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Hunting Songs Volume Two: Lakeland Songs
Hunting Songs Volume Two: Lakeland Songs
Hunting Songs Volume Two: Lakeland Songs
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Hunting Songs Volume Two: Lakeland Songs

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Neil Sainsbury, Hon Secretary, Central Committee of Fell Packs writes: Ron has recently followed up his successful book produced last year of Lakeland Hunting Songs with Hunting Songs Volume 2 : Lakeland Songs which gives us more of the same. It has always been a great tradition up here in the fells for supporters of the Fell Packs to pen vocal tributes to memorable hunts, famous huntsmen and even hounds from both past & present. Some years ago I myself compiled a History of the Coniston Foxhounds, based on contemporary hunting reports in the local and national press of the time and realised just how important a sing song has been to the Dalesmen of the Lakes for hundreds of years. I found many amazingly descriptive reports of hunt suppers, Merry Neets, Harvels of the past.

Times have changed and the evenings which have been a regular part of fell hunting for centuries have greatly diminished and the numbers of hunters prepared to perform has also waned. As such, many of the traditional songs and ditties are in danger of being lost forever. As these are such a vital part of our heritage, this would be disastrous and for the sake of our history it is so important that as many of them as possible are saved for posterity.

One of the things I like with Volume 2, is the way that Ron has interspersed a number of lovely little hunting stories and anecdotes. Some are historical whilst others are the result of Ron’s own experiences and are written in such a way as any reader, especially those of us who have grown up with the fell packs, can recognise as fairly typical of our own experiences from our youth.

This is a super little book, well researched, nicely presented and very worthy of joining its stable mates on your hunting bookshelf.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateNov 16, 2014
ISBN9781310860980
Hunting Songs Volume Two: Lakeland Songs
Author

Ron Black

Gone2Ground Books was created by Ron Black and Wendy Fraser in 2011 after they had successfully published a few books based on Ron's personal experiences as a boy brought up in Ambleside, in the Lakeland District of Cumbria (UK). Ron's books describing the social life and history of the region were produced from the pages of his popular website, Lakeland Hunting Memories, created by Wendy in 2008. Ron writes: "Recently I was told that 95% of Lakeland was unexplored in an archaeological sense. With the abolition of Fox Hunting in 2005 there was a slight chance that places and structures associated with fox hunting would in the fullness of time join them, lost in time and memory. "It was with this in mind that I began to compile material for my website. It is not my intention for it to glorify or be used as propaganda for or against hunting, but simply to record associations with a 'sport' traditional to Lakeland for over 300 years. "I am a native Lakelander with roots going back to 1700, the 4th generation to follow hounds, with ancestors who stood on the cold tops at dawn, moved the heavy Lakeland stone to free trapped terriers and also 'carried the horn' on occasions. I hope this site is of interest to you. Hunting will not come back in the foreseeable future, perhaps not at all, but for three hundred years hunting and the church were the central thread to many communities. This is a part of the story."

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    Book preview

    Hunting Songs Volume Two - Ron Black

    Hunting Songs Volume Two:

    Lakeland Songs

    Compiled by Ron Black

    Edited by Wendy Fraser

    Copyright©2014 Ron Black

    Smashwords Edition, License Notes

    This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy.

    Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

    Contents

    Introduction

    A Brief History of Hunting in the Lake District

    John Peel

    ‘John Peel’

    ‘Monody On The Death of John Peel’

    What Was It Like To Follow Hounds In The Lakes? Abstract from Byways in Lakeland

    The Blencathra

    ‘A North Country Nimrod’

    ‘Orthwaite Fells’

    ‘Blencathra Foxhounds At Wythburn’

    ‘Mungrisdale Hunt 1920’

    The Coniston

    ‘The Coniston’

    ‘The Coniston Fox Chase’

    ‘Coniston Foxhounds (2)’

    Morning With Pete

    ‘Squire Logan–Sawrey Hunt’

    ‘The Bryan Beck Hunt’

    ‘A Day Of The Coniston Foxhounds’ by Richard Clapham

    The Eskdale & Ennerdale

    ‘Tommy Dobson’

    ‘Old Grandee’

    ‘Eskdale and Ennerdale Hunt Song’

    ‘I’le Broughton Hunt’

    ‘The Eskdale Foxhounds’

    ‘Ike Jenkinson’s Game Cocks’

    The Lunesdale

    ‘From Autumn Through Til Spring’

    ‘John Nic And His Lunesdale Pack’

    ‘The Sedbergh Hunt’

    The Fox Went Straight Up The Steep Fell Side

    ‘Black Swan Inn’

    See Everything

    The Melbreak

    ‘Lil Melbreak’

    ‘On The 10th Day Of March 1879’

    ‘The Gatesgarth Hunt’

    ‘Huntsman’s Farewell’

    ‘Loweswater Tally O!’

    ‘Melbreak Hounds, December 24, 1869’

    ‘Gone Far Away’

    Dove Crag - Yer Daft Bugger

    The Ullswater

    ‘Placefell Hunt’

    Descent Over Crags

    ‘The Car Hunters’

    ‘The Ullswater Foxhounds’ Chorus Of Victory’

    ‘Tarry Woo’’

    ‘The Place Where The Old Horse Died’

    ‘The Hunters’ Lament’

    Hound Trailing

    ‘The Hound Trail Run At Threlkeld’

    The Rattle Of The Beck - Brock Crag

    Miscellaneous Songs

    ‘Borrowdale Collie’

    ‘Bellman’

    ‘Sunrise’

    ‘The Ballad Of Braithwaite Black’

    ‘Tatie Pot’

    ‘Ghost Hounds’

    ‘The Red Rover’

    ‘The Windermere Harriers’

    ‘The Lowsing Of The Stag’

    ‘Cartmel Hunting Song, 1824’6

    ‘The Lakeland Terrier’

    Out Ottering

    Abstract from A Ramblers Notebook at the English Lakes

    ‘Carlisle Otter Hounds (1)’

    ‘Sandy, The Huntsman’

    ‘Sandy, The Carlisle Otter Hunter’

    ‘Carlisle Otter Hounds (2)’

    Conclusion

    About The Author

    Other Publications By Ron Black

    ~ ~ ~

    Introduction

    In 2011, Wendy Fraser and I published Hunting Songs Volume One: The Lakeland Fell Packs. We were gratified to find that it sold well, especially in the USA, and reviews were favourable. However along with praise came criticism, the main one being the absence of music to accompany the songs; I’m afraid there is none in this book either.

    There is no music for any of the songs in this book; the tune where known is identified and listed beneath the title of the song, but many of the songs are ‘tuneless’, the tune being carried in the singer’s head thus by definition being slightly different as sung by each singer.

    Over the years, when hunting was ‘legal’ I attended many ‘Hunt Suppers’ in the Central Fells all of which ended in a sing song, as did many hunts, which at the end adjourned to the nearest public house to celebrate or commiserate, and once the ale had flowed for a while someone would begin to sing.

    The following songs would be and still are sung at the Hunt Suppers, used by many packs to generate income.

    There are over 50 songs in this second volume and some text to try to explain the now banned pastime of hunting to the non-Lakelander.

    Ron Black

    April 2013

    ~ ~ ~

    A Brief History of Foxhunting in the Lake District

    In the 18th century, there was a custom known as ‘Foresters’ Corn’ by which the bailiff kept dogs for the hunting and destroying of foxes and other ‘vermin’.

    In the neighbourhood of Patterdale he received 40 quarts of oats from every tenant for this service. For some reason the bailiff refused to keep the dogs any longer. With no dogs being kept the ‘vermin’ multiplied, as did reports of lamb worrying. A meeting was held in the local vestry where it was decided to raise money to hire a man to destroy the ‘vermin’. But before this was accomplished the churchwarden paid out of his funds a bounty on the head of dead ‘vermin’ at the following rates:

    For killing a fox 10 groats

    For killing a fox cub 3 groats

    For killing an eagle 3 groats

    For killing a wild cat 2 groats

    The parishioners acquired the swiftest foxhounds and hired skilful sportsmen with guns and every other engine of destruction. W. G. Skelton recorded the outcome:

    Whitsun-week 1759 was fixed for the attack, and within the first week 12 foxes were destroyed. The campaign yielded 15 foxes, seven badgers, 12 wild cats, and a large number of eagles and ravens etc. (Reminiscences of Joe Bowman, 1921, p 109).

    Parochial records show that the payment from church funds for the slaughter of foxes and other animals and birds viewed as pests continued for many years. In fact, the valley of Borrowdale kept a rope in the valley especially for use on eagles’ nests, which was occasionally loaned to the Langdale valley.

    J. P. N. Watson in his autobiography Blue and Scarlet published in 1990 quotes Hutchinson writing in 1794 about the inhabitants of Loweswater:

    The people here live in harmony and they express contentment. The peasantry have one enjoyment here, which is prohibited to most men of their class. Through the liberality of their lords a hound is kept in nearly every house. Two or three qualified inhabitants take licence to kill game and command the pack. As soon as the harvest is in, an honest cobbler shifts his garb and becomes huntsman, and every second or third morning collects the dogs and calls the sportsmen to the field. The cottagers climb the mountainside where they can view the chase, and without much exertion enjoy the pleasures of the hunt, after which they retire with cheerful minds and invigorated constitutions to their peaceful homes. (Blue & Scarlet, p. 158)

    These circumstances led to the formation of the trencher-fed packs (i.e. one where hounds are looked after by individuals and brought together on a hunting day), which preceded the present packs.

    These became the fell packs starting with the Coniston in 1825.

    ~

    With the formation of the more ‘organised’ packs hunting changed, but not all that much. Hounds were kept in kennel during the hunting season and in the summer months walked by local supporters (this is the practice today). A full time huntsman who usually had another man to help him as referred to in the preceding chapter replaced the ‘cobbler’ who hunted hounds. He was known as the whipper-in and his job besides helping with the kennel work was, when the hounds ‘lowsed’ (loosed), to get onto the high ground as quickly as possible and see which way the hunt went. As can be imagined these men soon became very fit! One of the most famous was Braithwaite ‘Brait’ Wilson of the Ullswater who was known as ‘the flying whip’ (printed book published July 2014 The Flying Whip: The Story of Braithwaite ‘Brait’ Wilson). The lakes were divided into areas, each one hunted by a different pack.

    Life was hard; there was no transport, so hounds and huntsmen walked to and from the meet. If they were in an area miles from the kennel they went for a number of days, walking there and back at the end of the week, hounds being put up in the barn and the huntsmen with the farmer. Fallen stock was collected by horse and cart and taken to the kennels where it was boiled up with meal to produce a porridge.

    An ongoing problem with many hunts was finance; the wages were very low and only paid during the season. In summer hunt staff were laid off and had to seek alternative employment, i.e. farm labourer or shepherd. Expenditure was kept as low as possible. Veterinary medicine was limited and expensive and a huntsman needed to have a basic knowledge of diagnosis and treatment using the primitive medicine(s) available.

    From records available it would appear that the Fell packs killed few foxes during the 19th century, and an increased number at the start of the 20th. Not all packs were as fortunate however. In Baily’s Hunting Directory 1902–1903 the Coniston reported (p. 5) hunting 41 days from which they found 26 foxes, killed 10, holed 6 and 1 binked (took refuge) in a dangerous crag. The following year the Blencathra reported (p. 2) killing 67 foxes. The author added (p. 3), It has been the worst season the Hon Sec has known for foxes stealing and killing lambs in Wythburn, Borrowdale, Newlands and several other parts of our area. A mangy fox has never been seen in this district, save one and no doubt it came from the south.

    During the season 1903–04 whilst the Blencathra accounted for 67 foxes that season, the Coniston hunted 37 days and reported (p. 6), killed perhaps half a dozen foxes. No mange so far known, the worst season so far known.

    By 1904–1905 the Blencathra recorded 82 foxes but reported mange had made an appearance, … the mangy foxes seen did not look like foxes bred in this country.

    This was the beginning of the end of the ‘traditional quarry’, the Greyhound fox, as its smaller cousins moved into the lakes from the surrounding areas. By 1915 they had almost gone, a sighting being worthy of note.

    Finance was still a problem. Unlike the mounted hunts of the south, the followers could not afford much in the way of subscription, and the trappings of the chase (hunt buttons, etc.), were non-existent. One way of raising revenue was the ‘hunt supper’ or ‘tatie pot’ where a meal was provided accompanied by much drinking and singing. These are/were a good source of income, which brought the village and community together. Today some hunts also have ‘Race Nights’ as well.

    As time went by things slowly began to improve at the kennels. Electric light appeared doing away with the old tallow candles, sheds were built for butchering fallen stock (previously done in the open).

    A van was purchased to transport the hounds, veterinary medicine improved. The huntsman became usually a one-man operation, most hunts doing away with the whipper-in.

    Finally The Ban appeared changing hunting possibly forever.

    ~ ~ ~

    John Peel

    John Peel is arguably the best-known huntsman of all time, his fame carried worldwide by the song D’ye Ken John Peel. To be strictly accurate he hunted the foothills of Lakeland only, and chased hare til Christmas and then fox. A lot of Peel’s hunting was carried out on horseback, his favourite horse being called ‘Dunny’. He had a low income, 13 children and apparently a prodigious thirst but also an ability to drink late and still be out with his hounds at the appointed time for the meet early the following morning.

    Woodcock Graves, the originator of the song John Peel, wrote in dialect; here is the song from his manuscript (shortened version):

    Did ye ken John Peel wid his cwote sae grey?

    Did ye ken John Peel at the breck o’ the day?

    Did ye ken John Peel gayin far, far away –

    Wie his hoons and his horn in the mwornin?.

    Chorus:

    For the sound o’ the horn caw’d me fra my

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