The Sun.
London, England, 1864-02-29 00:00:00

The Prince and his Foxhunting.

The account of the recent run with Mr. Garth's
hounds has suggested to us a means by which fox-
hunting may be brought to the royal doors, There
is a pack of hounds which belong exclusively to
royalty—we mean the staghounds at Ascot-heath.
there they are, kennels and all, at one end of Mr.
Garth's country. It certainly has occurred to us
upon various occasions that the staghounds might
be put into the hands of the Prince, as perpetual
Master. Of course, the patronage would have
ceased ; but we think the Crown might have afforded
it. However, the stag is not to his taste. We are
not much surprised at that, although there are cer-
tain countries where it is a fine substitute for the
fox ; and with such a pack as her Majesty's, and
such a selection of deer, he must be a grumbler who
would not be satisfied. But foxhunting is the na-
tional sport of Englishmen, and the Prince evidently
prefers it. We would propose, therefore, to turn
the staghounds into foxhounds, and request the
Prince of Wales to become the Master. But there
are objections; and we do not know whether they
could not be got over, supposing the Prince
himself should assent to the proposal. First of all,
there they are, staghounds ; an3= as such they have
always existed. " Long may they exist !" say some,
" with other grand and ancient ordinances." Be-
fore we say Amen to this, we should ask of what
use are the staghounds at Ascot, and to what good
purpose are they kept as an appearance of Royalty P
There was a time when things were different ; bat
it is no libel to say that at the present time they
are chiefly of service to London dealers, a pretender
or two to sport, and certain ladies whose distin-
guishing trait is reckless horsemanship. As to keep-
ing these hounds up, as any part of a Royal equip-
ment, or with even a retrospect of their former
utility, the very notion is absurd in the extreme.
The next feature in the opposition scale is appa-
rently a heavy one—Davis. What is to be done
about the very best servant and finest horseman
that ever lived—a man in-his own position quite
unequalled, and so remarkably beyond par that if
anything were to happen to him there would be
more difficulty in filling his place than in finding a
Chancellor of the Exchequer ? Could any man
alive contemplate an act of injustice, or even lain,
to the servant of four Sovereigns—faithful, efficient,
and invaluable to each of them ? Certainly not.
But Charles Davis has reached a time of life when
he might prefer to hunt for pleasure, or even to
serve his Prince in a new capacity as Huntsman of
Foxhounds. It would not be too much to offer Mr.
Davis, for the remainder of his allotted span, his
salary as a retiring pension,
and the cottage which
he had so long adorned. Nor must it be forgotten
that Davis, in his green old age, is in many respects
more valuable than before, His experience, his
knowledge of hounds and country, and his inesti-
mable qualities as a kennel huntsman, would render
him a most valuable assistant to the Prince. What-
ever might be done, we feel satisfied that Davis
would suffer neither in feeling nor pocket. And
what country would the Prince take ? We do not
know what arrangement could be made. If we had
our own way, of course We should suggest a
small Leicestershire round Windsor Castle;
but we cannot do that, and the Prince would
put up with the country into which the ac-
cident of birth and position'had brought him. But
would Mr. Garth be induced to part with a certain
portion of his ? Because, if not, we are much averse

to that moral influence in the matter of fox-hunting
which the wishes of a prince necessarily exercise.
The fact is that Mr. Garth's country
is a very large
one—more than he can manage to do justice to, we
think, extending from Windsor Park to beyond
Farnborough, and as broad as it is long the other
way. Hence come the evils of late drawing in short
days, which must be undertaken as a matter of duty
rather than pleasure. Such are one or two of the
principal difficulties which at first sight present
themselves to us. Of course, more
would follow, and
the opponents of the scheme would raise any num.
ber. However that might be we see great advan-
tages to arise from some such institutions; and if
the Prince himself could entertain the notion, we
feel satisfied that every obstacle would melt like
snow before the sun. Under no other circumstances
could his Royal Highness become a master of
hounds ; but we can scarcely conceive a more fit-
ting termination to an establishment which has
long ceased to be what it originally was, and is now
kept together by the prestige of a very remarkable
public servant, or for a piece of patronage which
cannot be of great value to the Minister of the day.
—Field.

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