 famous litter to Herschel, consisting of Fortuna 

 Favente, Fair Floralie, First Fortune, Fortune's 

 Favourite, and Fabulous Fortune, to see how she 

 has contributed to the success of the kennel. 

 In like manner how much in Mr. Pilkington's 

 case is due to his little wonder Thoughtless 

 Beauty. The list of his stud dogs out of her at 

 the present time : Paracelsus by Under the Globe, 

 Prince Plausible by Boswell, Pateley Bridge, 

 Priestlaw, and Prince Charming, all three by 

 Mellor Moor, makes as interesting reading as the 

 list of Fair Fortune's litter above named. In 

 justice too to Thoughtless Beauty, her daughters. 

 Pensive and Peerless, should not be forgotten. 



It seems certain that the Ridgway Club * can- 

 not have been formed much after the Altcar, 

 though from the list of meetings of which returns 

 are given from 1828 to 1890-91 it seems that it 

 was not till the December meeting of 1839 that 

 it was called the Ridgway Club. In the early 

 days meetings seem to have been held mostly at 

 Southport, but later the club held three meetings 

 each season, the first at Lytham in November, the 

 second at Southport in December, and the third 

 at Lytham again, in February. This state of 

 things continued till 1866, from which year 

 the meetings have been at Lytham. Three 

 meetings a season continued to be held till 

 1881-2, when the holding of two meetings, one 

 in October and the other in January, commenced, 

 and has since continued. In the history of this 

 club there is much that is interesting relating to 

 the coursing over the Southport ground, but here 



* A most interesting sketch of this club appears in 

 the tenth volume of Tie Greyhound Stud Book. 



475 



