Frances Pitt — Hounds, Horses, and Hunting

London, Country Life Limited, 1948 . First edition. Cloth. A smart, signed first edition of Frances Pitt"s richly illustrated celebration of hounds, horses and the English hunting field, complete with the original unclipped dust wrapper. In the publisher"s original green cloth binding, complete with the orignial unclipped dust wrapper.  First edition.  Flat signed by the author, Frances Pitt, to the title page.  Illustrated by the British sporting artist Michael Lyne with eight colour plates, including a frontispiece, and nineteen plates of pencil drawings. Collated, complete.  A personal and practical account of English hunting, combining Pitt"s recollections of the hunting field with observations of horses, hounds, foxes and the customs and language of the sport. With a handwritten poem entitled "An Old Friend" by one Lena Crow of Ercall Park, High Ercall, loosely inserted.  In the publisher"s original cloth binding. Externally, very smart. Slight rubbing and bumping to extremities. The odd light spot, more so to rear board. Light rubbing to boards. Previous owner's contemporary ink inscription to front free endpaper. The odd spot to endpapers. Dust wrapper, very smart. Slight fading to spine and extremities. Light edge wear to extremities, with one or two very small chips, closed tears, and creases to extremities. Internally, firmly bound. Pages bright and clean with the odd light spot. Near Fine . Ill.: Michael Lyne. Near Fine/Very Good Indeed.