Comparison, Short Story Collections

I think a comparison would be appropriate between the following story collections.

Somerville & Ross

Some Experiences of an Irish RM (Longmans, Green & Co., London, 1899)
Further Experiences of an Irish RM (Longmans Green & Co., London, 1908)
In Mr Knox's Country (Longmans Green & Co., London, 1915)

David Gray

Gallops (Century Co., New York, 1898)
Gallops II (Century Co., New York, 1903)
Mr. Carteret and Others (Century Co., New York, 1910)

Gordon Grand

Colonel Weatherford and His Friends (1933)
Old man and other Colonel Weatherford stories (1934)
The Silver Horn (1937)
Young Entry
The Southborough Fox

Isn't it interesting that Somerville & Ross were writing at the same time as David Gray?  The stories by Somerville & Ross were originally published in magazines.  This is probably also true of Gray's pieces.  There are strong similarities between the stories but marked differences.
The main character in the Somerville & Ross stories is a man who leaves the military (with the rank of major) in order to marry.  Their social status is somewhat nebulous -- clearly upper class but not wealthy and not aristocracy.  They are English but he is posted to Ireland as a Resident Magistrate (essentially a judge).  While he laments all of his expenses, he manages to keep a family, a large house, a few servants, a couple of horses, and he foxhunts and shoots.  At the time of the stories, Ireland is only one generation removed from the potato famine and extreme poverty is the norm.  Many Irish and Anglo-Irish characters appear and they are almost uniformly destitute.
The David Gray stories are American.  While the cast of characters is larger, they are all of one class.  Since it's America, that's the wealthy class.  They make no bones about it.  Much is said about various characters not needing to work.  In many instances they call to the stables from the house.  All of the women seem to ride sidesaddle and automobiles are not mentioned until the last book.  Every manner of horse-drawn vehicle is mentioned including street cars.  The fictitious town used as a setting is Oakdale.  Everyone who works, or keeps an office, does so in New York.  They seem to only be twenty or thirty miles from the city which is interesting.  The last book sees a few of the American characters spending the hunting season in England.
The contrast is rather startling but the stories are very similar.  There is horse dealing in all its various shades.  There are practical jokes and all kinds of wagers.  There are feats of derring-do (and foolishness) on horseback and in harness.  There are romance, honor, sentiment, and pathos.
The Gordon Grand stories are yet another flavor of the same thing.  It's been awhile since I read these but the books are solidly American.  The cast of characters crosses more classes.  They are more strongly paternalistic, I think.  And they are markedly more modern.  The stories flow differently.  I need to reread these and think about it.  I do not think that many of them (if any) were published in magazines prior to coming out as books.  Grand wrote quite a few other books including a biography of Redmond Stewart, the foxhunter who created a topiary foxhunt in his garden.  Which ought to segue into a discussion of gentlemen scholar foxhunters.