GROUSE SHOOT
On the glorious Twelfth of August, all of Britain looks north to Scotland and the opening of the grouse-shooting season. Trains from the south are loaded with hunters headed for the moors. Like many landed Scotsmen, Captain Alwyne Compton Farquharson, Laird of Invercauld, opens his 300,000-acre Aberdeenshire estate for the August-to-November season to paying guests. For $300 per week they can hunt the grouse and ptarmigan, fish the salmon in the River Dee—and later stalk the red deer on lands adjoining those of Balmoral, the Queen's estate. Among this year's hunters at Invercauld was a group of New Yorkers: John and Stoddard Horn, Mrs. John W. Hanes, Mr. and Mrs. E. Tunnicliff Fox. For the 15-mile walk-ups in the rain-soaked heather, they found English shooting tweeds more practical than American field clothes. In feudal splendor, they feasted on roebuck and red deer, were afterwards piped to bed by the castle piper.
SIR ROBERT HOWE DOWNS A GROUSE
John Horn had Scott Adie of London make a set of ancient hunting Fraser tartan kilts for him. Although he is entitled to wear them by his Fraser ancestry, he didn't find courage to do so until the last day's hunt. Because of wet heather, kilts, tweed plus fours or skirts are the most practical attire on the moors. Here Horn and Se√±or Luis de Soto Ybarra of Seville, with gamekeeper John Wright, return from a day on the highest moor at Invercauld—4,000 feet—with bag of ptarmigan.
Mrs. John W. Hanes and John and Stoddard Horn rest during a day's shoot. Mrs. Hanes's Newmarket boots of waterproof leather and canvas, tweed skirt and Burberry shooting jacket kept out the Highland weather. Scott Adie, Ltd., outfitted the Horn brothers in tweed plus fours, soft tweed hats, hobnailed waterproof shoes, socks. Their shooting jackets are American.
Tom Macpherson, one of five Invercauld keepers, wears Invercauld tweed deerstalker cap and suit. His shepherd's crook has ram's-horn handle.
Mrs. E. Tunnicliff Fox waits for grouse drive in heather-covered stand. Leather-faced American field-trial suit was not as practical as a tweed skirt on the soggy moors.
FIVE PHOTOS
PHILIP STEARNS