[ The Anglo-Irish Ascendancy in the Edwardian Ireland. ] Autograph Diaries of Lieut G. J. S. Scovell of the Cameron Highlanders, mainly describing his life with the regiment in Ireland, with numerous references to hunting.

Educated at Haileybury and Sandhurst, Scovell was gazetted to the Cameron Highlanders in 1900 and served with the regiment in the latter part of the Boer War (his diaries for the period being among material offered separately). He served on the General Staff in the First World War, and was appointed deputy Director-General of Recruiting in 1917, retiring from the Army the following year. For more information about Scovell, see his entry in 'Who Was Who', and his obituary in The Times, 29 April 1948. The present two volumes, covering the years 1905 and 1906, are not only of interest for the light they cast on the privileged life of the Anglo-Irish Ascendancy in Edwardian Ireland, but also for the vivid picture they paint of the day-to-day life of an British army officer of the period. ONE (1905): 104pp., 8vo. With 28 blank days out of the 312 (no Sundays, and no 1 January or 31 December), with thirteen of the blank days marked 'Kilbride Musketry Camp'. 'G S Scovell' in pencil at head of front cover. Internally in good condition, in worn blue printed boards. TWO (1906): 105pp., 8vo. Only around a third completed, with a mixture of daily entries, narrative and memoranda. Ownership inscription: 'G. J. S. Scovell. | 1st Cameron Highlanders. | Royal Barracks. | Dublin.' In good condition, lightly-aged, in red cloth binding. Well-connected both in England and Ireland, Scovell is an intelligent and observant man, as well as a voracious and shrewd reader, mainly on military matters. (For example, on 28 June 1905 he writes: 'During my month up here I have read "Marlborough's Life" by Lord Wolsely "Sir H. Smith's Biography" Robinson's Peninsular War. Elliot's "East African Profits for all" & begun Furze's "Lines of Communication in War" also several lectures by Maguire on Strategy'.) In Ireland he rubs shoulders with distinguished figures such as Sir Horace Plunkett and George Wyndham. Time in Dublin is spent at the Curragh, riding in Phoenix Park, attending a ball at the Castle, entering two horses in the Horse Show. He takes an interest in current affairs (on 24 January he writes: 'The newspapers are full of the St Petersburg riots in which many harmless women & children seem to have been slain'). He plays golf, tennis and bridge, and takes a keen interest in his regiment's achievements at football. But his great passion is for field sports - shooting and, in particular, hunting, with horse racing another interest. In fact, horses appear to be his main pleasure in life. The following extracts give a taste of the tone of Scovell's writing. The 1905 diary opens with Scovell at the family home in Brighton, socialising, reading 'Whigham's fascinating book on the Persian Problem', playing tennis and attending a ball at the Pavilion. On 6 January 1905 he writes: 'Went by early train to Henfield to see Southdown Hunt meet. They had a good day's sport. Lunched with the Wilberforces [the family of the abolitionist] had a long talk with John W[ilberforce]. who is standing agst Wilson at Holderness as a Rad: he seems exceptionally broadminded on political subjects. Walked over from there to Donny where I stay the night for the Southdown Hunt Ball. A good ball & nice party - some of the other people are odd. The room was too hot; Gotlieb's band.' On 9 January he meets the Irish military historian Thomas Miller Maguire (1849-1920) 'about taking up a language for the Staff College: he was most amusing about A. J. Balfour'. (Later in the month he attends lectures by Maguire, writing on one occasion: 'he was excellent but rather too "scholarly" for a St. Major (many of whom were present)'). A few days later, following a trip to London, he travels over to Ireland. On 12 January, following a visit to the barracks, he goes to see 'Hope Johnstone and his horses', has lunch with him and cycles to Dunboyne 'to see my other horse & found it very fit. Cycled back after tea to Dublin (missing train at Chonsiller). Adle seems to have had a scandal over his horse at Bradys. My other mare wont be fit for some time. Guest night - Young Wyndham, Lord Holmpatrick, Wyndham's private secretary, & Gerald Guinness dining'. On 14 January he writes: 'Take recruits 9 to 11.30. Hunt with Wards at Drumcree. Good hunt after outlying hind at DUNSANY lands us back at BUSHFARM fairly near Dunboyne. Finish off at 3.55. pm. <?> lasting two hours: hind not captured by hounds. Others had no sport with the Kildares. Leslie Rome adjt. of the 11th. comes up to dine & stay the night. On Sunday AHR. self & Rome go & look for race horses at Rogets, Ratoath.' For the next few days he supervises shooting instruction for recruits on the range, and as the month ends he describes rehearsals for a visit to Dublin by the Prince of Wales (the future George V). On 3 February the Royal visit takes place: 'H.R.H.'s inspection - He arrived 12.25, after inspecting the R. Fusiliers. We marched past in slow time to tune of "God Save the P. of Wales", returning in quick time to pipes: the advance in review order was A1. He inspected a few rooms & then we came into lunch: a photo was taken, after words by La fayette! The whole thing went off excellently & HRH was quite pleased. Genls Grenfell, Vetch, Morton & Henniker were there & the Vice Regal party. About 40 sat down to lunch: we didn't get up from the table till 3.' The following day he goes 'to Kilmessan to hunt with Meath. Enormous crowd including George Wyndham, Duke of Marlborough, Lord Newry etc. wretched day, had a <?> run with biggish jumps including several doubles; plenty of horses R. Fusiliers were out in great form: had a laugh with Col P who is so different from our "poodle-talking" C.O. Genl. Pole-Carew was also out.' On 9 February he goes to 'hear Col Scott-Moncrieff give a confidential lecture on the "N.W. Frontier of India" before the Mil[itar]y. Society of Ireland. Lord Grenfell, Genl. Morton, Sir Neville Chamberlain made excellent & outspoken speeches: I came away convinced that the danger is real not imaginary & that the reality lies on our unpreparedness at home not in India.' On 14 February he complains that '[o]wing to death of John Pollock, a large landowner in Meath, there is no hunting'. A couple of days later, following a morning spent 'in the Police Court watching the case of two privates (Baird & Henry) up for assault', he concludes that there are few 'other places & professions in which time was wasted as much as in the British Army'. On 21 February he goes to 'BALDOYLE Races with Sandy Ruthven; he rides BUNGEBAH in the Novice's plate but takes a toss the second time round. There are many falls but few hurt.' A dance at Dublin Castle turns out to be 'an A1 one only spoilt by our being in full kit'. As February ends he has three consecutive days of hunting (with Meath, 'Kildare, Straffan Bridge' and 'Ward Union at the Brindley Memorial'). On 14 March he travels over to Glasgow for a football match against the 42nd Highlanders at the Third Lanark Ground. Travelling back the following day, his ship is caught up in a storm, 'one of the worst in the last 50 years: our ship could not make headway & we had to take refuge in Belfast Lough. I was fearfully ill in more ways than one'. On 25 March he writes that he has 'got possession of some confidential papers in the light of reports from Manchuria by James Hamilton & Sir W. Nicholson'. On 5 April he engages a groom named Oxley. The following day he decides 'not to go to the NAVAN Races but attended a lecture on Central Asia by Col Robertson P.S.C. which was most interesting; crowded house & no reporters. Had tea with Col Filgate afterwards at the Kildare St Club. The lecture impresses me with the fact that the nation is utterly unprepared to meet an emergency of any kind in Afghanistan. Prestige is everything with our Empire composed as it is largely of black races.' On 26 April he writes that there is 'no news of the great sea fight [i.e. the Battle of Port Arthur] yet; the Baltic flotilla appears to number 52 ships a mighty host for 1905!' The following day he receives 'a long and interesting letter from C.L.P.B. now at Wei-hei-Wei - he states that the surrender of Port Arthur was a scandalous business although the Russian men (not officers) fought magnificently: he also tells me the Japs are much above themselves'. On 9 May he calls on 'the Fletcher Moores at Kilbride Manor; Mrs. F. Moore is Aunt Bertha's sister; they have a nice place about 3 miles from here. Thanks to the disorderly conduct off the soldiery here, F. Moore is not a friend to them.' A few days later he has tea with 'Maj. Laurie (R.I.R.) to meet Lady Shaw & family who had cycled out'. By the middle of May he is back in London, spending much time at his club, returning to Dublin before the month is out to take examinations for promotion. For half of June he is at Kilbride Musketry Camp. On 12 July he writes: 'After an hours Coy drill - a thing I haven't done for two years - we proceeded to the Phoenix & did a sort of attack scheme from lines of columns: Vetch, the G.O.C., arrived and of course <?> up everything: he has no personality & even the men distrust him. I hope I don't go into battle under him.' At the end of July he travels to London for an operation on his foot. While recuperating at Brighton he visits 'Col. Jermyn - a rather interesting man & a great philatelist', and goes out in a bath chair to see the polo at Preston Park. On 31 August he writes that the newspapers are 'full of the Peace Conference at Portsmouth which has ended so satisfactorily - let us hope for both the Parties concerned [Russia and Japan]. All credit is due to President Rooseveldt [sic].' He is back in Dublin on 8 September, and in Edinburgh a week later, writing on 15 September: 'Met George Hannay, lunched with him at the Club (Caledonian United Service) & joined as Hon: Member: find Hay late 79th is Secretary. Meet Alistair Macintosh & go with him to the theatre - Mons. himself taking part'. Back in Dublin he is still recuperating. On 29 September 'Genl. Vetch turns up; he reads me my confidential report which is far too flattering: I must re-double my exertions in the way of work in consequence'. A month later he is back in London, where he visits 'the Secretary of the Miniature Rifle Society who took me round to Devonshire Square to see the Stock Exchange Shooting Range - costing £20,000! Two ranges & a revolver range in the heart of the city!' On 11 September, back in Dublin, he watches 'the football match v. R.I.F on the esplanade which we won 4-2 although Farmer & Robertson weren't playing: this keeps us top of the Samson League'. At the end of November he is doing a 'vast amount of administrative work' while the state of his foot worsens. On 30 November he writes that he '[r]an in a fradulent groom last night & handed him over to the Civil Police charging him with trying to obtain money under false pretences'. On 6 December there is another game of football: 'the great football match 2nd round Army Cup v. the Irish Rifles came off which we won comfortably by a goal. The most extraordinary hacking match took place caused by Webster falling down in front of goal over the ball: needless to say the R.I.R. played a foul game but this quite nonplussed the referee'. The year ends with hunting, 'with the Wards from Batterstown meeting Poor House Dunshaughlin', 'the Kildare at Rathcole', and 'the Meath at Summerskill'. The entries in the 1906 volume are sporadic, with Scovell complaining that he has been 'full of work lately so have had no time to keep this up to date'. The entries are shorter, and mostly relate to hunting, with blank pages throughout almost the whole of March written over with 'Hunting in Co. Meath', followed by a three-page 'Summary' beginning: 'During the whole of this month I have been living at the Fingal Arms Dunshaughlin in Co. Meath engaged in hunting', and the following day: 'I have hunted daily as far as it is possible with the Meath hounds or else with the Ward Union Staghounds. We have had exceedingly good sport take it all round especially with the Meath and John Watson himself said it had been one of the best seasons he has ever had. With regard to my horses I started with Grey Lady, the Red Prince mare and Lucy while Hamish Murray leant me his Boer pony for hacking purposes & the Colonel also leant me his horse but I soon found it was unfit & an absolute rotter so I bundled him off into Dublin unfortunately he cut himself on some wire just before sending him in so he merely eat up all the forage in the D<?> Stables.' On 15 February he writes: 'Hunted Red Lady with Meath hounds from Kilmore X Roads. Had a nicish day till about 2 p.m. during a nice hunt I fell into a ditch opposite Larch Hill & had to have Red Lady dug out & pulled out by means of ropes'. A week later he goes down 'by special train with 300 men to Tipperary to witness 4th round Army Cup tie v. Lancashire Fusiliers. We won after another sensational struggle by 4 to 3 goals. The score at half time was 3 goals against us.' April sees him in Brighton for ten days, before he travels to 'Moore Park nr. Fermoy for a course of M.I.' with '50% trained men many of whom to my mind were only half trained: in fact I think every man shd. do at least 3 courses & an officer two courses, one in camp, one in stables.' The course is described in a continuous narrative over four pages, concluding: 'I came away extremely dissatisfied with all I had seen. What perhaps annoyed me most was the fact that no use was made of some 10,000 acres of Govt. ground in the Kilworth Mountains only 3 miles away - an opportunity wasted.' On 11 August he goes up to Killeen Castle for the week end: 'Sir Horace Plunkett was also staying there. The village sports were on. On Sunday I did an 8 mile walk in order to get fit before going on manoeuvres. I motored back with Sir H. P. on Sunday night in pouring rain. He is a most interesting man to talk to & quite out of the ordinary person it is my lot to encounter unfortunately.' At the end of the month he enters two horses in the Dublin Horse Show, selling one - 'my well-known mare "Grey Lady" for 148 guineas to Oliver Dixon of Reading'. September also sees divisional manoeuvres, regarding which he gives a page of reflections. He is 'adj[utan]t on' throughout October, and gives three pages summary, including details of eight 'small questions' he has settled. In mid-November he is 'doing a month's veterinary course at Aldershot', before travelling to London and then ending the year on his leave at the family home in Brighton. Other material from the Scovell papers is listed separately.