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Webster Family library of Vetarinary Medicine 
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3 9090 014 535 138 
 
 JOHNSON 
 
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 HUNTING. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY; 
 
 CONTAINING 
 
 A COMPENDIOUS VIEW 
 
 OF THE 
 
 ANCIENT AND MODERN SYSTEMS OF THE CHASE; 
 
 THE 
 
 Method of Breeding and Managing the various Kinds of Hounds, particularly 
 Fox Hounds : their Diseases, with a certain Cure for the Distemper; 
 
 THE 
 
 PURSUIT OF THE FOX, THE HARE, THE STAG, &c. 
 THE NATURE OF SCENT CONSIDERED AND ELUCIDATED : 
 
 ALSO, 
 
 NOTICES OF THE WOLF AND BOAR HUNTING OF FRANCE; 
 
 Together witii 
 
 A VARIETY OF ILLUSTRATIVE OBSERVATIONS. 
 
 BY T. B. JOHNSON, 
 
 AUTHOR OF THE SHOOTER'S COMPANION, &C. &C. 
 
 Better to hunt in fields for health unbought. 
 
 Than fee the doctor for a nauseous draught. Uryden. 
 
 LONDON: 
 PRINTED FOR SHERWOOD, GILBERT, AND PIPER, 
 
 PATERNOSTER-ROW, 
 
 1830. 
 

DEDICATION. 
 
 TO 
 
 Sir harry M. MAINWARING, Bart. 
 
 Sir, 
 
 In dedicating the present little 
 
 volume to you, allow me to observe, that I am 
 actuated by no interested motive whatever ; but 
 by an unqualified and sincere desire to express, 
 in a distinguished manner, the high sense I en- 
 tertain of your excellent character, as well as of 
 yom* condescending and truly polite attention ; 
 and in saying this, I am perfectly convinced, that 
 I express, at the same time, the feelings of all 
 those who have had the pleasure of attending your 
 hoimds. As a genuine English Gentleman, there- 
 fore, I dedicate this work to you ; which you 
 will be pleased to accept as a token of sincere 
 respect, fiom. 
 
 Sir, 
 Your obedient humble Servant, 
 
 T. B. JOHNSON. 
 
 Liverpool, 1 
 
 Sept. «1, 1826.5 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 — <♦ » 1 — 
 
 Of all the sciences which have fallen under human 
 contemplation, less, perhaps, has been written on the 
 subject of Hunting than any other ; not that it is so cir- 
 cumscribed as to admit of little elucidation, but because 
 sportsmen, occupied by the practical business of the 
 chase, have not sufficient leisure, or probably seldom 
 feel the inclination, to bestow that labour which is indis- 
 pensable to such undertakings. The sportsmen of old, 
 who have bequeathed us their notions on hunting, are 
 to be read more as matter of curiosity than as sources 
 from which may be derived any practical utility, since 
 the progress of time has, in a great degree, oblitera- 
 ted the old system of field sports. Amongst the sports- 
 men of what may be called modern days, Somervile 
 has given us his opinion in an elegant poem ; and 
 Beckford, more recently, published his volume of sen- 
 sible Letters ; these, with trifling exception, might be 
 said to constitute all that has been written (at least in 
 modern days) on the subject of hunting ; if we except 
 the late publication of Colonel Cook, which I have not 
 
PREFACE. V. 
 
 yet perused : in fact, all the chapters of the present 
 volume were put together before I saw the announce- 
 ment of the Colonel's work. 
 
 However, as in a volume like the present, recurrence 
 must necessarily be had to the opinions of preceding 
 writers (Colonel Cook alone excepted), I have unhesi- 
 tatingly quoted largely from Beckford and Somervile ; 
 and indeed extracted whatever I thought worthy of 
 notice from every other author, giving my own opinion 
 where I happen to differ from them, and of course the 
 reasons upon which such opinion is founded. Also, I 
 have endeavoured to supply whatever appeared defec- 
 tive, or had been altogether omitted, by those who have 
 preceded me on the subject ; as well as noticed every 
 recent improvement. I am, therefore, willing to hope, 
 that the following pages will prove interesting and useful 
 to the sportsman. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Introductory Observations. — Ancient British Sports- 
 men, the Saxons, the Danes, the Normans. — Ancient 
 Method of Hunting. — Sjiortsmen of the Old and 
 Modern Schools 1 — 25. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Of Forming and Building the Kennel. — Its Courts, 
 Lodging Rooms, Boiling Houses, 8fc. . 26 — 32. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Extraordinary Sliced of Fox Hounds. — Of the Origin 
 of Hounds. — The Talbot or Blood Hound, the Stag 
 Hound, the Southern Hound, the Beagle, the Fox 
 Hound. — The Olfactory Organs of the Hound. — 
 Of the Size, Colour, and Breeding of Hounds, ^-c. 
 
 33—53. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Diseases (f Hounds and Methods of Cure. 54 — 112. 
 
CONTENTS. vii. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Of the Naming of Hounds. — A List of Names. — Of the 
 Feeder. — Of Boiling and Mixing the Meat, and the 
 proper Food for Hounds.— The Method and Time 
 of Feeding. — Of Bleeding and Physicking Hounds. 
 — Of Entering Young Hounds. — Summer Hunting, 
 Sfc. — Of Flogging Hounds. — Bedford' s System. 
 
 112—145. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Of the Huntsman and the Whippers-in, and their re- 
 spective Duties 146 — 173. 
 
 CHAPTER Vn. 
 
 Of the Time of Meeting. — Of Blood. — The Opinion of 
 the late Mr. Meynell upon the Subject of Blood, as 
 well as on Hounds and Fox Hunting. — Of Draw- 
 ing. — Riding to Hounds, and the Management of 
 the Run. — Changing Foxes. — Hounds at Fault. — 
 Of Halloos. — Bag Foxes. — Of Fox Courts. — 
 Treatment of Cubs. — Digging Foxes. — Of Badgers. 
 
 174—207. 
 
 CHAPTER Vni. 
 
 Of Hare Hunting. — The Opinion of a Sportsinan of 
 the last Century ttpon this Subject. — The Hoiinds 
 best calcidated for Hare Hunting. -^Of the Hunts- 
 man and Whipper-in to a Pack of Harriers. — Hare 
 Finders. — The Doubles of the Hare. — Warren 
 Hares. — Pedestrian Sjjortsmen. — Of Music and 
 Speed 207—230. 
 
viii. CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Stag Hunting. — Otter Hunting. . . . 231 — 239. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Of Scent. — Influence of the Atmosj)here upon Scent. — 
 Is different in different Animals. . . 240 — 256. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Wolf Hunting in France, with a Description of the 
 Hounds and Equipage for that purpose. — A Wolf 
 Chase 257—280. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Hoar Hunting. — Manner of Training or Entering 
 Yomig Hounds in France. . . . 281 — 294. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 The Methods of pursuing the Chase in Engla?id and 
 in France compared. — Anecdotes of an extraordi- 
 nary Pedestrian Fox Hunter. — Observations on the 
 Mischievous Propensities of the Fox ; and upon the 
 Injury sustained by his Depredations. 295 — 307. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 IntroductoryObscrvntions.-— Ancient British Sportsmen, 
 the Saxons, the Danes, the Normans. — Ancient Method 
 of Hunting. — Sportsmen of the Old and Modern 
 Schools, 
 
 In order to give a clear and somewhat comprehensive 
 view of the present subject, it is my intention not to 
 confine myself to the modern practice of Hunting, or 
 the way in which it is now followed, but to give a retro- 
 spective sketch of, or rapidly trace, its progress from 
 the earliest periods to the present time ; and hence we 
 shall perceive that the improvement which the chase, 
 like all other sciences, has experienced, was the necessary 
 consequence of circumstances ; that it resulted indeed 
 from the different aspects which the country has, at 
 various times, presented ; that hunting has, in fact, only 
 kept pace with the progress of civilization, and the in- 
 creased cultivation of the soil ; and that, therefore, the 
 mode which at one period characterised it was by no 
 means applicable to another. In saying that I shall trace 
 its progress from the earliest periods, I do not mean to 
 be understood as purposing to extend my observations 
 to the most remote ages of the world, but merely to what 
 may be called the earliest authenticated records of this 
 country. 
 
 Hunting is so deeply interesting to the human heart, 
 that it is ardently followed by the savage as well as by the 
 
 A 
 
viii. CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Stag Hunting. — Otter Hunting. . . . 231—239. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Of Scent. — Influence of the AtmospJiere upon Scent. — 
 /* different in different Animals. . . 240 — 256. 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 Wolf Hunting in France, with a Description of the 
 Hounds and Equipage for that purpose. — A Wolf 
 Chase 257—280. 
 
 CHAPTER Xn. 
 
 Boar Hunting. — Manner of Training or Entering 
 Young Hounds in France. . . . 281 — 294. 
 
 CHAPTER Xni. 
 
 The Methods of pursuing the Chase in England and 
 in France compared. — Anecdotes of an extraordi- 
 nary Pedestrian Fox Hunter. — Observatiotis on the 
 Mischievous Propensities of the Fox ; and upon the 
 Injur?/ sustained hy his Depredations. 295 — 307. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 Introductory Observations. — Ancient British Sportsmen^ 
 the Saxons, the Danes, the Normans. — Ancient Method 
 of Hunting. — Sportsmen of the Old and Modern 
 Schools. 
 
 In order to give a clear and somewhat comprehensive 
 view of tlie present subject, it is my intention not to 
 confine myself to the modern practice of Hunting, or 
 the way in which it is now followed, but to give a retro- 
 spective sketch of, or rapidly trace, its progress from 
 the earliest periods to the present time ; and hence we 
 shall perceive that the improvement which the chase, 
 like all other sciences, has experienced, was the necessary 
 consequence of circumstances ; that it resulted indeed 
 from the different aspects which the country has, at 
 various times, presented ; that hunting has, in fact, only 
 kept pace with the progress of civilization, and the in- 
 creased cultivation of the soil ; and that, therefore, the 
 mode which at one period characterised it was by no 
 means applicable to another. In saying that I shall trace 
 its progress from the earliest periods, I do not mean to 
 be understood as purposing to extend my observations 
 to the most remote ages of the world, but merely to what 
 may be called the earliest authenticated records of this 
 country. 
 
 Hunting is so deeply interesting to the human heart, 
 that it is ardently followed by the savage as well as by the 
 
10' HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Ancient British Sportsmen. 
 
 civilized man ; and no doubt can be entertained, that the 
 inhabitants of this island, prior to the invasion of Julius 
 Caesar, followed the chase, as well for amusement, as for 
 the means of subsistence ; but, as we are ignorant of the 
 means which they adopted to accomplish their purpose, 
 we must be content with the slender knowledge we pos- 
 sess on the subject, and proceed for further information 
 to periods when the chase was followed under what may 
 be called a regular and well-authenticated form. 
 
 When the Saxons visited this country, hunting as- 
 sumed an organized character ; and no sooner had the 
 Danes attained the mastery, than they instituted laws 
 for the protection of game, the increased severity of 
 which marked the imperious sway of the Normans, and 
 fixed an indelible stigma on the memory of William I. 
 The Saxons were undoubtedly much attached to hunting 
 — the same remark will equally apply to the Danes ; 
 while the Normans manifested such an invincible passion 
 for field sports, that the business of the chase was re- 
 garded as one of the most important duties of life by the 
 monarch and all the great men of the kingdom. Hence 
 it is not surprising, that the science of hunting should 
 have made considerable progress under such ardent 
 sportsmen ; the services of that noblest of quadrupeds, 
 the horse,* were called in to enhance the pleasures of the 
 chase ; and the breeding of hounds seems, at this period, 
 to have been well understood, and pursued upon syste- 
 matic principles. It is true, the hounds used by the 
 
 • It is doubtful if the horse was used in the chase prior to the Norman 
 Conquest. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 11 
 
 Hunting of our Ancestors. 
 
 Normans might be somewhat different from our modern 
 stocks ; but they -were, no doubt, well adapted to the 
 state of the country, and the mode of hunting then 
 pursued ; and were, hi all probability, of the old Talbot 
 kind, whence have sprung, I am inclined to think, all 
 the various ramifications of the hound tribe which may 
 be seen in various parts of the kingdom at the present 
 day. 
 
 Somervile's ideas upon the subject of the hunting of 
 our remote ancestors perfectly agrees with the opinion 
 above expressed, as will be seen by the following quota- 
 tion from his expressive and elegant poem: — 
 
 — — " Devotion pure, 
 
 And strong necessity, thus 6rst began 
 The chase of beasts : though bloody was the deed. 
 Yet without guilt. For the green herb alone, 
 Unequal to sustain man's labouring race, 
 Now every moving thing that liv'd on earth 
 Was granted him for food. So just is Heaven, 
 To give us in proportion to our wants. 
 Or chance or industry in after time 
 Some few improvements made, but short as yet 
 Of due perfection. In this isle remote, 
 Our painted ancestors were slow to learn. 
 To arms devote, of the politer arts 
 Nor skill'd nor studious; till from Neustria's coasts 
 Victorious William, to more decent rules 
 Subdu'd our Saxon fatlicrs, taught to speak 
 The proper dialect, %vith horn and voice 
 To cheer the busy hound, whose well-known cry 
 His listening peers approve with joint acclaim. 
 From him buccessive huntsmen leara d to join 
 In bloody social leagues, the multitude 
 Dispers'd, to size, to sort their various tribes, 
 
 a2 
 
12 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Origin of Hunting Terms. 
 
 To rear, feed, hunt, and discipline the pack. 
 Hail, happy Britain ! highly favor'd isle. 
 And Heav'n's peculiar care ! to thee 'tis given 
 To train the sprightly steed, more fleet than those 
 Begot by winds, or the celestial breed 
 That bore the great Pelides through the press 
 Of heroes arm'd, and broke their crowded ranks, 
 Which, proudly neighing, with the sun begins 
 Cheerful his course, and, ere his beams decline. 
 Has measur'd half thy surface unfatigu'd. 
 In thee alone, fair land of liberty ! 
 Is bred the perfect hound, in scent and speed 
 As yet unrivall'd; while, in other climes, 
 Their virtue fails, a weak degenerate race. 
 Tn vain malignant steams and winter fogs 
 Load the dull air, and hover round our coasts. 
 The huntsman, ever gay, robust, and bold. 
 Defies the noxious vapour, and confides 
 In this delightful exercise to raise 
 His drooping head, and cheer his heart with joy." 
 
 1 am inclined to think that many of our hunting terms 
 at present in use may be traced to a Norman origin : 
 halloo, for instance, immediately derived from a loup, 
 seems to have descended from the source just mentioned. 
 
 The Normans went to the field, or rather perhaps to 
 the forest, on horseback, armed with bows and arrows, 
 and other weapons, and attended by a great retinue. 
 The game was roused by the dogs, and shot at by the 
 sportsmen, as often as opportunity offered ; a consider- 
 able space was, on some occasions, encircled by toils or 
 nets, and a sort of indiscriminate slaughter ensued of 
 the Various .animals thus inclosed. 
 
 The stag, the wolf, and the wild boar, constituted the 
 principal objects of pursuit ; and though there was no 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 13 
 
 Ancient Norman Hunters. 
 
 scarcity of foxes, yet these animals, which at present 
 afford a species of diversion which leaves all other field 
 sports at an immeasurable distance, were httle attended 
 to by the sportsmen of the remote period now iinder 
 contemplation : the reason is evident — the chase of the 
 fox was not understood, nor yet adapted to the state of 
 the country ; and though we now regard the pursuit of 
 this animal as far preferable to any other chase, it is 
 owing almost intirely to the different aspect which the 
 face of the country presents, that it stands so deservedly 
 high in the estimation of modern sportsmen. When the 
 early Normans followed the chase in this country, the 
 game, it is true, was roused and pursued by the hounds, 
 as I have already observed ; but it generally received its 
 quietus from the hand of the sportsman, either by means 
 of the arrow, the spear, or other weapon with which he 
 was prepared for the purpose. Under such a system of 
 the chase, a fox would appear scarcely entitled to atten- 
 tion ; nor would he indeed form a mark sufficiently con- 
 spicuous for the arrow or the spear ; and therefore, upon 
 a transient view of the subject, it will seem no way sur- 
 prising, that he was little, if at all, sought after by the 
 old Norman sportsmen. 
 
 A few illustrative observations, from an ancient writer, 
 will show the irresistible propensity of the Normans for 
 the chase, as well as the style and character in which they 
 pursued it. — " In these days (says he) our nobihty esteem 
 the sports of hunting and hawking as the most honourable 
 employments, the most exalted virtues ; and to be conti- 
 nually engaged in these amusements is, in their opinion, 
 the summit of human ha})piness. They prepare for a 
 
 A 3 
 
14 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Ancient Norman Hunters. 
 
 hunt with more trouble, anxiety, and cost, than they 
 would for a battle, and follow the beasts of the forest with 
 more fury than they do their enemies : by being con- 
 stantly engaged in this savage sport, they contract habits 
 of barbarity, lose, in a great measure, their feelings of 
 humanity, and become nearly as ferocious as the beasts 
 they pursue. The husbandman is driven, together with 
 his innocent flocks and herds, from his fertile fields, his 
 meadows, and his pastures, that beasts may roam there 
 in his stead. Should one of these potent and merciless 
 sportsmen pass your door, place before him, in a moment, 
 all the refreshment your habitation affords, or that can 
 be purchased or borrowed in your neighbourhood, that 
 you may not be utterly ruined, or perchance accused of 
 treason. The sam.e writer tells us, that the fair sex 
 caught the predominant passion ; while we learn, from 
 other sources, that the mitre deserted its functions, and 
 the coiol quitted the quiet retirement of the monastery, 
 to join in the transporting pleasures of the chase." 
 
 Walterus, archdeacon of Canterbury, who was pro- 
 moted to the see of Rochester in 1147, totally neglected 
 the duties of his sacred profession, and devoted his time 
 entirely to hunting. At the age of 80, he is said to have 
 been a keen sportsman, and he died at a very advanced 
 period. Reginaldus Brian, bishop of Worcester in 1332, 
 was distinguished for his attention to field sports ; and 
 in an epistle of his (now extant) to the bishop of St. 
 David's, he reminds him of a promise he had made to 
 send him six couple of excellent hunting dogs. He de- 
 clares his heart languishes for their arrival, and observes 
 > — " Let them come, then, oh ! reverend father ! without 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 15 
 
 Ancient Hunters. 
 
 delay ; let my woods re-echo with the music of their cry, 
 and the cheerful notes of the horn ; and let the walls of 
 my palace be decorated with the trophies of the chase !" 
 Some of these clerical sportsmen, however, contrived to 
 blend amusement and business, as it were ; and in their 
 visitations through their dioceses, they were attended 
 with such numbers of horses, hounds, huntsmen, and 
 falconers, that the religious houses were frequently very 
 much distressed to provide for so numerous a retinue. 
 About the year 1200, the prior and canons of Bridlington 
 in Yorkshire, presented a formal complaint to the pope 
 (Innocent III) against the archdeacon of Richmond, who, 
 when he made his visitations, brought such a prodigious 
 number of attendants, that the complainants declared, 
 that his suite consumed more provision in one hour than 
 would serve the whole community a long time. The 
 pope, in consequence, despatched a bull, forbidding such 
 scandalous and oppressive visits in future. 
 
 The monasteries also produced their mighty hun- 
 ters ; and William de Clowne, who is celebrated as the 
 most amiable ecclesiastic of his time, and who filled the 
 abbacy of St. Mary, in Leicestershire, is no less distin- 
 guished for his p: ofound skill in the science of the chase, 
 which is numbered amongst his excellent qualities ; and 
 that his kennel might always be well supplied with 
 hounds, the king granted him the privilege of holding a 
 fair or market, for the sole purpose of dealing in dogs. 
 
 It would appear from ancient records, that the Anglo- 
 Saxons pursued the wild boar and wolf on foot ; while 
 the Normans improved upon this method by introducing 
 the horse, and directed their attention, for the most part, 
 
16 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Progress of Hunting. 
 
 to the pursuit of the stag, the roe-buck, the fox, the 
 hare, &c. nor do they appear to have depended entirely 
 on their dogs, as they were excellent marksmen and made 
 a very liberal use of the bow — thus William Rufus lost 
 his life. 
 
 Edward I. may be justly enumerated among the ori- 
 ginal fox-hunters ; and his wardrobe book, for the 28th 
 year of his reign, contains an item of the number and 
 expense of his kennel, which it seems consisted of twelve 
 hounds, and their annual expense amounted to twenty- 
 one pounds, six shillings. 
 
 Hunting, indeed, about this period, appears to have 
 been reduced to a regular science ; and several treatises 
 were written on the subject, containing instructions for 
 juvenile sportsmen, as well as rules for the various offices 
 in the forest, the stable, and the kennel. A curious 
 performance on this subject, in Norman-French, is still 
 extant. It was written in the beginning of the fourteenth 
 century, by William Twice, grand huntsman to Edward 
 II. and an ancient translation of it may be found among 
 the Cottonian manuscripts. After all, it is very clear 
 that the oppressive severity of the forest laws was not 
 sufficient to restrain the yeomanry from a diversion to 
 which they were so passionately attached. Many of them, 
 taking advantage of that relaxed state which the feudal 
 system naturally produced, retired into the recesses of 
 the large forests, which, at this period, covered a con- 
 siderable part of the kingdom, and, forming themselves 
 into a sort of banditti, pursued their favourite sport 
 almost without restraint. Hence the tradition of Robin 
 Hood and Little John ; whose deeds are related in num- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 17 
 
 Old Method of Fox-hunting. 
 
 berless old songs, which still continue great favourites 
 with the vulgar. 
 
 But such a state of things was found incompatible 
 with the progress of civilization, and consequently gave 
 way to a different system : as the cultivation of the soil 
 proceeded, the wolf and the wild boar continued to retire 
 from the face of man, till at length they could no longer 
 shelter themselves, and were thus ultimately extermi- 
 nated. The stag, however, long maintained his ground 
 against the cultivators of the soil ; or rather, he might 
 be said to be taken under especial protection, and con- 
 tinued to animate and adorn the various forests, which 
 are not, even at the present day, entirely disafforested, 
 though little remains to remind us of their former appear- 
 ances. 
 
 The stag constituted the principal object of chase after 
 the extirpation of the wild boar and the wolf, and stag- 
 hunting has continued the favourite pastime of royalty 
 to the present period. As the country was progressively 
 cleared of its useless woods and morasses, missiles were 
 laid aside in the pursuit of this animal, it being dis- 
 covered that his powers of speed and contrivance enabled 
 him to afford far superior diversion, when the exertions 
 of the hounds were unassisted by the use of those wea- 
 pons which had hitherto been employed on the occasion. 
 But, though the stag was regarded as the noblest chase, 
 the pursuit of the fox occupied the attention of the 
 sportsman, and the manner of it is thus described by a 
 writer of the seventeenth century: — "The fox is taken 
 with hounds, greyhounds, terriers, nets, and gins. 
 
I« HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Old Method of Fox-hunting. 
 
 " Of terriers there are two sorts — the one is crooked- 
 legged and commonly short-haired, and these will take 
 earth well, and will he very long at fox or badger; the 
 other sort is shagged and straight-legged, and these will 
 not only hunt above ground as others, but also enter the 
 earth with much more fury than the former, but cannot 
 stay in so long by reason of their great eagerness. 
 
 "The entering and fleshing them may be done several 
 ways; in the first place, thus: when foxes and badgers 
 have young cubs, then take your old terriers and enter 
 them in the ground, and when they begin to bay, you 
 must then hold every one of your terriers at a sundry 
 hole or mouth of the earth, that they may listen and 
 hear the old ones bay. Having taken the old fox or 
 badger, and that nothing remains within but the young 
 cubs, then couple up all your old terriers and put in the 
 young in their stead, encouraging them by crying to him, 
 to hinii to him ! and if they take any young cub within 
 the ground, let them alone to do what they please with 
 him, and forget not to give the old ones their reward, 
 which is the blood and hvers, fried with cheese and some 
 of their own grease, shewing them the heads and skins 
 to encourage them : — before you reward them, wash 
 them with soap and warm water, to clear their skins 
 from earth and cjlay that is clodded to the hair, other- 
 wise they are apt to be mangie. 
 
 *' Now, to say the truth, there is not much pastime or 
 pleasure in hunting a fox under ground ; for as soon as 
 that subtle creature perceiveth the terriers, if they bay 
 hard, and lie near unto them, they will bolt out imme- 
 diately, unless it be when the bitch hath youn§ cubs, 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 19 
 
 Old Method of Fox-hunting. 
 
 then they will sooner die than stir. — They make their 
 earths as near as they can in stony ground, or amongst 
 the roots of trees ; and their earths have commonly but 
 one hole, and that is straight a long way in before it 
 comes at their couch : sometimes craftily they possess 
 themselves of a badger's old burrow, which hath variety 
 of chambers, holes, and angles. When a good terrier 
 doth once bind the fox, he then yearns and defends him- 
 self very notably, but not so strenuously as the badger, 
 nor is his biting half so dangerous. 
 
 ** Of fox-hunting above ground. — To this purpose 
 you must draw with your hounds about groves, thickets, 
 and bushes near villages ; a fox will lurk in such places 
 to prey on young pigs and poultry ; but it will be neces- 
 sary to stop up his earths, if you can find them, the night 
 before you intend to hunt, and the best time will be 
 about midnight, for then the fox goeth out to seek his 
 prey : you may stop his holes by laying two white sticks 
 across before them, which will make him imagine it is 
 some gin or trap laid for him ; or else you may stop them 
 up close with black thorns and earth together. 
 
 " The best hunting a fox above ground, is in January, 
 February, and March, for then you shall best see your 
 hounds hunting, and best find his earthing ; besides, at 
 those times the fox's skin is best in season. Again, the 
 hounds best hunt the fox in the coldest weather, because 
 he leaveth a very strong scent behind him ; yet, in cold 
 weather, it chills fastest. At first, only cast off your 
 sure finders, and as the drag mends, so add more as you 
 dare trust them. Shun easting off too many hounds at 
 once, because woods and coverts are full of sundry 
 
20 HUNTING DIRECTORY* 
 
 Draper, the Fox-hunterj - 
 
 chases, and so you may engage them in too many at one 
 time. Let such as you cast off first, be old staunch 
 hounds, which are sure ; and if you hear such a hound 
 call on merrily, you may cast off some other to him; and 
 when they run it on the full cry, cast off the rest, and 
 thus you shall complete your pastime. The words of 
 comfort are the same which are used in the other chases, 
 attended with the same hoUowings and other ceremonies. 
 Let the hounds kill the fox themselves, and worry and 
 tear him as much as they please : many hounds will eat 
 him with eagerness. When he is dead, hang him at the 
 end of a pike-stafF, and hollow in your hounds to bay 
 him : but reward them not with any thing belonging to 
 the fox, for it is not good." 
 
 The greyhovmds employed in the pursuit of the fox 
 were strong, wire-haired animals, placed in situations 
 where it was expected the fox would make his appear- 
 ance, and they were slipped at him as he passed. Thus, 
 when the fox had been driven from his kennel by the 
 hounds, he had to encounter a succession of greyhounds 
 which were placed in relays for the purpose. 
 
 It is difficult to trace the progress of hunting, and of 
 fox-hunting in particular; but yet, I am inclined to think, 
 what may be called its next stage may be tolerably well 
 conceived from the following : — " In the old, but now 
 ruinous, mansion of Berwick Hall, in the East Riding 
 of Yorkshire, once lived the well-known William Draper, 
 Esq. who bred, fed, and hunted the staunchest pack of 
 fox-hounds in Europe. Upon an income of only 700/. 
 per annum he brought up^ creditably, eleven sons and 
 daughters; kept a stable of excellent hunters, a kennel 
 
HUNTING DIREGTGJIY. 2\ 
 
 And bis Daughter. 
 
 of true-bred fox-hounds, besides a carriage with horses 
 suitable, for the convenience of my lady and her daughters. 
 He lived in the old honest style of his county, kiUing 
 every month a good ox of his own feeding, and priding 
 himself on maintaining a substantial table, but with no 
 foreign kickshaws. His general apparel was a long dark 
 drab hunting coat, a belt round his waist, and a strong 
 velvet cap on his head. In his humour he was very 
 facetious, always having some pleasant story, both in the 
 field and in the hall, so that his company was much 
 sought after by persons of good condition, and which 
 was of great use to him in the subsequent advancement 
 of his children. His stables and kennels were kept in 
 such order, that sportsmen observed them as schools for 
 huntsmen and grooms, who were glad to come there 
 without wages, merely to learn their business. When 
 they had obtained proper instruction, he then recom- 
 mended them to other gentlemen, who wished for no 
 better character than Squu-e Draper's recommendation. 
 He was always up, during the hunting season, at four 
 in the morning, mounted on one of his nags at five o'clock, 
 hunself bringing forth his hounds, who knew every note 
 of their old master's voice. In the field he rode with 
 judgment, avoiding what was unnecessary, and helping 
 his hounds when they were at fault. His daughter Di, 
 who was equally famous at riding, used to assist him, 
 cheering the hounds with her voice. She died at York 
 in a good old age, and, what was wonderful to many 
 sportsmen who dared not follow her, she died with whole 
 bones, in her bed. 
 
22 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Hugh Meynell, Ksq. 
 
 "After the fatigues of the day, which were generally 
 crowned with the brushes of a brace of foxes, he enter- 
 tained those who would return with him, and which was 
 sometimes thirty miles distance, with old English hospi- 
 tality. Good old October was the liquor drank ; and 
 his first fox-hunting toast, was ' All the brushes in 
 Christendom.' At the age of eighty years this gentleman 
 died, as he chiefly lived, for he died on horseback. As 
 he was going to give some instructions to a friend who 
 was rearing up a pack of fox-hounds, he was seized with 
 a fit, and dropping from his old favourite pony, he ex- 
 pired ! There was no man, rich or poor, in his neigh- 
 bourhood, but lamented his death ; and the foxes were 
 the only things that had occasion to be glad that Squire 
 Draper was no more." 
 
 The foundation of the present system of fox-hunting 
 was unquestionably laid by the celebrated Hugo Mey- 
 nell, Esq. who for many years conducted the Quorndon 
 establishment, and whose ideas upon the subject I shall 
 notice repeatedly in the course of this work. 
 
 When fox-hunting had assumed something of its 
 modern form, the chase was followed by a slow, heavy 
 hound, whose exquisite olfactory organs enabled him to 
 carry on the scent a considerable time after the fox had 
 passed, as v/ell over greasy fallows, as hard roads, and 
 other places where the modern high-bred fox-hound 
 would not be able to recognise it. Thus the chase conti- 
 nued for double the duration which it at present occupies, 
 and hence may be seen the reason why the old Enghsh 
 hunter, so celebrated in former days, and so great a 
 favourite witli sportsmen of the old school, was enabled 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 83 
 
 Ancient and Modern Hour of Meeting. 
 
 to perform those feats which are exultingly bruited in 
 his praise. The fact is, that the hounds and the horses 
 were very well calculated for each other : — if the latter 
 possessed not the speed of the Meltonian hunter, the 
 hounds were equally slow ; and though the pursuit was 
 not carried on with that impetuous velocity, which forms 
 the leading feature of its present highly-improved state, 
 still the superior olfactory nerves of the old hound 
 enabled him to bring the business to a more certain, 
 though a more protracted, conclusion. 
 
 Sportsmen of the old school, it would appear, com- 
 menced their operations at a much earlier period than the 
 moderns : — it is recorded of 'Squire Draper, for instance, 
 who has been already noticed, that "he was always up at 
 four in the morning, and mounted on one of his nags at 
 five ;" and the question which naturally suggests itself to 
 the mind, on reading such a statement, is, — how far had 
 he to ride to cover ? for, unless the distance was much 
 greater than usual, he would, during the best part of 
 the hunting season, arrive at the appointed spot several 
 hours before day-light ; and I cannot induce myself to 
 believe, that fox-hunting can be very pleasant diversion 
 in the dark ! However, I have no hesitation in supposing, 
 that the sportsmen of the old school met at an earlier hour 
 than the modern fox-hunter thinks necessary ; that they 
 met, in fact, as soon as day-light would enable them to 
 observe the motions of the hounds, and this circumstance 
 gave them decided advantages : — in the first place, there 
 would be less difficulty in finding, and in the next, the 
 fox would be less calculated for maintaining the contest, 
 in consequence of having to run upon an overgorged 
 
M HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 stomach : yet, notwithstanding all this, the runs were 
 frequently of very long duration ; and if commenced at 
 a later period of the day, according to modern custom, 
 would, perhaps, rarely have ended vnth the death of the 
 fox. It may be truly remarked indeed, that while the 
 old fox-hunters ran down their game, the sportsmen of 
 modern days run up to it ; and this, in a few words, 
 constitutes the essential difference between what may 
 be called the old and the modern school of fox-hvmting. 
 For the former, as I have already observed, a heavy 
 tender-nosed hound was used, which would follow on 
 the line of the fox under very adverse circumstances of 
 atmosphere and country ; and was thus enabled at last 
 to run down the chase : while the modern fox-hound pos- 
 sesses sufficient speed to run well up to the fox ; and, 
 by blowing or distressing him at the commencement of 
 the struggle, he is generally not able to get far ahead ; 
 the business is thus finished in a much shorter period, 
 with little or no interruption, accompanied by all that 
 dash, that maddening impetuosity, which constitutes the 
 supreme delight of fox-hunting. At the same time, it 
 must be admitted, that the modern high-bred fox-hound 
 cannot, generally speaking, hunt a cold scent ; if the 
 atmosphere be unfavourable, he cannot hunt ; if he 
 cannot run well up to the game, he soon loses it alto- 
 gether — his nose is not sufficiently tender to enable him 
 to recognize the scent, when the chase is far before him. 
 There are fox-hounds still to be met with which are able 
 to hunt what may called a cold scent ; in Yorkshire, 
 fox-hounds of this description are to be found. In the 
 year 1825, I noticed many in Lord Harewood's pack 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 25 
 
 Fox Hounds. 
 
 which partook much of the old school ; the same remark 
 is equally applicable to the fox-hounds of Sir Tatton 
 Sykes, to the York and Ainsty, as well as to the Bads- 
 worth, though not in so great a degree, and may perhaps 
 extend to others which have not fallen under my obser- 
 vation. The country hunted by the hounds just enu- 
 merated, would appear to render tender-nosed hounds 
 indispensable, since extensive fallows are of frequent 
 occurrence, and also other circumstances equally unfa- 
 fourable to scent. The case is different in Leicester- 
 shire, which is chiefly a grazing county, and where, of 
 course, a high-bred hound is afforded an opportunity of 
 exhibiting his powers under every possible advantage. 
 In the month of November of the year 1824, I saw a 
 fox found, by the Duke of Rutland's hounds, in a cover 
 called Holywell Mouth, near Melton ; the hovmds went 
 away close at his brush, and killed him very handsomely 
 in two and twenty minutes ! such a circumstance could 
 rarely, if ever, occur, with hounds of the old school. 
 The Cheshire hounds (those of Sir Harry Mainwaring) 
 are as fleet as the hounds used in Leicestershire, though 
 the country is not so favourable for hunting ; but the 
 inclosures are, for the most part, small ; and thus a judi- 
 cious huntsman, when he comes to a fallow or other 
 ground, where his hounds cannot recognize the scent, will 
 immediately lift them to the next fence, where it seldom 
 fails to be hit off again. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 Of Forming and Building the Kennel. — Its CourtSj 
 Lodging Rooms, Boiling Houses, ^c. 
 
 In the establishment of a pack of hounds, the first 
 consideration that obviously presents itself is the Kennel, 
 upon which the poet of the chase thus beautifully ex- 
 presses himself: — 
 
 " First let the kennel be the huntsman's care. 
 Upon some little eminence erect, 
 And fronting to the ruddy dawn ; its courts 
 On either hand wide opening to receive 
 The sun's all-cheering beams, when mild he shines. 
 And gilds the mountain tops. For much the pack 
 (Rous'd from their dark alcoves) delight to stretch 
 And bask in his invigorating ray : 
 Warn'd by the streaming light, and merry lark, 
 Forth rush the jolly clan : with tuneful throats 
 They carol loud, and, in grand chorus join'd. 
 Salute the new-born day. 
 O'er all let cleanliness preside, no scraps 
 Bestrew the pavement, and no half-pick'd bones 
 To kindle fierce debate, or to disgust 
 That nicer sense, on which the sportsman's hope, 
 And all his future triumphs, must depend. 
 Soon as the growling pack, with eager joy. 
 Have lapp'd their smoking viands, morn or eve. 
 From the full cistern lead the ductile streams, 
 To wash thy court well pav'd, nor spare thy pains, 
 For much to health will cleanliness avail. 
 Seck'st thou for bounds to climb the rocky steep, 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 27 
 
 Two Kennels lecommended. 
 
 And brush th' entangled covert, whose nice scent 
 O'er greasy fallows, and frequented roads. 
 Can pick the dubious way. Banish far oflF 
 Each noisome stench, let no oflFensive smell 
 Invade thy wide enclosure, but admit 
 The nitrous air, and purifying breeze." 
 
 Beckford is very particular in his instructions respecting 
 the kennel ; and as he very judiciously observes, its size 
 must be suited to the number of its inhabitants ; but, he 
 continues, " I make no doubt, there are many better 
 kennels than mine ; some of which, I think, you should 
 see before you begin to build." No better advice can 
 be given ; and it is highly advisable for any person who 
 contemplates building a kennel, in the first place, to visit 
 several of the principal fox-hunting establishments, from 
 which he will not fail to derive much useful information^, 
 as well as obtain the best possible guide for his own con- 
 templated structure. It is not easy to convey the requi- 
 site directions on paper for this purpose ; and, after all, 
 a little personal inspection of a few of the kennels which 
 are already reared, would convey much better and more 
 lucid ideas to the mind, than a bulky volume written on 
 the subject. The author of the " Thoughts on Hunting," 
 speaking of his own kennel, observes : — " I think two 
 kennels absolutely necessary to the Avell-being of the 
 hounds : when there is but one, it is seldom sweet ; and 
 when cleaned out, the hounds, particularly in winter, 
 suffer both whilst it is cleaning, and as long as it remains 
 wet afterwards. 
 
 *'The floor of each lodging-room should be bricked, 
 and sloped on both sides to run to the center, with a 
 
 b2 
 
28 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Interior of the Kennel. 
 
 gutter left to carry off the water, that when they are 
 washed, they may be soon dry. If water should stand 
 through any fault in the floor, it should be carefully 
 mopped up ; for as warmth is in the greatest degree 
 necessary to hounds after work, so damps are equally 
 prejudicial. 
 
 " I also wish that, contrary to the usual practice in 
 building kennels, you would have three doors ; two in 
 front, and one in the back, the last to have a lattice 
 window in it, with a wooden shutter, which is constantly 
 to be kept closed when the hounds are in, except in 
 summer, when it should be left open all the day. This 
 door answers two very necessary purposes : It gives an 
 opportunity of carrying out the straw when the lodging- 
 room is cleaned, and as it is opposite to the window, will 
 be a means to let in a thorough air, which will greatly 
 contribute to the keeping of it sweet and wholesome. 
 The other doors will be of use in drying the room, when 
 the hounds are out, and as one is to be kept shut, and 
 the other hooked back, (allowing just room for a dog to 
 pass) they are not liable to any objection. The great 
 window in the centre should have a folding shutter; 
 half, or the whole of which, may be shut at nights, accord- 
 ing to the weather ; and your kennels by that means, 
 may be kept warm, or cool, just as you please to have 
 them. The two great lodging-rooms are exactly alike, 
 and as each has a court belonging to it, are distinct ken- 
 nels, and are at the opposite ends of the building ; in the 
 centre of which, is the boiling-house, and feeding-yard ; 
 and on each side a lesser kennel, either for hounds that 
 are drafted off; hounds that are sick or lame ; or for any 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 29 
 
 Interior of the Kennel. 
 
 other purposes, as occasion may require. At the back 
 of which, as they are but half the depth of the two great 
 kennels, are places for coals, &c. for the use of the kennel. 
 There is also a small building in the rear for hot bitches. 
 The floors of the inner courts, like to those of the lodging- 
 rooms, are bricked and sloped to run to the centre, and 
 a channel of water, brought in by a leaden pipe, runs 
 through the middle of them. In the centre of each court 
 is a well, large enough to dip a bucket to clean the ken- 
 nels ; this must be faced with stone, or it will be often 
 out of repair. In the feeding-yard, you must have a 
 wooden cover. 
 
 '*The benches, which must be open to let the urine 
 through, shovdd have hinges and hooks in the wall, that 
 they may fold up, for the greater convenience of washing 
 out the kennel ; and they should be made as low as pos- 
 sible, that a tired hovmd may have no difficulty in jmnping 
 up ; let me add, that the boiler should be of cast-iron. 
 
 *' The rest of the kennel consists of a large court in 
 front, which is also bricked, having a grass-court adjoin- 
 ing, and a little brook running through the middle of it. 
 The earth which was taken out of it, is thrown up into 
 a mount, where the hounds in summer delight to sit. 
 This court is planted round with trees, and has besides 
 a lime tree, and some horse chesnut trees near the middle 
 of it, for the sake of shade. A high pale incloses the 
 whole ; part of which, to the height of about four feet, 
 is close ; the other open : tlie intex'stices are about two 
 inches wide. The grass-court is pitched (paved) near 
 the pale, to prevent the hounds from scratching out. 
 
 b3 
 
30 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Appendages to the Kennel. 
 
 "At the back of the kennel is a house, thatched and 
 furzed up on the sides, big enough to contain at least a 
 load ^f straw. Here should be a pit ready to receive 
 the dung, and a gallows for the flesh. The gal-lows 
 should have a thatched roof, and a circular board at the 
 posts of it, to prevent vermin from climbing up. 
 
 "A stove,* I believe, is made use of in some kennels; 
 but where the feeder is a good one, a mop, properly 
 used, will render it unnecessary. I have a little hay- 
 rick in the grass-yard, which I think is of use to keep 
 the hounds clean and fine in their coats ; you will find 
 them frequently rubbing themselves against it : the shade 
 of it also is useful to them in summer. If ticks at any 
 time should be troublesome in your kennel, let the walls 
 of it be well washed ; if that does not destroy them, the 
 walls should then be whitewashed. 
 
 * I cannot agree with Beckford that stoves are unnecessary ; on the 
 contrary, as nothing is more conducive to the health of hounds than 
 ' w-armth, so the introduction and use of stoves in newly-built or damp 
 tennels must be of the most essential utility. In the year 1825, Sir Bel- 
 lingham Graham's hounds took possession of 3 new kennel built near 
 Shrewsbury ; many of them soon afterwards became lame in the shoulder, 
 and continued to get worse in defiance of the application of various means 
 for their restoration : the disease spread — it might justly be called an epi- 
 demic; the progress of which was ultimately arrested by the introduction 
 of stoves. — This lameness in the shoulder is by no means a new disease ; 
 it has frequently shewn itself, and indeed occasionally made considerable 
 havock ; yet. upon investigation, 1 am inclined to think, that it has seldom, 
 if ever, been known in dry, warm kennels. Like the rheumatism in the 
 human subject, it is brought on by humidity or cold, or both ; and, like 
 that disease, is only to be removed by the administration of heat But, as 
 a preventative is preferable to a cure, so, therefore, are stoves to be recom- 
 mended as a certain method of obviating lameness in the shoulder, which, 
 to say the least of it, renders a hound completely useless. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 31 
 
 The Quorndon Kennel. 
 
 " In the summer when you do not hunt, one kennel 
 will be sufficient ; the other then may be for the youug 
 hounds, who should also have the grass-court adjoining 
 to it. It is best at that time of the year to keep them 
 separate, and it prevents many accidents which otherwise 
 might happen ; nor should they be put together till the 
 hunting season begins. If your hounds are very quarrel- 
 some, the feeder may sleep in a cot, in the kennel adjoin- 
 ing ; and if they are well chastised at the first quarrel, 
 his voice will be sufficient to settle all their differences 
 afterwards. Close to the door of the kennel, let there 
 be always a quantity of little switches ; which three narrow 
 boards, nailed to one of the posts, will easily contain. 
 
 " My kennel is close to the road-side, but it was un- 
 avoidable. This is the reason why my front pale is close, 
 and only the side ones open ; it is a great fault : avoid it 
 if you can, and your hounds will be the quieter." 
 
 Beckford's remarks are evidently characterized by 
 good sense, and no doubt can be entertained that his 
 knowledge on the subject was not only extensive, but 
 even accurate, to speak by comparison ; yet, as the human 
 genius is continually at work, so the kennel may be said 
 to have shared the benefits arising from its labours. 
 Improvements have unquestionably been made upon the 
 plan of Mr. Beckford. The kennel of the first fox- 
 hunting establishment in the world (the Quorndon, at 
 present under the direction of Mr. Osbaldeston) is suffi- 
 ciently extensive to accommodate about one hundred 
 couple of hounds. It consists of two very spacious grass 
 courts, without either mount or brook, with several lodg- 
 ing-rooms, (four, if my memory be correct) some of which 
 
32 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Duke of Rutland's Kennel. 
 
 are circular, and have not only a very pretty appearance, 
 but are preferable even on the score of utility : the stage 
 upon which the hounds repose in these circular lodging- 
 rooms is also circular, placed in the centre of the apart- 
 ment, sufficient space being left to walk round it, and thus 
 the hounds may be said to be placed out of the reach of 
 damp walls — the superiority of this plan is obvious at the 
 first glance. The boiling-house and feeding-room are 
 conveniently contrived, and placed of course near the 
 lodging-rooms. Mr. Osbaldeston's house is situated close 
 to the kennel, a door from which may be said indeed to 
 open into one of the grass courts. The stable, capable 
 of containing about thirty hunters, is situated on the same 
 side of the kennel, and also joins the mansion. The 
 huntsman's house is at the opposite corner, the door of 
 which opens into the kennel close to the lodging-rooms. 
 The feeder sleeps close to the lodging-rooms also. — 
 The boiling-house, lodging-rooms, &c. may be said to 
 form the top of the kennel, an entrance from which leads 
 into a circular covered ride, where the horses are exer- 
 cised in wet weather. At a short distance is situated 
 another kennel for the young hounds, the court of which 
 is of considerable extent. 
 
 The kennels of his Grace the Duke of Rutland are 
 worthy of attention, as well as several others in various 
 parts of the kingdom. More on the subject of the kennel 
 seems unnecessary. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 Extraordinary Speed of Fox Hounds. — Of the Origin 
 of Hounds — The Talbot or Blood Hound, the Stag 
 Hound, the Southern Hound, the Beagle, the Fox 
 Hound. — The Olfactory Organs of the Hound. — Of 
 the Si%e, Colour, and Breeding of Hounds, Sfc. 
 
 The kennel being prepared, its tenants of course form 
 the next subject for consideration. The breeding of 
 hounds demands the utmost attention of the sportsman ; 
 and I am incHned to think, that, up to the present period, 
 it has not been thoroughly understood : I am of opinion 
 that we have not reached the acme of perfection in this 
 respect, although I am aware that extraordinary hounds 
 have occasionally made their appearance, whose perform- 
 ances are to be found recorded in several pubhcations, 
 and who have therefore obtained a triumphant immor- 
 tahty through the medium of the press. For instance, 
 two hounds belonging to the late Mr. Barry, (then 
 master of the Cheshire hounds) Bluecap and Wanton, 
 became celebrious for micommon speed : they are said to 
 have run a drag "from the Rubbing House at New- 
 market-town-end, to the Rubbing House at the starting- 
 post of the Beacon course, in a few seconds more than 
 eight minutes," beating two capital hounds belonging to 
 the late Mr. Meyncll. Merkin, a fox-hound bitch, bred 
 by the late Colonel Thornton, ran a trial of four miles, 
 
34 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Talbot, 
 
 which she performed in seven minutes and half a second. 
 Madcap was another famous hound belonging to the 
 same gentleman; as also Lounger, who was supposed 
 to be the best fox-hound of his time. " Madcap, at 
 two years old, challenged all England for 500 guineas. 
 Lounger, brother to Madcap, did the same at four years 
 old ; the challenge was accepted, and a bet made for 200 
 guineas, to run Mr. Meynell's Pillager ; the parties were 
 also allowed to start any other hound of Mr. Meynell's, 
 and Lounger was to beat both ; but, upon Lounger being 
 seen at Tattersall's by many of the first sportsmen, his 
 bone and form were so capital that it was thought proper 
 to pay forfeit, which was done by giving Colonel Thorn- 
 ton a pair of gold couples." These, however, are instances 
 merely of extraordinary speed, which is certainly highly 
 necessary in a fox-hound ; yet, there are other qualities, 
 and superior olfactory organs in particular, which ought 
 to be considered as equally indispensable. 
 
 All the ramifications of the hound which we at present 
 possess sprung from one and the same source, namely, 
 the Talbot, or old English blood-hound.* These dogs 
 are noticed by our immortal bard, who represents them 
 as " crook-kneed and dewlapt, like Thessalian bulls." 
 Shakespeare, it is well known, was prosecuted for deer- 
 
 * A very different animal from the blood'bound employed by the Spani- 
 ards in the West Indies, to hunt the runaway negroes. The Spanish 
 blood-hound is a large ferocious animal, with small pointed cars, and very 
 inferior olfactory organs ; so much so indeed, that in all intricate cases 
 they are accompanied by a smaller dog, called a ^nrfer. For a further 
 illustration of this subject, we refer the reader to Dallas's Historij of the 
 Maroon War. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 35 
 
 Or okl English Blood-hound. 
 
 stealing, by Sir Thomas Lucy ; and as the Talbot, or 
 something nearly allied to the Talbot, was used at this 
 period by deer-stealers, he must have been well ac- 
 quainted with them. Crook-kneed is not a flattering 
 recommendation in a hound, nor is such a circumstance 
 noticed by Somervile, who thus describes the Talbot : — 
 
 " But if th'amphibious otter be thy chase, 
 
 Or stately stag, that o'er the woodland reigns. 
 
 Or if t'harmonious thunder of the field 
 
 Delight thy ravished ears, the deep-flew'd hound 
 
 Breed up with care, strong, heavy, slow, but sure; 
 
 Whose ears down hanging from his thick round head 
 
 Shall sweep the morning dew, whose clanging voice 
 
 Awake the mountain echo in her cell, 
 
 And shake the forests : the bold Talbot kind, 
 
 Of these the prime as white Alpine snows, 
 
 And great their use of old." 
 
 It is very probable that neither Shakespeare nor 
 Somervile was so intimately acquainted with the Talbot, 
 as to render either of their descriptions perfectly accu- 
 rate. As to the dewlap noticed by the former, we see 
 a striking approach to this in many of the deep-mouthed 
 hounds of the present day ; which an old sporting friend 
 was wont to denominate, significantly enough, " throaty 
 dogs." 
 
 Those specimens of the Talbot, or at least of a near 
 approach to the Talbot, which have fallen under my 
 observation, were animals of great size, in height about 
 twenty-seven inches, bony and powerful. Their heads 
 and ears were very large, with much loose skin or leather 
 about the mouth, and the nose much more obtuse than 
 
36 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Talbot, 
 
 pointed. Their countenances were expressive of a solemn 
 sagacity, which rendered them highly interesting and 
 even majestic. Voice very deep and sonorous. In 
 colour they were inclining to what may be called the 
 dark tan, though Somervile seems to think (I believe 
 erroneously) that white was the distinguishing colour of 
 the prime Talbot. 
 
 The stag-hounds, which, about forty years since, were 
 used by George III. manifested a considerable degree 
 of affinity to the Talbot. In many of what are called 
 the southern-hounds, we have a tolerable picture of the 
 Talbot, only that the animal is much smaller. Mr. 
 Charlesworth, who keeps the Black Swan Inn, Shude 
 Hill, Manchester, has, at this time, (1826) a hound, which 
 in height measures twenty-seven inches, and every way 
 answers the description of the Talbot as nearly as pos- 
 sible. 
 
 Something of the Talbot kind was in use amongst the 
 Greeks, as may be gathered from the following descrip- 
 tion of the dog of Ulysses : — 
 
 *« He knew his Lord, he knew, and strove to meet ; 
 In vain he strove to crawl and kiss his feet; 
 Yet all he could, his tail, his ears, his eyes, 
 Salute his Master and confess his joys. 
 O had you seen him vigorous, bold, and young, 
 Swift as a stag, and as a lion strong : 
 Him no fell savage on the plains withstood, 
 None scap'd him bosom 'd in the gloomy wood. 
 His eye how piercing, and his scent how true, 
 To wind the vapour in th« tainted dew. 
 This dog, wliom fate thus granted to behold 
 His Lord, when twenty tedious years had roirri, 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 37 
 
 Or old English Blood-hound. 
 
 Takes a last look, and having seen bim, dies. 
 
 So closed for ever, faithful Argus' eyes. 
 
 Then pity touched the mighty Warrior's soul, 
 
 And down his cheek a tear unbidden stole." — Pope. 
 
 As I have already hinted, there is strong reason to 
 believe the Normans first introduced the Talbot or blood- 
 hound into this kingdom ; and some centuries afterwards 
 they were used on the borders of England and Scotland, 
 Avhich were then much infested by robbers and also by 
 murderers. The dogs were maintained by a tax upon 
 the inhabitants, though individuals were no doubt pri- 
 vately possessed of them. In Scotland, a law existed, 
 that no person should deny entrance to these dogs when 
 in pursuit of stolen goods upon pain of being deemed an 
 accessary. Persons called Moss Troopers were pursued 
 by hounds of this description. These robbers generally 
 retired with their plunder through mosses (morasses), 
 bogs, and sloughs, which were passable only to those 
 acquainted with the various intricate paths by which alone 
 these places could be crossed by a human being. This 
 peculiar pursuit was distinguished by the name of Hot- 
 trod, and the dogs were sometimes called slough-hounds 
 and .s/<??/^^-hounds, as well as blood-hounds. 
 
 " Upon the banks 
 
 Of Tweed, slow winding through the vale, the seat 
 
 O war and rapine once, ere Britons knew 
 
 The sweets of peace, or Anna's dread commands 
 
 To lasting leagues the haughty rivals aw'd. 
 
 There dwelt a pilfering race, well train'd and skill'd 
 
 In all the mysteries of theft, the spoil 
 
 Their only substance, feuds and war their sport: 
 
38 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Talbot. ! 
 
 Veil'd in the shades of night, they ford the stream. 
 
 Then, prowling far and near, whate'er they seize j 
 
 Becomes their prey j nor flocks nor herds are safe, j 
 
 Nor stalls protect the steer, nor strong-bart'd doors ( 
 
 Secure the favourite horse. Soon as the morn j 
 
 Reveals his wrongs, with ghastly visage wan ' 
 
 The plunder'd owner stands, and from his lips 
 
 A thousand thronging curses burst their way : i 
 
 He calls his stout allies, and in a line { 
 
 His faithful hound he leads, then with a voice j 
 
 That utters loud his rage, attentive cheers : 
 
 Soon the sagacious brute, his curling tail i 
 
 Flourish'd in air, low bending plies around I 
 
 His busy nose, the steaming vapour snufFs i 
 
 Inquisitive, nor leaves one turf untried, ' 
 
 Till, conscious of the recent stains, his heart 
 
 Beats quick ! bis snuffling nose, his active tail, \ 
 
 Attest his joy ; then with deep opening mouth. 
 
 That makes the welkin tremble, he proclaims \ 
 
 Th' audacious felon ; foot by foot he marks j 
 
 His winding way, while all the listening crowd j 
 
 Applaud his reasonings. O'er the watery ford, I 
 
 Dry sandy heaths, and stony barren hills. 
 
 O'er beaten paths, with men and beasts distain'd, ' 
 
 Unerring he pursues ; till at the cot i 
 
 Arriv'd, and seizing by his guilty throat \ 
 
 The caitiff vile, redeems the captive prey ; ( 
 
 So exquisitely delicate his sense !" 
 
 i 
 
 The chieftains and great men who resided on or near j 
 
 the borders of the two kingdoms some centuries ago, ! 
 
 encouraged, rather than repressed, the depredations j 
 
 which were here committed ; and in which, indeed, j 
 
 themselves occasionally joined. « 
 
 Admitting, therefore, that the Talbot was the source j 
 
 whence have sprung all our present varieties of the hound | 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY* 39 
 
 Of various Hounds. 
 
 tribe, we may regard as the first remove that large dog 
 used a century ago in the pursuit of the stag, and which 
 it is well known, would perseveringly continue the chase 
 of the hunted deer in defiance of any obstacle, and even 
 through a herd of the same animals. 
 
 The southern-hoimd is smaller than the doe: last 
 noticed ; but retains as much, if not more, of the Talbot 
 blood ; in fact, what is called a thorough southern- 
 hoimd, may be regarded as a smaller kind of Talbot. 
 The first remove from the southern-hound is the kibbley 
 many of which may be seen in Lancashire, particularly 
 in the neighbourhood of Manchester. The Ashton (a 
 few miles from Manchester) pack of harriers is composed 
 of hounds of this description, and there are few, if any, 
 better harriers to be found in the kingdom. The Roch- 
 dale harriers are of the same description, as well as 
 several other packs in the same neighbourhood. 
 
 In some parts, beagles are used in the pursuit of the 
 hare ; and these may be divided into two classes — the 
 large and the lap-dog beagle. These dogs appear like 
 dwarfs in the hound tribe, and are distinguishable by 
 their short legs and elongated bodies. 
 
 There are many hounds to be met with resolvable to 
 none of the classes above enumerated, but which appear 
 to be a mixture of the whole ; nothing, indeed, is more 
 common than an union of the large harrier and the 
 beagle for the pursuit of the hare ; and homids thus 
 bred, are well calculated for the purpose just mentioned. 
 As the stag hound already noticed, constituted the 
 first remove from the Talbot, and was nearly the same 
 height, but not so heavy, it may be supposed, that the 
 
40 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Fox-hound. 
 
 large lurcher or something of the greyhound kind, was 
 employed in his production. It will be more difficult to 
 account for the immediate origin of the southern-hound, 
 unless, indeed, we suppose, that accident produced a 
 few Talbots of a smaller kind, and hence they were pro- 
 pagated. The same sort of reasoning may be applied 
 to the beagle, while the fox-hound of the present day is 
 evidently a mixture of the whole ; and as the crosses for 
 the production of this animal have been directed by the 
 different opinions of a number of individuals, so we may 
 perceive the reason of that great variety in these animals 
 which cannot have escaped the notice even of the most 
 indifferent observer. Yet, generally speaking, sufficient 
 reflection has not been exerted in the production of the 
 fox-hound — speed has been the principal object of con- 
 sideration, and on this account fox-hounds have been 
 produced with such inferior olfactory organs, that they 
 were utterly incapable of pursuing the chase unless the 
 atmosphere was as favourable to scent as possible. 
 
 It became the fashion also to consider a small head in 
 the fox-hound as indispensable to the beauty of his 
 appearance, which is utterly incompatible with exquisite 
 sense of smell. — It is a very well-known fact, that the 
 sense of smell varies very much in dogs ; or, to speak as 
 a sportsman, some of them possess better noses than 
 others. In dogs with broad heads, the os aethmoides, 
 or sive bone, is much larger than in narrow headed dogs ; 
 the laminae cribrose, or the sive itself, is therefore more 
 capacious, and contams more openings ; so that the olfac- 
 tory nerves, which pass through it, are more numerous, 
 and are divided more minutely, and thus that exquisite 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 41 
 
 Sense of Smell. 
 
 acuteness of smell is produced, which is found to obtain 
 in the Talbot, and all dogs with broad heads : this excel- 
 lence or superiority of the olfactory organs is further 
 assisted by the largeness and flexibility of the lips and 
 skin about the nose, which thus admit of a much greater 
 extension of the olfactory nerves, and render them more 
 susceptible of external impressions. The olfactory nerves 
 resemble a bunch of small white cords, one end of which 
 is connected with the brain, while the other, descending 
 the head, spreads into numerous ramifications, reaching 
 to the edges of the lips as well as to the extremity of the 
 
 nose. 
 
 Hence the inferiority of the greyhound's sense of smell 
 will be easily perceived : his head is narrow, while his 
 lips are thin and compressed ; and in consequence of this 
 inflexibility, and the contracted structure of the head, 
 the requisite breadth and extension of nerve are inad- 
 missible ; and to make up, as it might seem, for the 
 defect, nature has endowed limi with a celerity which is 
 not to be met with in any other species of the dog. 
 
 All dogs, therefore, with broad heads, must possess 
 superior organs of smell ; but it does not appear that a 
 narrow or sharp nose presents any obstacle, as the main 
 bulk of the olfactory nerves is situated in the head. The 
 wolf and the fox appear to have sharp noses ; but their 
 heads are remarkably broad and capacious : — their olfac- 
 tory organs are vmquestionably exquisite. 
 
 Somervile seems to have been completely ignorant 
 respecting the cause of the dog's sense of smell. Beck- 
 ford was equally so. The following epistle, however, 
 throws a flood of light upon the subject, of which it is 
 
 c 
 
42 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Sense of Smell. 
 
 also a very strong and admirable illustration. Will. 
 Deane, in writing to Lord Fitzwilliam, his master, 
 observes, " that he could not guess at Lord Foley's dis- 
 like to the hound called Glider, then sent, which was 
 of the best blood of the country, being got by Mr. Mey- 
 nell's Glider out of Lord Fitzwilliam's Blossom, and was 
 moreover the most promising yovmg hound he had ever 
 entered, unless his Lordship took a distaste to the large- 
 tiess of his head ; but he begged leave to assert, although 
 it might appear a trifle out of size, there was a world of 
 serious mischief against the foxes contained in it." — 
 Glider proved himself a first-rate hound ; his superiority 
 indeed was so manifest, that he became a favourite stal- 
 lion hound, " notwithstanding the magnitude and inele- 
 gance of his head." 
 
 Wlien Mr. Hay hunted the country in the neighbour- 
 hood of Newcastle-under-lyme (at present hunted by Mr. 
 Wicksted), I recollect noticing the exertions of a hound 
 (Gaoler, I believe, he was called) whose head was con- 
 sidered out of proportion, but who was, nevertheless, the 
 best hound in the pack ; and I make no doubt, should 
 these remarks fall under the observation of Mr. Hay, that 
 he will have a perfect recollection of this hound, and, for 
 aught I know, he may still be in possession of him. 
 
 The Quorndon pack, though it has frequently changed 
 masters, has always stood deservedly high in the estima- 
 tion of the fox-hunter. These hounds are uncommonly 
 fleet, and, as I observed some pages back, are calculated 
 for Leicestershire. The Duke of Rutland's are of the 
 same description, and hunt a similar country. Lord 
 Lonsdale's hounds, though they hunt the neighbourhood 
 of Melton, differ from the two former packs both in ap- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 43 
 
 Various Hounds. 
 
 pearance and in their style of hunting : they are, for the 
 most part, large, leggy clogs, and are neither so quick in 
 drawing, nor so fleet in the chase. The Cheshire hounds 
 (Sir Harry Mainwaring's) are much like the Quorndon 
 and the Duke of Rutland's ; and, as far as I am able 
 to form an opinion from considerable observation, are 
 equal to any fox-hounds in the kingdom, a circumstance 
 indeed which I have already noticed in the earlier pages 
 of this volume. Mr. Wicksted's hounds, when they fell 
 under my notice, presented the appearance of being 
 calculated for business, but it was his first season ; he 
 had not had sufficient time to render them complete as a 
 pack, though from what I noticed of this gentleman, I am 
 persuaded that every exertion will be made to render 
 them so as soon as possible. I might extend similar ob- 
 servations to many other packs which I have followed, 
 but it is no way necessary ; those who are disposed to 
 breed and improve, if possible, fox-hounds, will find 
 ample materials for the purpose ; nor have I the least 
 doubt, that they are still susceptible of improvement, 
 which will require some little time to accomplish, and can 
 only be brought about by a variety of crosses. 
 
 The best fox-hounds, perhaps, that were ever seen, 
 were those bred by the late Colonel Thornton ; and this 
 gentleman, to accomplish his purpose, resorted to the 
 method I have just mentioned. Madcap and Lounger, 
 two of his most celebrated fox-hounds, could scarcely be 
 considered as thoroughly English, since, on the side of 
 the sire, they were of Continental extraction. Colonel 
 Thornton, however, was never possessed of many fox- 
 hounds—about sixteen or twenty couple, if I correctly 
 
44 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Speed of the Fox-hound. 
 
 understood Sir Edward Smith Dodsworth, as we rode 
 together towards the town of Pontefract, after a long and 
 distressing run with the Bads worth, in the month of 
 November, 1825, was the extent of his pack. 
 
 As far as relates to speed, the fox-hound may be re- 
 garded as perfect ; but the same remark will not apply to 
 his olfactory organs, or powers of smell : if the perfection 
 of these two quaUties could be united, nothing more could 
 be desired. I am aware that the Talbot, so celebrated 
 for his exquisite sense of smell, was slow in the pursuit ; 
 this observation is equally applicable to the southern 
 hound ; and the question is, whether or not it would be 
 possible to unite the olfactory organs of the southern 
 hound to that speed and dash which renders fox-hunting 
 so superior to every other species of the chase. That 
 such a desirable object is susceptible of accomplishment, 
 little doubt can be entertained ; and indeed, the instance 
 already noticed of Glider and Gaoler, seem to place the 
 matter beyond a doubt. 
 
 Of late years, speed has been the principal object of 
 consideration in the breeding of hounds. In 1824, I 
 happened to visit Knowsley, near Liverpool, the resi- 
 dence of the Earl of Derby, where his lordship's hounds 
 are kept in smnmer. Of course I visited the kennel, 
 when Jonathan, the huntsman, earnestly directed my 
 attention to a bitch, which, he exultingly remarked, coidd 
 " run four miles in less time than a greyhound !" — Lord 
 Derby's hounds exhibit the appearance of fox-hounds, 
 though used for the pursuit of the stag. 
 
 At all events, whenever a sportsman determines upon 
 breeding hounds, the individuals selected for the purpose 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 45 
 
 Breeding Hounds. 
 
 should be distinguished for some good quality, or indeed 
 for as many good qualities as possible. On this subject, I 
 will quote the opinion of Beckford ; and also the notions 
 of Somervile : 
 
 *' Consider (says the former) the size, shape, colour, 
 constitution, and natural disposition of the dog you breed 
 from ; as well as the fineness of his nose ; his stoutness, 
 and method of hunting. On no accovmt breed from one 
 that is not stout ^ that is not tender-nosed, or that is a 
 skirter. — Somervile enjoins still further : 
 
 " Observe with care his shape, sort, colour, size : 
 Nor will sagacious huntsmen less regard 
 His inward habits ; the vain babbler shun, 
 Ever loquacious, ever in the wrong ; 
 His foolish ofTspring shall offend thy ears 
 With false alarms, and loud impertinence. 
 Nor less the shifting cur avoid, that breaks 
 Illusive from the pack ; to the next hedge 
 Devious he strays, there ev'ry meuse he tries, 
 If haply then he cross the steaming scent, 
 Away he flies, vain-glorious j and exults 
 As of the pack supreme, and in his speed 
 And strength unrivall'd. Lo ! cast far behind 
 His vcx'd associates pant, and lab'ring strain 
 To climb the steep ascent. Soon as they reach 
 Th' insulting boaster, his false courage fails. 
 Behind he lags, doom'd to the fatal noose. 
 His master's hate, and scorn of all the field. 
 What can from such be hop'd, but a base brood 
 Of coward curs, a frantic, vagrant race ?" 
 
 " It is the judicious cross that makes the complete pack. 
 The faults and imperfections in one breed, may be rec- 
 tified in another ; and if this is properly attended to, 1 
 
 c3 
 
46 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Breeding Hounds. 
 
 see no reason why the breedmg of hounds may not 
 improve, till improvement can go no farther. If ever you 
 find a cross hit, always pursue it. — Never put an old dog 
 to an old bitch. — Be careful that they are healthy which 
 you breed from, or you are not likely to have a healthy 
 offspring. — Should a favourite dog skirt a little, put him 
 to a thorough line-hunting bitch, and such a cross may 
 succeed : my objection to the breeding from such a hound 
 is, that as skirting is what most fox-hounds acquire from 
 practice, you had better not make it natural to them. 
 
 " The feeder should watch over the bitches with a 
 cautious eye, and separate such as are going to be proud, 
 before it is too late. The advances they make frequently 
 portend mischief as well as love ; and, if not prevented 
 in time, will not fail to set the whole kennel together by 
 the ears, and may occasion the death of your best dogs : 
 'care only can prevent it. — 
 
 Mark well the wanton females of thy pacli, 
 That curl their taper tails, and frisking court 
 Their pyebald mates enamour'd ; their red eyes 
 Flash fires impure ; nor rest, nor food they take, 
 Goaded by furious love. In sep'rate cells 
 Confine them now, lest bloody civil wars 
 Annoy thy peaceful state. Somervile. 
 
 "It is advisable to breed early in the year : January, 
 February, and March, are the best months. Late pup- 
 pies seldom come to much ; if there are any such, put 
 them to the best walks. — When bitches begin to get big, 
 they should cease to hunt : it frequently proves fatal to 
 the whelps ; sometimes to the bitch herself; nor is it safe 
 for them to remain much longer in the kennel. — If "pne 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 47 
 
 Treatment of Wheliis. 
 
 bitch has many puppies, more than she can well rear, 
 you may put some of them to another bitch ; or if you 
 destroy any of them, you may keep the best-coloured. 
 They sometimes will have an extraordinary number. 
 
 " I have known (says Beckford) an instance of one 
 having fifteen ; and a friend of mine, whose veracity 1 
 cannot doubt, has assured me that a hound in his pack, 
 brought forth sixteen, all alive. When you breed from 
 a very favourite sort, and can have another bitch warded 
 at the same time, it will be of great service, as you may 
 then save all the puppies. — Give particular orders, that 
 the bitches be well fed with flesh; and let the whelps 
 remain till they are well able to take care of themselves. 
 They will soon learn to lap milk, which will relieve the 
 mother. — The bitches, when their whelps are taken away 
 from them, should be physicked ; I generally give them 
 three purging balls, one every other morning. If a bitch 
 brings only one or two puppies, and you have another 
 bitch that will take them, by putting the puppies to her, 
 the former will soon be fit to hunt again ; she should, 
 however, be physicked first; and if her dugs are anointed 
 with brandy and water, it will also be of service. The 
 distemper makes dreadful havock with whelps at their 
 walks; greatly owing, I believe, to the little care that is 
 taken of them there. I am in doubt whether it might 
 not be better to breed them up yourself, and have a ken- 
 nel on purpose. You have a large orchard paled in, 
 which would suit them exactly ; and what else is wanted 
 might be easily obtained. There is, however, an ob- 
 jection which perhaps may strike you : — If the distemper 
 once gets amongst them, they must all have it ; yet, not- 
 
48 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Treatment of Whelps. 
 
 withstanding that, as they will be constantly well fed, 
 and will lie warm, I am confident it would be the saving 
 of many lives. If you should adopt this method, you 
 must remember to use them early to go in couples ; and 
 when they get of a proper age, they must be walked out 
 often ; for should they remain confined, they would 
 neither have the shape, health, nor understanding they 
 ought to have. When I kept harriers, I bred up some 
 of the puppies at a distant kennel ; but having no ser- 
 vants there to exercise them properly, I found them much 
 inferior to such of their brethren, as had the luck to 
 survive the many difficulties and dangers they had 
 undergone at their walks ; these were afterwards equal 
 to anythhig, and afraid of nothing ; while those that had 
 been nursed with so much care, were weakly, and timid, 
 and had every disadvantage attending private education. 
 *' I have often heard as an excuse for hounds not hunt- 
 ing a cold scent, that they were too high bred. 
 
 I confess, I know not what that means :* but this I know, 
 that hounds are frequently too ill-bred to be of any service. 
 It is judgment in the breeder, and patience afterwards 
 in the huntsman, that make them hunt. 
 
 * The term " toe high bred " is, however, in general use among Sports- 
 men, by whom it is very well understood, and is, beyond all question, suffi- 
 ciently expressive. It is applied to light, fleet hounds, with small heads, 
 (and consequently very inferior noses) which are only able to pursue under 
 the most favourable circumstances, er when the scent is breast high. Sir 
 Harry Mainwaring's, Mr. Osbaldeston's, and the Duke of Rutland's are 
 all as highly bred perhaps as is consistent with the nature of the business ; 
 they can, however, both hunt and run; but of all fox-hounds which have 
 fallen under my observation, those of Mr. Mcynell, of Hoarecross Hall, 
 Staflbrdshirc, appealed the highest bred, and were, in my opinion, rather 
 too highbj bred. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 49 
 
 Naming of Whelps. 
 
 '* Young hounds are commonly named when first put 
 out, and sometimes indeed ridiculously enough ; nor is 
 it easy, when you breed many, to find suitable or har- 
 monious names for all ; particularly, as it is usual to name 
 all the whelps of one fitter, with the same letter, which 
 (to be systematically done) should also be the initial letter 
 of the dog that got them, or the bitch that bred them. 
 A baronet of my acquaintance, a literal observer of the 
 above rule, sent three young hounds of one litter to a 
 friend, all their names beginning, as he said, with the 
 letter G. Goivler, Govial, and Galloper. 
 
 *' It is indeed of little consequence what huntsmen call 
 their hounds ; yet, if you dislike an unmeaning name, 
 would it not be as well to leave the naming of them till 
 they are brought home ? They soon learn their names, 
 and a shorter fist would do. — Damons and Delias would 
 not then be necessary ; nor need the sacred names of 
 Titus and Trajan be thus degraded. It is true there are 
 many odd names which custom authorises ; yet I cannot 
 think, because some drunken fellow or other, has 
 christened his dog Tipler, or Tapster, that there is the 
 least reason to follow the example. Pipers and Fidlers, 
 for the sake of their music, we will not object to ; but 
 Tiplers and Tapsters your kennel will be much better 
 without." 
 
 In regard to the size as well as the colour of hounds, 
 it is not fikely that there should be an union of opinion ; 
 but if the matter be attentively considered, it will, I 
 think, be found that hounds of the middle size are the 
 strongest, and capable of enduring the greatest fatigue. 
 A good hound cannot be of a bad colour, it may be said : 
 
50 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Form of the Hound. 
 
 but a diversity of colour in a pack, has at least an inter- 
 esting and beautiful appearance. Of the form of the 
 hound, there will not be much difference of opinion : 
 
 " His glossy skin, or yellow-pied, or blue. 
 
 In lights or shades, by nature's pencil drawn, 
 
 Reflects the various tints : his ears and legs 
 
 Fleckt here and there, in gay enamel'd pride. 
 
 Rival the speckled pard ; his rush-grown tail 
 
 O'er his broad back bends in an ample arch ; 
 
 On shoulders clean, upright and firm he stands ; 
 
 His round cat foot, straight hams, and wide-spread thighs, 
 
 And his low dropping chest, confess his speed, 
 
 His strength, his wind, or on the steepy hill, 
 
 Or far-extended plain ; in every part 
 
 So well-proportion'd, that the nicer skill 
 
 Of Phidias himself can't blame thy choice. 
 
 Of such compose thy pack. But here a mean 
 
 Observe, nor the large hound prefer, of size 
 
 Gigantic; he in the thick-woven covert 
 
 Painfully tugs, or in the thorny brake, 
 
 Torn and embarrass'd, bleeds ; but, if too small, 
 
 The pigmy brood in every furrow swims; 
 
 jMoil'd in the clogging clay, panting they lag 
 
 Behind inglorious; or else, shivering creep, 
 
 Benumb'd and faint, beneath the sheltering thorn. 
 
 For hounds of middle size, active and strong, 
 
 Will better answer all thy various ends, 
 
 And crown thy pleasing labours with success." 
 
 It has been observed by Beckford, that "it is the 
 judiciqus cross that makes the complete pack ;" and in 
 this I perfectly agree with him ; but in writing to his 
 friend, he further remarks : — " A very famous sportsman 
 has told me that he frequently breeds from brothers and 
 sisters : as I should be very unwilling to urge any thing 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 51 
 
 Breediii" in and in. 
 
 in opposition to such an authority, you had better try 
 it." Such a system I cannot recommend for the following 
 reasons : 
 
 In the first place, I would wish it to be fully impressed 
 upon the mind of the sportsman, that, whenever, by 
 judicious crosses or otherwise, he has obtained hounds 
 of first-rate excellence, he must, nevertheless, in order 
 to preserve such excellence, call in the assistance of 
 other breeds of repute ; smce, if he confine the propa- 
 gation to the same family, the strain will degenerate, 
 and m the thu'd or fourth generation will become literally 
 good for nothing. — Relationship should be as much as 
 possible avoided in breeding, nor can any better plan be 
 adopted than procuring either the dog or bitch from a 
 distant part of the country. 
 
 The ill consequences of breeding in and in, to use a 
 sportsman's phrase, are now tolerably well known, and 
 the remark is not confined to hounds only, but would seem 
 to apply equally perhaps to the whole circle of nature. 
 The judicious farmer, aware of the evil, spares neither 
 expense nor pains in crossing his horses, cows, and sheep ; 
 his pigs and poultry. Even the human species, by the 
 intermarriages of famihes, strikingly exemplifies these 
 observations — degeneracy of mind as of body is thus 
 produced ; scrofulous diseases are the certain result ; 
 and hence scrofula is less frequent in large towns ; but is 
 uniformly found to prevail in all secluded villages, where 
 the continued intercourse of thesame families has existed 
 for a few generations. 
 
 If, therefore, the object of the sportsman be to pro- 
 cure and maintain a good breed of hounds, let him have 
 
52 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Treatment of Young Hounds. 
 
 recourse to other breeds of undisputed merit, if from a 
 distant part the better perhaps ; but if his neighbour's 
 dogs stand in no degree of affinity, he need not be at the 
 trouble of seeking for greater strangers. 
 
 The foregoing remarks are not exclusively appUcable 
 to animated nature, but may be very justly extended to 
 the vegetable world : hence the farmer never sows corn 
 on the land where it was produced ; and hence seed 
 potatoes grown in Scotland are imported into Lancashire, 
 where this useful vegetable attains the utmost possible 
 perfection. 
 
 A bitch will become proud very frequently before she 
 is twelve months old, the first symptoms of which are 
 the red appearance and sweUing of the vulva; but she 
 will not, for some days, suffer the dog to ward her : 
 however, as the heat advances, she will play and dally 
 with him, and manifest every inclination to copulate. 
 But as these animals grow generally till they are two 
 years old, they ought not to be suffered to breed before 
 that period. Nor is it a little remarkable, that, if you 
 suffer a bitch to receive several dogs, such as a terrier, a 
 greyhound, a bulldog, &c. she will frequently produce 
 puppies of all the different kinds. 
 
 Young hounds should be tied up or confined as little 
 as possible, as it spreads their feet, and they become out 
 at the elbows, and bandy-legged. The same effects will 
 be produced in a full-grown dog, but in a much less 
 degree. Dogs of all ages should have free access to 
 good clean water, a clear stream if possible. 
 
 The period of gestation in the bitch is about sixty- 
 three days. The young are brought forth blind : the 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 53 
 
 Dog's Age. 
 
 two eye-lids are not merely glued together, but shut up 
 with a membrane, which is torn off as soon as the muscles 
 of the upper eye-lids acquire sufficient strength to over- 
 come this obstacle to vision, which generally happens 
 about the tenth day. At this period the young annuals 
 are extremely clumsy and awkward. The bones of the 
 head are not completed ; the body and muzzle are bloated, 
 and the whole figure appears ill-designed. Their growth, 
 however, is rapid ; and in about six weeks they acquire 
 the use of all their senses. When four months old, they 
 lose their teeth, which are quickly replaced, and are 
 never afterwards changed. 
 
 A dog's age may be tolerably well ascertained by the 
 appearance of his teeth. A young dog's teeth generally 
 look clean and white ; — at an early period of his existence, 
 his front teeth are serrated, and as he increases in age, 
 this saw-like appearance gradually wears out. At four 
 years old, or perhaps sooner, it is no longer observable : 
 the teeth turn yellow, ftide, and drop out as the animal 
 grows old ; and if he be fed principally on bones, his 
 teeth become short and blunt at an early period. A dog, 
 if worked hard, will turn grey at eight or nine years of 
 age, and exhibit every symptom of decay — such as bad 
 sight, loss of hearing, &c. Fourteen years is the general 
 period allotted for the life of a dog ; but if he be kept to 
 hard labour each season, he will seldom live so long. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Diseases of Hounds and Methods of Cure. 
 
 Young hounds should be put out to quarters, as soon 
 as they are fit to leave the bitch ; and, if there are suffi- 
 cient quarters for the whole of them so much the better. 
 They will of course be taken into the kennel towards the 
 spring of the following year : sometimes it will happen, 
 that young hounds manifest a disposition to chase, and 
 ultimately to worry, sheep, on which account, it becomes 
 necessary to take them into the kennel at an early period. 
 
 " When young hounds are first taken into the kennel, 
 they should be kept separate from the pack ; and as it 
 will happen at a time of the year, when there is little or 
 no hunting, you may easily give them up one of the ken- 
 nels, and grass court adjoining. Their play frequently 
 ends in a battle ; it is therefore less dangerous, when they 
 are all equally matched. What Somervile says on this 
 subject is exceedingly beautiful. — 
 
 '• But here with watchful and observant eye. 
 Attend their frolics, which too often end 
 In bloody broils and death. High o'er thy head 
 Wave thy resounding whip, and with a voice 
 Fierce-menacing o'er-rule the stern debate, 
 And quench their kindling rage ; for oft in sport 
 Begun, combat ensues, growling they snarl. 
 Then, on their haunches rear'd, rampant they seize 
 E^ch other's throats, with teeth, and claws, in gore 
 Besmcar'd, they wound, they tear, till on the ground, 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 55 
 
 Quarrelsome Hounds. 
 
 Panting, half dead, the conquer'd champion lies : 
 Then sudden all the base ignoble crowd 
 Loud-clam'ring seize the helpless worried wretch, 
 And thirsting for his blood, drag different ways 
 His mangled carcass on th'ensanguin'd plain. 
 O breasts of pity void ! t'oppress the weak, 
 To point your vengeance at the friendless head, 
 And with one mutual cry insult the fallen ! 
 Emblem too just of man's degenerate race." 
 
 '* If you find they take a dislike to any particular hound 
 the safest way will be to remove him ; or it is very pro- 
 bable they will kill him at last. When a feeder hears 
 the hounds quarrel in the kennel, he halloos to them to 
 stop them. He then goes in amongst them, and flogs 
 every hound he can come near. — How much more reason- 
 able as well as more efficacious would it be, were he to 
 see which wei"e the combatants, before he speaks to them. 
 Punishment would then fall as it ought, on the guilty only. 
 In all packs there are some hounds more quarrelsome 
 than the rest ; and it is to them we owe all the mischief 
 that is done. If you find chastisement cannot quiet 
 them, it may be prudent to break their holders ; for since 
 they are not necessary to them for the meat they have to 
 eat, they are not likely to serve them in any good purpose. 
 
 ** Young hounds should be fed twice a day, as they 
 seldom take kindly at first to the kennel-meat, and the 
 distemper is very likely to seize them at this time. It is 
 better not to round them till they are thoroughly settled ; 
 nor should it be put off till the hot weather, for then they 
 would bleed too much." 
 
 Beckford says, "if any of the dogs are thin over the 
 back, or any more quarrelsome than the rest, it will be 
 
56 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Worming Puppies. 
 
 of use to cut them : I also spay such bitches (says he) as 
 I think I shall not want to breed from ; they are more 
 useful, are stouter, and are always in better order : be- 
 sides it is absolutely necessary, if you hunt late in the 
 spring ; or your pack will be very short for want of it. It 
 may be right to tell you, that the latter operation does not 
 always succeed ; it will be necessary therefore to employ 
 a skilful person, and one on whom you can depend ; for 
 if it is ill done, though they cannot have puppies, they 
 will go to heat notwithstanding." 
 
 I must confess I am no strenuous advocate for the 
 practise of reducing hounds to the tieuter gender, or at 
 least depriving them of the power of procreation ; nor 
 can I help thinking, that, with the loss of this power, 
 hounds suffer a diminution of strength also — they are 
 certainly more easily kept in condition ; in fact, they are 
 apt to become too fat. If, however, it be determined to 
 resort to spaying, it is advisable to have the operation 
 performed at an early period, when the iuiimal is only a 
 few months old, for instance. 
 
 Worming puppies is a ridiculous operation ; — it will 
 not have the effect, which is erroneously attributed to it, 
 namely, of rendering the animal incapable of biting when 
 labouring under paroxysms of hydrophobia How it ever 
 could be supposed that extracting a sinew which runs 
 longitudinally under a dog's tongue Avould have the above 
 effect, is a matter of surprise ; and I blush at my own 
 thoughtlessness in adopting in several instances the fool- 
 ish idea, the offspring of ignorance, cind putting an animal 
 to pain, where no possible benefit could ever be reason- 
 ably expected. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 57 
 
 Diseases of Hounds. 
 
 Dogs, and young ones in particular, should be kept 
 in the country. If when a whelp be taken from its dam, 
 it is fed upon light food, such as potatoes and buttermilk, 
 with a little oatmeal, &c. and seldom or never indulged 
 with carrion, or flesh of any kind, it will scarcely ever be 
 attacked with the distemper, a disease which has been 
 long known in this country, and which makes frightful 
 havock amongst dogs bred in towns, highly fed, and which 
 have little exercise : — exercise in particular is a very es- 
 sential requisite to the health of young dogs. 
 
 Hounds are subject to all the disorders to Avhich dogs 
 in general are liable, and there are several diseases which 
 would appear peculiar to them, which will be pointed 
 out in their proper place in the course of the following 
 pages. 
 
 Young hounds, however, placed at good quarters, are 
 little liable to disease ; but are much more subject to ill- 
 ness when taken into the kennel. I shall give a list of the 
 diseases to which hounds are hable whether in or out of 
 the kennel ; in which, I am sorry to say, I shall be able 
 to derive little, if any, assistance from Beckford ; since 
 his notions on the subject are crude, and his method of 
 treatment, in a great degree, erroneous. 
 
 Wild animals reclaimed from a state of nature and do- 
 mesticated, are susceptible of great change and variety 
 in form, colour, and character ; and owing no doubt ta 
 being thus compelled to assume in some degree, an arti- 
 ficial mode of life, they are rendered more liable to dis- 
 orders. Animals in a state of nature are little subject to 
 disease : and though the wild dog subsists on flesh and 
 carrion, it is more than probable he is never troubled, 
 
 D 
 
58 HUNTING. DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Distemper. 
 
 with what is distinguished by the appellation of the dis- 
 temper, or with any of that long catalogue of disorders, 
 to which he is rendered obnoxious after having become 
 the companion of man. 
 
 T/te Distempei: — The distemper frequently attacks a 
 hound before he has attained his first year. As a pre- 
 liminary observation, it may be remarked, that the same 
 membrane which lines the nostrils extends down the 
 wind-pipe into the lungs ; and the distemper, in the first 
 instance, may be regarded as an inflammation of this 
 membrane ; which, if not timely removed, extends down 
 to the lungs, where suppvu*ation will soon be produced ; 
 when the animal's eye will become dull, accompanied 
 by a mucous discharge, a cough, and loss of appetite. 
 As the disease advances it presents various appearances, 
 but is frequently attended with twitchings about the head, 
 while the animal becomes excessively weak in the loins 
 and hinder extremities ; indeed he appears completely 
 emaciated, and smells intolerably. At length, the twitch- 
 ings assume the appearance of convulsive fits, accompanied 
 with giddiness, which cause the dog to turn round : he 
 has a constant disposition to dung, with obstinate cos- 
 tiveness or incessant purging. 
 
 On the first appearance of the symptoms which I have 
 described, I should recommend the dog to be bled* 
 very freely and his body opened with a little castor oil 
 or syrvip of buckthorn : this will generally remove the 
 disease altogether, if apphed the moment the first symp- 
 
 * The quantity of blood taken to be regulated by the age and size of 
 the dog. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 59 
 
 Kemedies for the Distemper. 
 
 toms appear. If, however, this treatment should not 
 have the desh'ecl effect, and a cough ensues, accompa- 
 nied with a discharge at the nose, give him from two 
 grains to eight of tartar emetic (according to the age and 
 size of the dog) every other day. When the nervous 
 symptoms ensue, which I have ah'eady described, ex- 
 ternal stimulants (such as sal-ammoniac and oil, equal 
 parts) should be rubbed along the course of the spinal 
 marrow, and tonics given internally, such as bark, Sec. 
 
 Of the various remedies, the following was given with 
 success to a dog, so afflicted as to be scarcely able to 
 stand : — 
 
 Turbeth's mineral, six grains 
 
 mixed with sulphur, and divided into three doses, one 
 given every other morning. Let a few days elapse, and 
 repeat the course. 
 Another : 
 
 Calomel, one grain and a half 
 rhubarb, five grains 
 
 given every other day for a week. 
 Another : 
 
 Antimonial powder, sixteen grains 
 powdered fox-glove, one grain 
 
 made into four bolusses with conserve of roses, and one 
 given at night, and another the next morning for two 
 days. 
 
 I have known whitening administered for the distem- 
 per, a table spoonful every morning, with a little opening 
 physic occasionally. 
 
 I have uniformly found a complete cure effected from 
 copious and repeated venesection in the early stage of the 
 
 i-j: D 2 
 
€0 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Description of 
 
 distemper, accompanied with a little opening medicine, 
 syrup of buckthorn, for instance. In the kennel of Sir 
 Harry Mainwaring, the distemper generally swept away 
 a third of the young hounds at least. In the present year 
 (1826) my system of treating the distemper was adopted, 
 and a single whelp has not been lost ; in fact, not one has 
 been seriously affected. Head, the huntsman, bled them 
 freely on the first indication of the disease, and admini- 
 stered an opening dose, which effectually answered the 
 purpose. 
 
 The following scientific description of the distemper 
 and its mode of treatment, cannot fail to be highly inter- 
 esting : 
 
 " A little black spaniel, six months old, very fat and 
 playftd, gradually became listless and irritable ; his eyes 
 suffiised with water, his drooping ears, tenesmus, rough 
 coat, dyspnoea, and frequent cough, announced that the 
 disease called the Distemper was at hand. In this state 
 he ran about for several days, when the difficulty of 
 breathing increased. His flanks beat violently, and he 
 shewed signs of feeling great pain when his sides were 
 pressed upon. Soon after he became slightly convulsed, 
 and by his continual and melancholy cry, both day and 
 night, proved that he was suffering from severe bodily 
 pahi. The convulsions increased and became incessant ; 
 his debility and emaciation were daily more apparent, 
 and at the expiration of three weeks he died. 
 
 For four days before his death, he lay in a supine quiet 
 state, perfectly conscious of what was passing near him ; 
 and it was only a few hoiu-s previous to his dissolution, 
 that he became comatose, and perfectly insensible. Dur- 
 ing the whole period of his illness, there was no aber- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 61 
 
 the Distemper. 
 
 ration oi' mind ; he was irritable, snapped at tliose who 
 approached him, foamed at the mouth, but did not refuse 
 the small quantities of broth, milk, and other liquids 
 which were occasionally offered him. 
 
 " Dissection. — The carcass was lean, but on opening 
 the abdomen, the omentum, intestines, and other viscera 
 were loaded with fot. The liver was of a dark dull red 
 colour congested with blood, the gall bladder distended 
 with greenish bile, the stomach and intestines were dis- 
 coloured with viscid yellow bile, some of which was con- 
 tained in the stomach. 
 
 "The kidneys were free from disease, and the urinary 
 bladder was full of urine. 
 
 *' Thorax or chest — no preternatural adhesions or 
 symptoms of inflanniiation of the pleura costalis existed. 
 The lungs were highly inflamed and of a dark brown co- 
 lour, i-endered heavy and solid by the effusion of coagu- 
 lable lymph. On cutting into their substance numerous 
 drops of white purulent matter escaped from the bronchise, 
 and on a careful examination they were found completely 
 full and choaked up with matter. 
 
 " The trachea Avas inflamed, and contained a good deal 
 of pus of the same nature. 
 
 *' The heart and large blood vessels adjoining were 
 distended with dark, black, coagulated blood ; the sub- 
 stance of the heart itself was much inflamed ; and a small 
 quantity of serum was observed in the cavities of the 
 pleura and pericardium. 
 
 " A young fox-hound having died of the Distemper, I 
 proceeded to ascertain the causes of his death and com- 
 menced with an examination of the nervous system. For 
 
 d3 
 
62 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Appearances of the Distemper 
 
 this purpose a considerable portion of the cranium was 
 removed, by first sawing through the frontal sinuses 
 transversely, and continuing the instrument laterally and 
 downwards through the occipital bone : the bony pro- 
 cesses peculiar to carnivorous animals, which assist in 
 forming the falx major, were taken away, and the brain 
 fairly exposed to view. 
 
 " The frontal sinuses were filled with a thin, white 
 fluid, resembling pus, which flowed out freely from the 
 opening made by the saw. 
 
 " The dura mater was perfectly healthy. 
 
 "The veins of the pia mater covering the left hemi- 
 sphere of the cerebrum were more dilated with blood 
 than those on the opposite side. The substance of the 
 brain was firm, and bore no appearance of disease ; nor 
 was there any iilteration in the structvu-e of the ventricles. 
 The origins of all the nerves were clear and distinct. 
 The olfactory pair were extremely large, and looked 
 more like processes of brain than nerves. The pineal 
 gland was present in the form of a small pellucid speck, 
 and was seen in its usual situation at the posterior ex- 
 tremity of the third ventricle. 
 
 " The cerebellum, the pons varolii, and the medulla 
 obl^gata were healthy ; on dividing the latter, a little 
 serum was found in the base of the cranium, and on hold- 
 ing the dog up by the hind legs about two drachms more 
 issued from the sheath of the spinal marrow. 
 
 "The lateral and cavernous sinuses were filled with 
 dark purple blood. 
 
 " Examiiiation of the Spinal Marroiv. — An incision 
 being carried from the occipital bone down to the sa- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 63 
 
 on Dissection. 
 
 crum, the muscles were dissected back on each side ; and 
 by several applications of the saw, the medulla was laid 
 bare throughout its whole length. The spinal marrow, 
 narrow at its origin, gradually increased in size as it des- 
 cended to the joints. The dura mater was very firm, thin, 
 and rather opaque. It could easily be separated from 
 the medulla, which was of a beautiful white colour, con- 
 sisting of two columns, each again divisible into several 
 others ; so that there was no appearance of disease to be 
 discovered in the spinal marrow or its membranes ; but 
 as the vertebral veins were traced up the spinal canal, 
 they became turgid and more full of blood, and when 
 they had reached the middle of the cervical vertebra they 
 were greatly distended, and must by their pressure on 
 the spinal marrow have influenced its fiuictions. 
 
 " Having now completed the dissection of the brain 
 and spine, the thorax and abdomen became the subjects 
 of inquiry. 
 
 " The trachea was very large, and contained a puru- 
 lent fluid ; its mucous coat was inflamed and corrugated. 
 " The lungs presented a very peculiar appearance, es- 
 pecially the left, a large portion of which was converted 
 into a substance of a yellowish brown, covered with dark 
 black spots, and divided from the remaining healthy part, 
 which was of a florid red colour, by a complete and dis- 
 tinct line of separation. 
 
 " The discoloured lobes, on being cut into, were solid, 
 and evidently impervious to the admission of air. The 
 bronchial tubes were full of the same thick white pus 
 noticed in my former dissection, and which exuded in 
 large drops. 
 
64 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 " The right hmg was entirely changed into a dark 
 brown mass. The internal jugular and subclavian veins 
 together with the venae cavae, were distended with blood. 
 The heart was enlarged, and the pericardium drawn 
 tight over ii. The left auricle and ventricle contained 
 blood, but the right auricle and ventricle were literally 
 gorged to their utmost extent with dark grumous coagu- 
 lated blood. There were no marks of preternatural 
 adhesions or inflammation of the pleura costalis, nor was 
 there more than one ounce of serum within its cavity. 
 
 "'Abdomen. — There was a good deal of viscid yellow- 
 ish bile in the stomach ; its villous coat was inflamed and 
 corrugated. 
 
 " The liver was of a dark red colour congested with 
 blood. 
 
 " The gall bladder was full of a greenish bile. 
 ^* The urinary bladder contained a straw coloured 
 urine. 
 
 " The kidneys, omentum, and peritoneum, were in a 
 healthy state ; but the intestines seemed to have sufl^er- 
 ed from the acrimony of the bile. 
 
 " Remarks. — From the preceding dissections it must 
 be evident that the Distemper is an inflammatory disor- 
 der, more particularly affecting the mucous coats of the 
 bronchial tubes, and that the great congestions of blood 
 found in the heart and other vital organs must arise from 
 the obstruction it meets with in its passage through the 
 lungs. The particular time at which the disorganisation 
 commences must depend on the violence of the symp- 
 toms ; and it does appear that the disease can be divided 
 into three natural stages :— 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 65 
 
 the Distemper. 
 
 " 1st. The stage offerer and general excitement. 
 
 " 2nd. The deposition of coagulable lymph into the 
 substance of the lungs : and 
 
 " 3rd. The effusion of matter into the bronchial tubes. 
 
 " In drawing this view of the complaint, the liver is not 
 to be overlooked ; and it would seem as if this organ was, 
 by a general irritability of the system, excited to a state 
 of unusual activity, and that thus, by the presence of an 
 increased and vitiated state of the bile, the stomach and 
 bowels were brought into a disordered condition, and 
 their villous coats inflamed. 
 
 " Upon the epidemic, contagious, or other causes pre- 
 disposing to the Distemper, it is not now my intention to 
 oifer any remarks ; but I shall proceed to the treatment 
 which appearances after death would indicate. 
 
 " It is necessary for me to add that I have no experi- 
 ence of its efficacy, nor do I pretend to say that it will be 
 successful. Indeed the object of this paper is rather to 
 induce those who may have daily opportunities of be- 
 coming acquainted with the complaint, by observing its 
 causes, symptoms, and progress, to form an idea of its 
 nature ; and lastly, by the operation of remedies and 
 frequent dissections, to arrive at some certain conclusions. 
 
 " Treatment. — At the commencement of the symptoms, 
 or during the first stage of excitement, the dog should 
 be bled freely, according to his age and strength. After 
 wliich an emetic of tartarised antimony or ipecacuanha 
 should l)e administered, and its operation promoted by 
 mild bland fluids ; moderate doses of calomel, opium, and 
 antimony, should be given every three or four hours, 
 and the excess of bile removed by occasional doses of 
 
6& HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Treatment of 
 
 castor oil. The dog should be immersed for twenty 
 minutes in a warm bath, rubbed dry, and placed in clean 
 warm straw ; the temperature of his apartment should 
 be moderately warm, taking great care to exclude the 
 cold air, which must necessarily irritate the lungs. — 
 Having continued this plan for forty-eight hours, a mix- 
 ture, consisting of nitre, fox-glove, and ipecacuanha, 
 should be given three or four times a day until the urgent 
 symptoms have subsided. Stimulants should never be 
 given but when the animal appears much exhausted, and 
 after the preceding measures have been adopted : a little 
 white wine might then be put into the gruel, which 
 should constitute his food from the primary attack. 
 When recovering, little more than bread-and-milk or 
 nourishing broths will be necessary. 
 
 '* It occasionally happens that the irritability of the 
 stomach is such that no medicines can be retained. In- 
 jections in these cases havebeen attended with beneficial 
 effects ; and therefore a solution of starch with laudanum 
 should be thrown up several times in the course of twenty- 
 four hours : a blister also should be applied to the region 
 of the stomach. 
 
 "With regard to the treatment of the second and 
 third stages, when the first has been violent and neglect- 
 ed, very little can be expected from medicine. Bleeding 
 would be highly injurious; and calomel, opium, and 
 antimony, combined with expectorants, would most pro- 
 bably offer the greatest prospect of success. Strength 
 should be carefidly supported by a nutritious diet, but 
 all strong cordials ought to be avoided. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 67 
 
 the Di6temi>er. 
 
 " Although it is hkely the fever accompanying the 
 distemper has a pecuhar character, I am decidedly of 
 opinion that there is no specific remedy against this com- 
 plaint : and it is better to point out the indications of 
 cure, than to enumerate a long list of medicines with 
 their respective doses, the selection of which must depend 
 on the circumstances of each individual case. 
 
 Richard Williams, Surgeon." 
 
 Aberystwith, June 10, 1825." 
 
 I am not aware of any other remedies worth notice, 
 though a great number might be added, if we could give 
 credit to the stories retailed by dealers in dogs, as well 
 as gamekeepers and huntsmen. Much will be foimd to 
 depend on good nursing, and particularly to prevent the 
 animal from taking cold. — From what I have witnessed 
 of Blaine's medicine, I should not recommend it. 
 
 It is very advisable to inoculate for the distemper. If 
 you can nleet with a dog already afflicted, take a little 
 mucous from his nose, and insert it up the nostrils of 
 your whelp, after having prepared him by a dose or two 
 of syrup of buckthorn ; if the animal does not take the 
 disease, repeat the operation. By inoculating for the 
 distemper, the disease will be as much less severe, as the 
 inoculated small pox compared to what is called the 
 natural mode of taking it. 
 
 A dog rarely, if ever, has the distemper twice ; nor 
 does it often attack him after he has attained the age of 
 two years ; but frequently makes its appearance before 
 the animal has reached his twelfth month. A notion be- 
 
68 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Cow Pock. 
 
 came prevalent a few years back, that by inoculating a 
 dog with the cow pock, the distemper would be pre- 
 vented. 
 
 The Coiv Pock. — Dr. Jenner has asserted that by 
 inoculating dogs for the cow pock, a " disease similar to 
 that which is called the dog's distemper is produced, but 
 in a very slight degree. What is most remarkable, (adds 
 Dr. Jenner) this inoculation renders them afterwards 
 unsusceptible of that affection." Dr. Jenner is certainly 
 no mean authority : but, having tried the experiment a 
 number of times, from what I have witnessed, I can as- 
 sert, that unless much more than ordinary pains are taken 
 in the operation, no disease whatever will be produced ; 
 and when at length, pustules have been raised, they have 
 not been attended with symptoms any way resembling 
 what is called the distemper. 
 
 The catalogue of dog diseases is extended in some 
 publications to a puzzling length, where the various rami- 
 fications or different stages of each disease receive a new 
 name, in direct violation of that clearness and perspicuity 
 so preferable, indeed so essentially requisite, in a state- 
 ment of cases, many of which are frequently doubtful 
 even to the skilful and experienced. Young dogs are 
 very subject to worms, and appearances thus produced 
 are too often mistaken for other disorders, receive various 
 appellations, and are treated in the most injudicious 
 manner. I have been informed that the following will 
 cure the distemper ; but I have never tried it ; and am 
 rather sceptical as to the fact : — 
 
 One clove of garlic given every or every other day, or accord- 
 ing to the violence of the disorder. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 69 
 
 Worms, 
 
 Worms. — Dogs, like liuinan beings, are subject to 
 worm diseases of various kinds. A disorder, generally 
 distinguished by the appellation of lank madness, is pro- 
 duced by short thick worms, which occasionally breed in 
 the animal's stomach and intestines. This, and what is 
 denominated sleeping madness, appear to be merely two 
 names for the same disease. When a hound is thus 
 afflicted, he will become lean, though he will feed vora- 
 ciously ; as the disorder increases, his appetite in a great 
 degree forsakes him ; his eyes appear dull and drowsy, 
 and he will manifest an almost continual inclination for 
 slumber, without being able, however, to sleep soundly — 
 
 Take of calomel, six grains 
 
 common soap, two scruples 
 
 made into two bolusses, one of which to be given at 
 night, and tlie other the following morning : after two 
 days, the same to be repeated, and in four days more, 
 give the following : 
 
 Extract of coloquintida, two scruples 
 
 made into three bolusses, and one given every morning ; 
 on the fourth morning, give the animal a table spoonful 
 of syrup of buckthorn. If the worms should not be 
 entirely destroyed, in a little time repeat the course. 
 
 Hounds are often troubled with large worms, which, 
 without medicine, are occasionally voided singly or in 
 clusters. Their existence may be known by the dog's 
 voracity and leanness. The best remedy is the preced- 
 ing, though the following may probably answer the 
 purpose : 
 
 Calomel, three grains 
 
 jalap, twenty grains 
 
 golden sulphur of antimony, four grains 
 
70 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 mixed up with butter or lard into one dose. Three of 
 these doses to be given — one every other morning. 
 
 A table spoonful or two of linseed oil, given the first 
 thing in a morning, will frequently bring away a quantity 
 of worms : but it can never be depended on as an effec- 
 tual remedy, for the following reason : — upon the linseed 
 oil being swallowed, those worms with which it comes in 
 contact, that are not fastened on the intestines, but loose 
 as it were, in expectation of food, will be brought away ; 
 but such as are fast to the intestines (and many will 
 be found so situated) stick like leeches, and thus prevent 
 the effects of the oil. There is nothing so effectual as 
 calomel. Calomel administered externally, in tolerable 
 plenty, upon the human subject, will destroy Avorms in 
 the stomach. — If the worms are situated near the anus, 
 the calomel may be so completely absorbed, when taken 
 inwardly, as to lose its effect before it reaches that part ; 
 some tobacco smoke blown up the anus (which may 
 be easily done by inserting the thin end of a pipe) will 
 most completely destroy these noxious vermin, and they 
 will be voided, most likely, in prodigious numbers. 
 
 The remark which was made on the last article would 
 equally apply in this place, respecting the numerous 
 remedies prescribed for the same disease. What are 
 mentioned throughout are such as will be found to answer 
 the purpose ; and to give a number of doubtful and inef- 
 fectual recipes, for the sake of making a long list, or 
 giving a false air of importance to the subject, would be 
 as perplexing to the reader as it would be contemptible 
 and even dishonest, in the writer. 
 
 However, for worms, generally speaking, the following 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 71 
 
 Convulsions or Fits. 
 
 may be regarded as a sovereign remedy, and there are 
 few cases which it will not effectually cure — take 
 
 Linseed oil, half a pint 
 
 oil of turpentine, two drachms* 
 
 repeat the dose, if necessary. 
 
 Convulsions or Fits. — Complaints of this nature are 
 sometimes caused by an accumulation of worms in the 
 stomach, which in the first stage create giddiness, and 
 end in violent convulsive paroxysms. When the com- 
 plaint is to be attributed to worms, the animal will have 
 an itching at the nose and fundament, and will sneeze 
 frequently. In this case, the best treatment is what has 
 been already prescribed for worms. When convulsions 
 proceed from other causes, which may be generally 
 known by a wild appearance in the animal's eyes, frothing 
 at the mouth, when labouring under the most violent 
 paroxysm of convulsion, the dog may be recovered by 
 being thrown into the water, perhaps a bucket of water 
 thrown over him might answer the purpose : but this is 
 merely a temporary relief ; and to eradicate the disease, 
 recourse must be had to something more effectual. In 
 the first place, the animal should lose a few ounces of 
 blood ( from three to six ounces, according to his size and 
 strength) when the following should be administered : — 
 
 Jalap, one scruple 
 
 cream of tartar, half a dram 
 
 water, one ounce 
 
 mixed ; half taken the morning after the dog has been 
 bled ; the other half in two hours after, well shaken : — 
 
 * I am supposing for a full-grown dog. 
 
72 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Megrim. 
 
 a rowel should afterwards be put in the neck, and kept 
 open for a considerable time : the following should then 
 be given : — 
 
 Peruvian bark, half an ounce 
 water, half a pint 
 
 boiled for a few minutes and strained ; then add, sweet 
 spirit of nitre, one dram : a table spoonful to be given 
 every two hours, the animal afterwards to be kept on a 
 mild nourishing diet. 
 
 Wlien convulsions arise from indigestion, the following 
 has generally been found efficacious : — from two to eight 
 grains of tartar emetic (according to the age and size of 
 the dog) and in tAvo days after, give the following : — 
 
 Calomel, six grains 
 Barbadoes aloes, half a dram 
 
 Divide into six doses, and administer one every, or per- 
 haps every other, morning, as you may judge the patient 
 can bear it ; when you may give tonics, as recommended 
 under the head Distetnper. 
 
 What is called the megrim or giddiness in the head is 
 a species of fit, and may be removed by bleeding. The 
 same disease is, by some, &ex\ovi\\naiedi falling madness, 
 (a ridiculous name certainly) from, I suppose, the animal 
 occasionally falling from giddiness. When thus afflicted, 
 the dog will frequently rub his feet against the sides of 
 his mouth, and appear as if he had a bone in his throat. 
 Any of these symptoms will give way to the treatment 
 just described : and where the disorder is not very vio- 
 lent, it may generally be removed by bleeding ; which, 
 as it has formed a principal feature for the last few pages. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Bleeding. 
 
 it may not be amiss to say a word or two on the best mode 
 of performing the operation under a distinct head. 
 
 Bleed'mg. — In speaking on this subject, I am not sup- 
 posing that the huntsman is a member of the medical 
 profession in any of its branches, but sufficiently skilled 
 in anatomy to know a vein from an artery, which is all 
 the knowledge requisite for performing the operation of 
 bleeding a dog. A vein* may be distinguished from an 
 artery by its having no pulsation ; if an artery of any 
 consequence should be divided, the blood will flow in 
 irregular gushes, it will be difficult to stop, and may cause 
 the death of the dog. However, there is little danger 
 of such an unpleasant circumstance happening, and an 
 ordinary degree of attention is quite sufficient to obviate 
 it. The most convenient, and the best place to bleed a 
 dog, is to open a vein (the jugular vein) longitudinally, in 
 the side of the neck, round which a cord should be first 
 tied ; and if the huntsman is not expert at handling a 
 lancet, he may purchase a fleam at any of the shops 
 where surgical instruments are sold, which, by means of 
 springs, is so contrived that the greatest bungler need 
 be under no apprehension. Those who sell this instru- 
 ment will describe the method of using it, which indeed 
 is so obvious at first view as to render elucidation super- 
 fluous in this place. 
 
 If, after the vein is opened, the animal should not 
 bleed freely, pressure a little below the orifice will cause 
 the blood to flow. When sufficient Ijlood has been 
 
 * An artery brings the blood from the heart ; a vein carries back the 
 blood to the heart. 
 
74 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Cold and Cough — Formica. 
 
 taken, (eight ounces, if a strong dog) the bleeding will 
 generally subside ; should this not be the case, a little 
 fur from a hat will stop it ; or, the lips of the orifice may 
 be drawn together with a needle and thread. 
 
 The vein should be opened longitudinally, as I have 
 already observed ; as, if opened in a transverse direction, 
 it may be difficult to stop the bleeding, owing to the cir- 
 cimfistance of the incision opening every time the dog 
 holds down or stretches out his head. 
 
 Caustic or hot iron will stop bleeding, even when an 
 artery is divided ; or it may be sewn up. 
 
 Cold and Cough. — A cough arises from an irritation 
 of the lungs, and may be produced by a cold or other- 
 wise ; it is generally the effect of cold, and may be re- 
 moved by 
 
 Antimonial powder, five grains 
 calomel, four grains 
 
 made with honey into two bolusses, and given in the 
 evening for two nights successively. 
 
 If a hound should be afflicted with a cough, in the first 
 place, examine his throat, in order to ascertain if any' 
 pieces of bone are lodged there, as such a circumstance 
 will cause a dog to cough for weeks. If the cough arises 
 from cold, administer a dose* or two of syrup of buck- 
 thorn. Should the cough still continue, give tartar 
 emetic as described under the head Distemj^er. 
 
 Formica, Scab in the Ears. — A little mercurial oint- 
 ment rubbed upon the affected parts every two or three 
 days, will very soon effect a cure. 
 
 * A table spoonful is a dose for a common sized hound. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 75 
 
 Canker, Swellings, ."ic. 
 
 Canker i.>. the hips. — Rub the aifected parts with 
 alum-water two or three times a day : 
 
 Or, rub with bole ammoniac and burnt alum two or 
 three times a day. 
 
 Swellings in general. — See Liflammation, page 78. 
 
 Films in the Eye. — Bathe the affected part twice a 
 day with water in which a little vitriol has been dissolved, 
 (the size of a large horse bean to a pint of spring water) 
 and in a minute or two wash it in clear water. 
 
 Or bathe with the following lotion twice a day : — 
 
 Sulphate of copper, one scruple 
 water, four ounces 
 
 Sprains. — Sprains are painful swellings of the liga- 
 ments and tendons of the joints, and are caused by too 
 great exertion of the limbs, of which the tendons become 
 relaxed. They should be well rubbed with the following 
 twice a day : — - 
 
 Camphor, two drams 
 brandy, one ounce 
 
 when the camphor is well dissolved, add one ounce of 
 sweet oil, and shake them well together. Should this 
 not have the desired effect, try the following : — 
 
 Spirit of hartshorn, two drams 
 sweet oil, six drams 
 
 well shaken, and applied as the other. Give a spoonful 
 or two of syrup of buckthorn. 
 
 N. B. As sprains are attended with inflammation,* 
 this should be got rid of in the first place by fomenting 
 
 * See also the article " Inflammation," page 78. 
 
 e2 
 
76 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 with warm water four or five times a day, and the fol- 
 lowing lotion applied : — 
 
 Extiact of lead, two ounces 
 
 water, one pint 
 
 Should any stiffness remain after the inflammation has 
 totally subsided, apply a blister. 
 
 IVoimds, and to stop an Effusion of Blood. — The fol- 
 lowing will be found very effective in wounds : 
 
 Spirit of sal ammoniac, opodeldoc, sweet nitre, equal parts 
 
 wine, half quantity 
 
 spirit of turpentine, half quantity 
 
 If an artery is wounded, it may be known (as before 
 observed) by the blood gushing out (not flowing regu- 
 larly) and assuming a florid appearance. If a vein is 
 wounded, the blood will be darker coloured and flow 
 regularly. 
 
 Wounds may be divided into two classes — incised^ or 
 those cut with a sharp instrument ; and contused, or 
 those inflicted with any thing blunt or heavy. 
 
 Slight wounds require little or no attention ; but sup- 
 posing a serious incised wound, the first operation should 
 be cutting, or rather shaving, the hair from around the 
 wound, when, if the blood continues to flow, it should 
 be stopped by filling the wound with bits of sponge or 
 dry lint ; if the wound be in the dog's limbs, a bandage 
 tied very tight just above it will materially assist in stop- 
 ping the flow of blood, should not the sponge or lint be 
 found sufficient. The edges or lips of the wound should 
 afterwards be stitched, or drawn close together with ad- 
 hesive plaister cut into shps long enough to extend three 
 or four inches on each sNJde— the number of slips must of 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 77 
 
 Contused Wounds. 
 
 course be regulated by the size of the wound : plenty of 
 lint or soft rag should be laid on, over which a roller or 
 bandage must be applied to confine the dressing, which 
 should not be removed for four or five days. The wound 
 should afterwards be dressed with Turners cerate spa- 
 ringly spread on rag, and the bandage as before, and 
 great caution used not to remove the adhesive plaister 
 till the third or fourth dressing. A table spoonful of 
 syrup of buckthorn may be occasionally given to keep 
 the animal's bowels open : and he must be muzzled or 
 otherwise so secured as to prevent his tearing away or 
 disturbing the bandage. 
 
 Contused wounds are more painful than incised ; always 
 swohi, ragged, and not attended with much hcemorrhage 
 or flow of blood : no attempt should be made to bring 
 the edges together, but a cold poultice apphed, made 
 with oatmeal and the followmg lotion : 
 
 Goulard's extract of lead, one dram 
 vinegar, two ounces 
 water, one pint 
 
 the poultice should extend over the swelled parts sur- 
 rounding the wound, and be renewed three or four times 
 during the day. When the wound begins to suppurate 
 or discharge, unaccompanied with blood, the cold poul- 
 tice should be changed for a warm one, consisting of 
 oatmeal and water in which there is a httle grease, and 
 renewed three times a day as warm as the dog can bear 
 it. In a few days the matter will be completely dis- 
 charged, when the wound should be dressed daily with 
 yellow basilicon spread on rag, and a long roller applied 
 tightly over. 
 
 e3 
 
78 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Inflammation. 
 
 N. B. Whenever fungus or proud flesh appears, it 
 should be touched with blue stone. 
 
 Inflammation.— In^s^mmdiiion arises from various 
 causes ; but is distinguished by the part affected be- 
 coming swoln, dry, and hot. A shght degree of inflam- 
 mation will generally subside without the aid either of 
 medicine or external apphcation. Bleeding in the neck 
 will frequently remove an inflammation ; or the applica- 
 tion of leeches to the aflfected part, having previously 
 shaved the hair off. If the swelhng or tumour becomes 
 larger, soft, and shining, matter is forming, when warm 
 poultices should be applied as described under contused 
 wounds, and the same treatment adopted. When the 
 matter is completely formed (which may be known by 
 the fluctuation of the fluid upon a shght pressure) if the 
 skin is very thin, a deep opening or incision should be 
 made with a lancet on the prominent part ; but if hard- 
 ness is felt the tumour must remain till it breaks itself.— 
 After the tumour is emptied, care should be taken that 
 the air does not penetrate, or the wound will be much 
 more difficult to heal. 
 
 When a hound's eyes become inflamed, and assume a 
 red and fiery appearance, bleeding will generally reheve 
 
 him. 
 
 Dogs, however, are not very subject to inflammation ; 
 and, generally speaking, will be troubled with few dis- 
 eases if properly dieted and exercised. Dogs kept in 
 towns are much more subject to disorders, than such as 
 are kept in the country. Confinement is always injurious 
 to health. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 79 
 
 Sore Feet, &c. 
 
 For the bite of another Dog. — See the article Wounds, 
 &c. page 76. 
 
 Sore Feet. — Styptic tincture ; or, if this cannot be 
 procured, salt and water. 
 
 For extracting Thorns. — Thorns may be generally 
 extracted with the thumb and fore-finger nails ; or re- 
 course may be had to the assistance of the pen-knife in 
 the same way as the sportsman would extract a thorn 
 from his own finger. The dog will frequently perform 
 the operation with his mouth. If the wound festers, the 
 thorn may be squeezed out. 
 
 To bring Hair upon a scalded part. — Fresh hog's lard 
 rubbed frequently upon the affected part, will reproduce 
 hair ; indeed, I am inclined to think that animal fat in 
 general will have the desired effect. Fresh goose grease 
 or the fat of fowls, unmixed with salt, will answer the 
 purpose equally well. Vegetable oils are of too dry a 
 nature, and their effects, as applied to the growth of 
 hair, pernicious. Yet there are not wanting quacks who 
 daily advertise the sale of oil for the growth of hair on 
 the human head ; and by way of the strongest possible 
 recommendation, specifically state, that it is extracted 
 from vegetables ! This is lamentable ; but it is still more 
 so, that such numbers of the unthinking become the 
 dupes of these ignorant pretenders, whose existence is a 
 stigma on the liberality of the public. 
 To destroy Fleas, Lice, ^'-c. 
 
 Take of white arsenic, one dram 
 water, one gallon 
 soft soap, one quarter of a pound 
 
 boil for ten minutes ; then take it off the fire and let it 
 
80 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 stand to settle, then pour it ofFinto another vessel, leaving 
 about half a pint at the bottom, which throw away, and 
 dress with the water. — a certain remedy. 
 
 Linseed oil, or Scotch snufF, rubbed well all over the 
 body is a temporary remedy. A good washing with 
 common soap and water will perhaps answer the purpose. 
 
 In hot weather, hounds are much troubled with fleas ; 
 and if the huntsman is anxious for their comfort, he will 
 find it necessaiy to use the above several times during 
 the summer. Clean beds and cleanliness in general act 
 as preventives. 
 
 To recover the Sense of Smell. — When a hound's ol- 
 factory organs become affected, it will frequently be 
 found to arise from colds, costiveness, or other causes, 
 which a dose or two of opening physic seldom fails to re- 
 move. A little sulphvu' or syrup of buckthorn will have 
 the desired effect. 
 
 For Hounds that have taJcen Poison. — For all vege- 
 table poisons, vinegar has been supposed to be a specific. 
 At all events, whether vegetable or mineral poison has 
 been swallowed, the sooner it is discharged from the 
 stomach, the better. 
 
 Take of sulphate of copper, half a drachm 
 water, six ounces 
 
 Give two table spoonfuls every five minutes until effect- 
 ual vomiting has taken place ; when a strong dose of 
 ' castor oil should be administered, followed by nourishing 
 diet. 
 
 Whatever will cause instantaneous vomiting may have 
 the desired effect. If a hound has swallowed poison? 
 and no better remedy happen to be at hand, almost any 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 81 
 
 Vegetable Poisons. 
 
 kind of oil (rancid or otherwise) poured down the throat 
 is advisable. The poison will most likely be either nox 
 vomica, arsenic, or corrosive sublimate ; however, let the 
 poison be what it will, the best remedy is the following : 
 
 Ipecacuanha, fifteen grains 
 water, two table spoonfuls, mixed 
 
 Should it not operate in fifteen minutes, repeat the 
 dose. After the operation 
 
 Take of prepared kali, three drains 
 water, one ounce 
 
 give a table spoonful every fifteen minutes, which will 
 most likely produce vomiting and purging. Afterwards 
 nourishing diet. 
 
 *' Antidote for Vegetable Poisons. — M. Drapiez has 
 ascertained, by numerous experiments, that the fruit of 
 the fcM'illea cordifoha is a powerful antidote against vege- 
 table poisons. He poisoned dogs with rhus toxicoden- 
 dron, hemlock, and nox vomica. All those that were 
 left to the effects of the poison died, but those to whom 
 the fruit of the fewillea cordifolia was administered, re- 
 covered completely, after a short illness. M. Drapiez 
 also took two arrows which had been dipt in the juice of 
 manchinelle, and slightly wounded with them two young 
 cats. To the one of these he applied a poultice, com- 
 posed of the fruit of the fewillea cordifolia, while the 
 other was left without any ^pphcation. The wound of 
 the former speedily healed ; while the other, in a short 
 time, fell into convulsions, and died." 
 
 It is very difficult however to save the life of a dog 
 that has taken poison. Nox vomica is what the base 
 
82 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Mange. 
 
 minded generally use for the purpose. If recourse can 
 be had to the process before described the moment the 
 animal has swallowed the baneful drug, I should have no 
 doubt of success ; but if only a few minutes elapse, the 
 cure is extremely doubtful. I have witnessed several 
 instances, in all of which the animals died, though every 
 exertion was used for their preservation. 
 
 Sickness, or a Foul Stomach. — A foul stomach pro- 
 ceeds from indigestion ; therefore eight or ten grains of 
 tartar emetic may be very beneficially given, followed^ 
 in a day or two, by a purge of syrup of buckthorn. 
 
 A dog never perspires ; but whenever he is unwell, his 
 eyes very strongly exhibit the change, are a certain index 
 of the state of his health, and assume a languid, a dull, 
 or a fiery appearance, according to the natvire of the dis- 
 order with which he is afflicted. The powers of diges- 
 tion in a dog do not appear to be promoted by exercise. 
 If you take a dog into the field to hunt with a full stomach, 
 he will throw up the contents of it in a few minutes, or 
 at least in a short period. If you suffer him to sleep after 
 a hearty meal, the digestion is rapid and healthy. 
 
 The Common Mange. — This disorder is very infectious, 
 and originally proceeds from dirty beds, bad food, and 
 filth in general. It has a loathsome, scabby, dirty ap- 
 pearance, somewhat similar to the itch in human beings ; 
 and, like that disease, contains animalcula in each of the 
 pustules. It may be cured with the following : — 
 
 Oil of tar 
 
 sulphur vivura 
 
 train oil, of each an equal quantity 
 
 with which the dog should be well rubbed several times, 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 83 
 
 jrrj jfi^jfif i r i fr » -r . ^r i i -rr » -rrrrr «i ** i T i ' i 'r i 'r-" i I .^^j^a^Aaaii ■»■■ ■■»■■■■» ■»*i 
 
 The Mange. 
 
 a day or two elapsing between each rubbing. Sulphur 
 given internally will be of service. 
 Another : — 
 
 Flowers of sulphur, half an ounce 
 hog's lard or butter, one ounce 
 
 well mixed and rubbed completely over the animal twice 
 a day, giving a tea spoonful of the flowers of sulphur 
 every evening in a little molasses. Keep the animal 
 confined alone, and the moment the cure is effected, give 
 him a clean bed. — As the disease is very infectious, 
 without great care, all your dogs will become disordered. 
 
 Mercurial ointment rubbed on the parts affected will 
 remove this disease ; but it is rather a dangerous re- 
 medy, and will kill a weak animal, if not carefully ad- 
 ministered : — muzzle the dog. 
 
 An infusion of fox-glove leaves, I have reason to 
 believe, will answer the purpose : it is the cleanest re- 
 medy ; and though I have not had sufficient experience 
 to pronounce its infallibility, I have no hesitation in re- 
 commending it : — put a handful of fox-glove leaves into 
 a quart or three-pint jug, pour boiling water upon them ; 
 and, when cold, rub the dog every day for three or four 
 days. The dog need not be muzzled — as soon as dressed 
 he will attempt to hck, but will not take a second taste. 
 
 The following I have seen successfully used : — 
 
 Sulphur, two ounces 
 mercurial ointment, two drams 
 hog's lard, four ounces 
 
 well mixed : with which rub the dog every other day — 
 three or four dressings will generally be sufficient. Two 
 drams of aloes, mixed up with the above, will not injure 
 
84 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Red Mange. 
 
 the composition, [and will probably prevent the animal 
 licking himself — otherwise, muzzle him. 
 
 The Red Mange. — The disorder called the red 
 MANGE does not appear to be nearly allied to what is so 
 well known by the common appellation of mange, but to 
 be a species of disease within itself, seated in the skin, 
 and not always infectious amongst dogs lying together, 
 but almost invariably communicated by a bitch to her 
 litter of whelps, particularly if she had it vipon her during 
 the time she was in pup. This disorder is most malig- 
 nant in its effect ; the incessant and severe itching, which, 
 from all observation, seems accompanied by a burning 
 heat, and this too increased by the perpetual biting and 
 scratching of the tortured animal, give such parts of 
 the frame as are severely affected, the appearance of 
 having been scalded by some boiling liquor, with a con- 
 sequent loss of hair. It is this distinct kind of mange 
 that so constantly baffles dog-doctors and dog-mongers 
 of every description, and reduces them to their ne plus 
 ultra, where the fertility of invention can go no further. 
 It is, perhaps, the most deceptive disorder to which any 
 part of the animal world can become unluckily subject ; 
 for when it has (seemingly and repeatedly) submitted to, 
 and been subdued by, some of the combinations of com- 
 bustibles before described, it has as suddenly, as repeat- 
 edly, and as unexpectedly, made its re-appearance with 
 all its former virulence. Great care, nice attention, and 
 long experience, have discovered one or two modes of 
 perfect eradication. Let half an ounce of corrosive sub- 
 limate be reduced in a glass mortar to an impalpable 
 powder ; to this, by a very small quantity at a time, add 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 85 
 
 The Red Mange. 
 
 two ounces (lialf a gill) of spirits of wine ; and, lastly, 
 one pint of rain or river water, and, with a sponge dipt 
 in the solution, let every part palpably affected be well 
 washed, every third day, till thrice performed ; then 
 leave three clear days, and repeat the former ceremony 
 of thrice as before ; letting three mercurial purging halls 
 be given at the equal distances of three or four days, 
 and not the least doubt of cure need be entertained, if 
 the mode prescribed is properly and judiciously attended 
 to. 
 
 Of the red mange General Hanger thus speaks : — 
 " My dog had the mange ; not very bad, but something 
 much worse with it ; he had eight or ten large blotches 
 on his body, as big as large hazel nuts. I sent for an old 
 man who made a livelihood by curing dogs : he took a 
 bottle out of his pocket, and first dabbed the blotches 
 with a bit of tow, each two or three times. He then 
 stopped about five minutes, for that to dry in and pene- 
 trate ; after which he took a pot of ointment, and rubbed 
 the dog in well, for at least ten minutes, under the fore 
 legs, and on the belly, but particularly on the hack hone. 
 He then desired me not to wash the dog, or let him go 
 into the water ; telling me, he would call in about five 
 days. When he called, the dog was apparently well ; 
 so much so, that he said he did not think it necessary to 
 rub the dog again : however, I made him dab the blotches 
 again, and rub once more in. — When he called to be 
 paid, I told him that, upon my honour, if he would dis- 
 cover how the liquid and ointment were made, I would 
 give him two guineas, and never discover it till after his 
 death. He consented. The liquid is thus made : — Half 
 
86 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 an ounce of quicksilver is put into a bottle, with half an 
 ounce of oil of turpentine, for about eight hours before 
 using it : shake the bottle frequently, and shake it always 
 when you use it, for there will be a sediment at the bot- 
 tom. The ointment is thus made : — Take half an ounce 
 of quicksilver ; put it into a bottle with half an ounce of 
 oil of turpentine ; let it stand for eight hours, shaking 
 the bottle frequently ; then take four ounces of hog's 
 lard, and by degrees, mix both together, a little of each 
 at a time, till the whole be incorporated. — He told me 
 that he always carried two pots of ointment with him, 
 one stronger than the other, in case of a dog being vei-y 
 bad with the mange. The strongest ointment was made 
 with ofili/ three ounces of hog's lard, but with the same 
 quantity of the quicksilver and turpentine." 
 The following is an effectual cure : 
 
 Train oil, one ounce 
 black sulphur, one ounce 
 liquid blister, half an ounce 
 
 to be rubbed on the dog every other day. 
 
 For the Bite of the Adder, 8^c. — The adder is not un- 
 common in some parts of England, and is occasionally 
 met with, in the heat of summer, among sedges, and in 
 marshy places. It differs from the snake in not being so 
 long, the latter being found from three-quarters to a yard 
 long ; the former seldom, or never, reaching three- 
 quarters of a yard ; there is an appearance of malignity 
 in the countenance of the adder, which does not obtain in 
 that of the snake, the head of which is not so blunt as that 
 of the adder ; while the tail of the latter tapers more 
 abruptly, and it is generally found of a more dusky colour. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 87 
 
 and Remedy. 
 
 There is, however, another very essential difference : — 
 the snake is destitute of teeth ; while the adder is not only 
 prepared in this respect, but has one particular tooth, in 
 the side of the jaw, which has a communication with a 
 sort of alembic, situated in the reptile's head, and which 
 contains the venom : in this tooth, there is a slit ; and 
 when the creature becomes irritated and bites, the pi'es- 
 sure thus occasioned upon the tooth, causes the venom 
 to ooze through the slit, and it is thus injected into the 
 blood. 
 
 I have heard of a reptile, called the slow worm, the 
 bite of which is said to be venomous ; but I never saw 
 one. The snake is perfectly harmless ; the bite of the 
 adder or viper will be attended with serious consequences 
 if a remedy is not speedily applied. The remedy, how- 
 ever, is simple — the immediate application of sweet oil 
 rubbed upon the affected part, counteracts the effects 
 of the venom most surprisingly : as I have witnessed it, 
 I speak with confidence. Indeed, I am of opinion, that 
 any vegetable oil (or animal either, perhaps) will answer 
 the purpose ; and have little doubt, that what will cure 
 the bite of the adder will cure that of the slow worm also. 
 Yet, for a further illustration of this subject, I will bor- 
 row the account of a favourite author. I am aware that 
 the same account has already appeared in various pub- 
 lications ; but, from a conviction that much good may 
 result from its becoming generally known, I shall tran- 
 scribe it without hesitation : — 
 
 " One William Oliver, a viper catcher, of Bath, was 
 the first who discovered this admirable remedy. On the 
 first of June, 1735, in the presence of a great number 
 
88 HUNTING DIRECTORY 
 
 of persons, he suffered himself to be bit by an old black 
 viper ( brought by one of the company) upon the wrist 
 and joint of the thumb, so that drops of blood came out 
 of the wound : he immediately felt a violent pain both at 
 the top of his thumb and up his arm, even before the 
 viper was loosened from his hand : soon after he felt a 
 pain, resembling that of burning, trickle up his arm ; in 
 a few minutes, his eyes began to look red and fiery, and 
 to water much ; in less than an hour, he perceived the 
 venom seize his heart, with a pricking pain, which was 
 attended with faintness, shortness of breath, and cold 
 sweats ; in a few minutes after this, his belly began to 
 swell, with great gripings and pains in his back, which 
 were attended with vomitings and purgings ; during the 
 violence of these symptoms, his sight was gone for several 
 minutes, but he could hear all the while. He said, that 
 in former experiments he had never deferred making use 
 of his remedy longer than he perceived the effects of 
 the venom reaching his heart ; but this time, being wil- 
 ling to satisfy the company thoroughly, and trusting to 
 the speedy effects of his remedy, which was nothing more 
 than olive oil, he forbore to apply anything, till he found 
 himself exceedingly ill and quite giddy. About an hour 
 and a quarter after the first of his being bit, a chaffing 
 dish of glowing charcoal was brought in, and his naked 
 arm held over it as long as he could bear, while his wife 
 rubbed in the oil with her hand, turning his arm continu- 
 ally round, as if she would have roasted it over the coals : 
 he said the poison soon abated, but the swelling did not 
 diminish much. Most violent purgings and vomitings 
 soon ensued ; and his pulse became so low, and so often 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 89 
 
 and Remedy. — Burns and Scalds. 
 
 interrupted, that it was thought proper to order him a 
 repetition of cordial potions : he said he was not sensible 
 of any great relief from these ; but that a glass or two 
 of olive oil drank down, seemed to give him ease. Con- 
 tinuing in this dangerous condition, he was put to bed, 
 where his arm was again bathed over a pan of charcoal, 
 and rubbed with olive oil heated in a ladle over the 
 charcoal, by Dr. Mortimer's direction, who was the phy- 
 sician that drew up the account. From this last operation 
 he declared, that he found immediate ease, as though 
 by some charm ; he soon after fell into a profound sleep, 
 and after nine hours' sound rest, awaked, about six the 
 next morning, and found himself very well ; but, in the 
 afternoon, on drinking some rum and strong beer, so as 
 to be almost intoxicated, the swelling returned, with 
 much pain and cold sweats, which abated soon, on bathing 
 the arm, as before, and wrapping it up in brown paper 
 soaked in the oil." 
 
 Burns and Scalds assume a very different appearance, 
 according to the degree of heat or violence by which 
 they are occasioned ; if slight, and the skin only irri- 
 tated, they are easily cured by instantly dashing the part 
 affected in cold water, or constantly applying it till the 
 pain and irritation have ceased ; if slight blisters rise 
 they should not be opened at first, as is generally recom- 
 mended ; for if the air penetrates it frequently produces 
 an ulcer or sore. When a burn or scald is more severe, 
 it must be constantly kept wet with rag dipped in the 
 following lotion : — 
 
 Goulard's extract of leail, two drams 
 water, half a pint 
 
 V 
 
90 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Hydrophobia. 
 
 and the part kept as quiet as possible. Strong spirits, 
 
 or oil of turpentine, is also serviceable when immediately 
 
 applied ; but the lotion is the most successful treatment 
 
 either in scalds or burns. After the third or fourth day 
 
 the blisters should be opened, but the skin not removed, 
 
 and then dressed with the following ointment : 
 
 Olive oil, half an ounce 
 
 Goulard's extract of lead, one ounce 
 
 well mixed together, and spread on lint or soft rag with 
 a bandage over moderately tight. 
 
 Wlien burns or scalds are so severe as to destroy the 
 flesh from the bone, warm poultices of oatmeal and water 
 should be apphed, and then treated as sujjpuration. — 
 See the article Wounds, &c. page 76. 
 
 The Hydrophobia. — This is a dreadful disease, and 
 has received a very appropriate name, as human beings, 
 but not dogs, when afflicted with this little understood 
 malady, uniformly testify an abhorrence of water, and, I 
 believe, of fluids in general, and even shining substances. 
 
 " When Sirius reigns, and the sun's parching beams 
 
 Bake the dry gaping surface, visit thou 
 
 Each ev'n and morn, with quick observant eye, 
 
 Thy panting pack. If, in dark sullen mood, 
 
 The glouting hound refuse his wonted meal. 
 
 Retiring to some close, obscure retreat, 
 
 Gloomy, disconsolate ; with speed remove 
 
 The poor infectious wretch, and in strong chains 
 
 Bind him suspected. Thus that dire disease 
 
 Which art can't cure, wise caution may prevent." 
 
 SOMERVILE. 
 
 The hydrophobia affords a striking instance of sue- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 91 
 
 Urmskirk Medicine. 
 
 cessful quackery in the avidity with which the Ormskirk 
 Medicine was purchased, till within these few years that 
 the imposture has been exposed. This compound of 
 calcined oyster shells, elecampane, roach alum, and bole 
 ammoniac, was originally administered gratis ; but no 
 sooner was it discovered that the medicine was eagerly 
 sought after, than the sale of it was advertised ; agents 
 were appointed in different parts ; and many hundreds 
 purchased and took the medicine who had been bitten, 
 but not by mad dogs. A dog accustomed to the country, 
 is generally alarmed when he approaches a town or vil- 
 lage — the shaking of a cobler's apron, or some such 
 thing, is frequently resorted to by the lower orders — the 
 terrified animal takes to his heels, and will most likely 
 snap at any person who attempts to impede his progress. 
 Nothing is heard but the cry of mad dog ! and many who 
 have been bitten under such circumstances, have called 
 in the assistance of the Ormskirk medicine, and have 
 thus been willing to suppose a disorder prevented, which 
 did not exist in the dog, and which, of course, could not 
 be communicated. 
 
 The venders of the Ormskirk medicine, however, 
 made the most of the matter — its infallibihty Wiis23njfed 
 upon the public in the most barefaced manner ; and it 
 was even publicly stated, that such Avas the virtue of the 
 medicine, that even after the hydrophobia had made its 
 appearance, the disease could be removed by takhig it. 
 Cases, with fictitious names, were stated, and the grossest 
 falsehoods resorted to, in order to levy contributions 
 with more plausibility upon the credulity of the unthink- 
 ing. I believe, at present, no person who wishes to 
 
 p o 
 
92 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Orraskirk Medicine. 
 
 preserve even an appearance of character, will attempt 
 to palm the medicine upon the world ; but it has stiU its 
 supporters, and a number of old women, in various parts 
 of Lancashire, still practice the deception ; and shew 
 considerable dexterity in propping its falling reputatioUr 
 
 The recipe was obtained by the late Mr. Hill's father, 
 who resided near Oi-mskirk, from an itinerant tinker, in 
 the year 1704. The medicine is thus prepared : — take 
 one tea spoonful of prepared (calcined) oyster shells, one 
 knife point full of roach alum, as much elecampane, in 
 powder, and half a tea spoonful of bole ammoniac ; all 
 to be powdered finely, and given to the patient in the 
 morning fasting, in a little wine and water, or small beer : 
 at the same time the wound is to be dressed with a pre- 
 paration, varying from that just described, only in a 
 greater portion of roach alum. 
 
 Not one dog in twenty, reputed mad, is so in reality — 
 the cxire, or rather the prevention, therefore, is certain 
 in many instances ; and where it happens otherwise, and 
 the dog was labouring under the hydrophobia, the result 
 is most melancholy : but then it is immediately and un- 
 blushingly asserted, that the medicine had not operated 
 in a proper manner — it had not remained upon the 
 stomach, or been taken in sufficient quantity ; and thus 
 the cheat continues, though on a much more circum- 
 scribed scale. 
 
 The fact is, that the only certain remedy hitherto dis- 
 covered for this dreadful disease, is the application of 
 the knife : — the blood becomes infected by the saliva 
 from the dog's teeth ; and unless the bitten part can be 
 immediately cut out, death will most likely be the result, 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 93 
 
 Hydrophobia. 
 
 though the precise time will be very uncertain ; for so 
 capricious is this malady, that, after infection, it some- 
 times lies dormant, as it were, in the system for months, 
 sometimes for weeks ; while instances, I believe, are not 
 wanting, where it has appeared, in all its terrible symp- 
 toms^ in the course of a few days. 
 
 It is possible that a person might be bitten by a mad 
 dog, and yet escape the hydrophobia : if, in the act of 
 biting, the animal's teeth pass through a thick woollen 
 coat, or other garment, so that his teeth in passing 
 through are wiped dry, he might inflict a wound without 
 any of the infectious saliva or fluid reaching it. 
 
 Respecting the bite of a mad dog, Dr. Vandeburgh 
 very judiciously observes : — " not a moment should be 
 lost to destroy the poison from the wound (even if only 
 on supposition of the animal being mad) ; many reme- 
 dies are recommended, but should not be trusted to ; 
 the only effectual method is to destroy the foundation of 
 the poison, and give the following course of medicine : — 
 the part bitten must be entirely cut out with a sharp in- 
 strument, and the edges of the wound seared with a red- 
 hot iron, to prevent the smallest particle of poison re- 
 maining ; afterwards, warm poultices of oatmeal and 
 water to be applied as warm as the patient can possibly 
 bear, to produce a quick and copious discharge of matter 
 or suppuration. The following pills should be given :— 
 
 Calomel, one scruple 
 opium, half a scruple 
 
 well mixed and divided into ten pills of equal size, one 
 pill to be taken every four hours ; two drams of strong 
 ointment of quicksilver to be wellrubl)ed in on the thighs 
 
94 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Symptoms of 
 
 and arms morning and evening, M'hich, with the medicine, 
 must be continued till the mouth becomes sore and spit- 
 ting is produced : when matter discharges from the 
 sore, it should also be dressed with strong ointment of 
 quicksilver thickly spread on lint and the poidtice con- 
 tinued over it : this treatment must be pursued for the 
 space of one month, then the wound healed with Tirr- 
 ners cerate spread on lint, but the mouth kept sore and 
 slight spitting prolonged for at least two months, as 
 hydrophobia has been known to make its appearance 
 five and six months after the bite of the animal : sea 
 bathing is strongly advised, but I would always recom- 
 mend the foregoing treatment in preference, a trial of 
 which should not be omitted, if the poison was destroyed 
 at first by cutting, neither if the bite has happened some 
 time, nor even when the following symptoms have taken 
 place : the part bitten becoming tender and inflamed, 
 uneasiness and stupidity, frightful dreams, convulsions, 
 eyes red and watery, pain all over the body, difficulty in 
 swallowing, great thirst, and when liquid is only brought 
 before the patient he appears choked, accompanied with 
 trembling and shivering over the whole body ; vomiting 
 bile frequently occurs, attended with great thirst and 
 fever : the last symptoms are raging and foaming at the 
 mouth, spitting at the bystanders, and strong convul- 
 sions, as if drawn double ; — no patient should be given 
 over till the last moment : the mercurial friction should 
 be tried, and the prescribed medicine given while he 
 exists, as there is hope of recovery by perseverance in 
 the foregoing method. 
 
 The patient should be kept on very low diet, and no 
 spirits or wine be used." 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 95 
 
 the Hydrophobia. 
 
 The following are the progressive symptoms of hy- 
 drophobia : when a dog becomes melancholy, droops 
 his head, forbears eating, seems to forget his former 
 habits, and as he runs snatches at every thing : if he 
 often looks upwards, and that his tail at its setting on 
 be rather erect, and the rest of it hanging down ; if his 
 eyes be red, his breath strong, his voice hoarse, and that 
 he drivels and foams at the mouth, you may be satisfied 
 of the approaches of hydrophobia ; and the only thing 
 that should be done is instantly to despatch him, how- 
 ever great a favourite he may be. If at this period he 
 should remain at liberty, he will certainly leave his home : 
 he goes as fast as he can ; and the mischief that may 
 happen, owing thus to a mad dog breaking away, and 
 running over an extent of country, is incalculable, as he 
 spares no living creature. 
 
 The following accurate description, from the pen of 
 Mr. Youatt, appeared in the Sporting Magazine, Sep- 
 tember, 1825 : — ■ 
 
 *' The symptoms of rabies in the dog are the following, 
 and nearly in the order in which they usually appear : — 
 An earnest licking, or scratching or rubbing of some 
 particular part ; sullenness, and a disposition to hide 
 from observation ; considerable costiveness and occa- 
 sional vomiting ; an eager search for indigestible sub- 
 stances — as bits of thread, hair, straw, and dung ; an 
 occasional inclination to eat its own dung, and a general 
 propensity to lap its own urine. The two last are per- 
 fectly characteristic circumstances. The dog becomes 
 irritable ; quarrels with his companions ; eagerly hunts 
 and worries the cat ; mumbles tlie hand or foot of his 
 
96 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Symptoms of 
 
 master, or perhaps suddenly bites it, and then crouches 
 and asks pardon. As the disease proceeds, the eyes 
 become red ; they have a pecuhar bright and fierce ex- 
 pression ; some degree of strabismus or squinting very 
 early appears ; not the protrusion of the membrana nic- 
 titans, or haw, over the eye, which, in distemper, often 
 gives the appearance of squinting, but an actual distor- 
 tion of the eyes ; the lid of one eye is evidently more 
 contracted than the other : twitchings occur round that 
 eye ; they gradually spread over that cheek, and finally 
 over the whole face. In the latter stages of the disease 
 that eye frequently assumes a dull green colour, and at 
 length becomes a mass of ulceration. 
 
 *' After the second day the dog usually begins to lose 
 a perfect control over the voluntary muscles. He 
 catches at his food with an eager snap, as if uncertain 
 whether he could seize it ; and he often fails in the 
 attempt. He either bolts his meat almost unchewed, or 
 in the attempt to chew it, suffers it to drop from his 
 mouth. This want of power over the muscles of the 
 jaw, tongue, and throat, increases, until the lower jaw 
 becomes dependent, the tongue protrudes from the 
 mouth, and is of a dark and almost black colour. The 
 animal is able, however, by a sudden convulsive effort to 
 close his jaws, and to inflict a severe bite. 
 
 *' The dog is in incessant action : he scrapes his bed 
 together, disposes it under him in various forms, shifts 
 his posture every instant — starts up, and eagerly gazes 
 at some real or imaginary object: a peculiar kind of de- 
 lirium comes on : he traces the fancied path of ^me 
 imaginary object floating around him : he fixes his gaze 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 97 
 
 the Hydrophobia. 
 
 intently on some spot in the wall or partition, and sud- 
 denly plunges and snaps at it ; his eyes then close, and 
 his head droops ; but the next moment he starts again 
 to renewed activity : he is in an instant recalled from this 
 delirium by the voice of his master, and listens attentively 
 to his commands ; but as soon as his master ceases to 
 address him, he relapses into his former mental wandering. 
 
 "His thirst is excessive (there is no hydrophobia in 
 the dog) and the power over the muscles concerned in 
 deglutition being impaired, he plunges his face into the 
 water, up to the very eyes, and assiduously, but ineffect- 
 ually, attempts to lap.* 
 
 ** His desire to do mischief depends much on his pre- 
 vious disposition and habits. I have known it not to 
 proceed beyond an occasional snap, and then only when 
 purposely irritated ; but with the fighting dog the scene 
 is often terrific. He springs to the end of his chain — 
 he darts with ferocity at some object he conceives to be 
 within his reach — he dihgently tears to pieces every thing 
 about him ; the carpet or rug is sliaken with savage vio- 
 lence ; the door or partition is gnawed asunder ; and so 
 eager is he in this work of demolition, and so regardless 
 of bodily pain, that he not unfrequently breaks one or 
 all of his tushes. If he effects his escape he wanders 
 about, sometimes merely attacking those dogs which fall 
 
 * In those instauces of hydrophobia which have fallen under my notice, 
 1 have never observed the dog •' plunge his face into the water up to the 
 very eyes, and assiduously, but ineffectually, attempt to lap.'" On the 
 contrary, the animal has always been capable of lapping : however, in the 
 disease called Dumb Madness, I have noticed symptoms similar to the 
 above. 
 
98 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Symptoms of 
 
 in his way, and at other times he diligently and perse- 
 veringly hunts out his prey : he overcomes every obstacle 
 to effect his purpose ; and, unless he has been detected 
 in his march of death, he returns in about four and 
 twenty hours, completely exhausted to the habitation of 
 his master. 
 
 " He frequently utters a short and peculiar howl, 
 which if once heard, can rarely be forgotten ; or if he 
 barks, it is a short, hoarse, inward sound, altogether 
 dissimilar from his usual tone. 
 
 "In the latter stages of the disease a viscid saliva 
 flows from his mouth, with which the surface of the water 
 that may. be placed before him is covered in a few min- 
 utes, and his breathing is attended with a harsh grating 
 sovmd, as if impeded by the accumulation of phlegm in 
 the respiratory passages. 
 
 " The loss of power over the voluntary muscles extends 
 after the third day through his whole frame, and is par- 
 ticularly evident in the loins : he staggers in his gait 5 
 there is an uncertainty in all his n.otions ; and he fre- 
 quently falls, not only when he attempts to walk, but 
 when he stands balancing himself as well as he can. On 
 the fourth or fifth day of the disease he dies, sometimes 
 in convulsions, but, more frequently, without a struggle. 
 
 " After death there will invariably be found more or 
 less inflammation of the mucous coat of the stomach ; 
 sometimes confined to the rugse, at other times in patches ; 
 generally with spots of extravasated blood, and occasion- 
 ally intense, and occupying the whole of that viscus. 
 The stomach will likewise contain some portion of indi- 
 gestible matter, (hair, straw, dung), and occasionally it 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 99 
 
 the Hydiophobia. 
 
 will be completely filled and distended by an incongruous 
 mass. The lungs will usually present appearances of 
 inflammation, more intense in one, and generally the left 
 lung, than in the other. Some particular points and 
 patches will be of a deep colour, while the neighbouring- 
 portions are unaftected. The sublinqual and parotid 
 glands will be invariably enlarged ; and there will also 
 be a certain portion of inflammation, sometimes intense, 
 and at other times assuming only a faint blush, on the 
 edge of the epiglottis, or on the rima glottidis, or in the 
 angle of the larynx at the back of it." 
 
 When the human species become unhappily the sub- 
 jects of this calamity, though in particular instances 
 some variation may be observed, yet the first symptoms 
 are generally the same ; these are a torpid disquietude 
 in the wound (or seat of injury), attended with slight in- 
 tervening itchings, ultimately amounting to pain, and 
 much resembling rheumatic affection. It continues to 
 extend itself to the surrounding parts ; and, at length, 
 from the extremities it expands its poisonous power to 
 the viscera ; the cicatrice, if there has been a wound, 
 begins to swell, inflammation hourly increases, till, at 
 length, a serous bloody iclior is discharged, and this 
 alone may be considered the primary and invariable prog- 
 nostic of certain hydrophobia. These leading symptoms 
 soon become progressively general, bearing with them 
 every appearance of confirmed rheumatism ; they are fluc- 
 tuating, quick, acute, and of the spasmodic, convulsive 
 kind ; they suddenly attack the patient, severely affect- 
 ing the head, neck, and principal joints ; a dull, drowsy 
 pain often seizes the head, neck, breast, abdomen, and 
 
100 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Symptoms of 
 
 even vibrates along the back bone. The patient is 
 gloomy and inchned to soUtude, murmurs much, seems 
 lost in reflection, is forgetful, inattentive, and prone to 
 sleep ; at times agitating starts denote the mind to be 
 disordered ; by turns he is attentively watchful ; his 
 slumbers become disturbed, and suddenly awaking from 
 those, convulsive appearances soon follow. 
 
 A deafness is sometimes complained of, the eyes are 
 watery ; the aspect sorrowful ; the countenance pale, and 
 the face contracted ; sweat breaks out about the temples ; 
 an unusual flow of saliva, slimy and viscid, at length 
 comes on with a dryness of the fauces, a fovilness of the 
 tongue, and a disagreeable smell (or rather fetid effluvia) 
 from the breath. As the symptoms already recited in- 
 crease, the second stage advances : a fever commences, 
 which at first is mild, but makes with gigantic strides the 
 most rapid advances to extremity ; it is accompanied 
 with hourly increasing horrors, and all the alarming con- 
 comitants of mental derangement. Wakefulness becomes 
 perpetual ; violent periodical agitations ensue ; the mind 
 is evidently more and more disturbed ; a delirium follows, 
 at which critical moment an invincible aversion to fluid, 
 glass, or any polished or shining body is plainly per- 
 ceived. A constriction of the gullet takes place, and an 
 incredible difficulty of swallowing ensues ; liquids are 
 offered, and are attempted to be taken, but the disgust 
 and loathing become so predominant, that they are most 
 violently declined : and this symptomatic dread and 
 aversion so wonderfully increases, that, upon the very 
 appearance of any watery fluid, the greatest horror conies 
 on, and the most shocking muscular distortions ensue: 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 101 
 
 the Hydrophobia. 
 
 if the liquor is attempted to be forcibly pressed upon 
 them, the experiment is rejected by an instantaneous 
 succession of the most horrid gesticulations, and convul- 
 sive distortions, in which every ray of reason seems to be 
 absorbed. Upon a temporary cessation of so serious 
 and distressing a paroxysm, the poor unhappy patient 
 now murmurs, groans, and mourns most miserably ; loses, 
 by degrees, all knowledge of his dearest friends and 
 most familiar acquaintance : and their presenting them- 
 selves before him, is the very critical moment when all 
 of this description give proof of their desire to bite, 
 which, in the attempt, bears no ill affinity to the similar 
 snappings of a village cur. 
 
 Awful to relate, reason returns at intervals, and he 
 feelingly laments his own calamity, and deplores his own 
 incapacity. A consciousness of appi'oaching dissolu- 
 tion is perceptible even to himself, and he seems truly 
 resigned to the singularity of his fate. Severe pain and 
 consequent heat producing thirst, a desire to drink is 
 displayed, but nature shrinks from her office ; in vain 
 the patient raises his hand to touch the vessel, it almost 
 magically produces instant tremor — the hand recedes, 
 and the patient sinks into the most afflicting despon- 
 dency. Conscious, likewise, of his constantly increasing 
 inclination to bite, he, in his rational moments, makes 
 signals to warn his friends of the danger, and keep them- 
 selves at a distance. Towards the conclusion of this 
 dreadful and most melancholy scene, the fever and 
 parching thirst increase, the tongue becomes swelled and 
 protruded, foam issues from the mouth, strength fails, 
 cold sweats come on, the stricture upon the breast in- 
 
102 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Treatment of 
 
 creases, as well as the other predommant symptoms, 
 until, in a long succession of convulsive struggles, all- 
 powerful death closes the scene. 
 
 The cause of the hydrophobia is utterly unknown ; and 
 its effects hitherto appear to have bafHed every remedy 
 which has been tried for its removal. Copious and re- 
 peated venesection was, a few years ago, announced to 
 the world as a cure for the hydrophobia, and instances 
 were given in order to confirm it : it is true, they came 
 in a questionable shape on account of the distance which 
 they had to travel, being chiefly from the East Indies : 
 however, the method just mentioned, has been tried in 
 this country and found unavailing. 
 
 The alis7na plantago was introduced as a remedy ; 
 but, on repeated trial, has proved ineffectual. 
 
 Another remedy has been introduced. This new 
 remedy comes from a distance ; but let us not reject it 
 merely on that score. The account has appeared in 
 several medical works, and was first published, it seems, 
 by Dr. Mailer, of Vienna, a scientific physician, now 
 resident at Paris. The German physician says, he re- 
 ceived the particulars from M. Marochetti, a Russian 
 surgeon, who informed him, that, during his residence 
 in the Ukraine, in the year 1813, he was called on to at- 
 tend fifteen persons who had been bit by a mad dog, 
 when some old men requested him to treat the unfortu- 
 nate people according to the directions of a neighbouring 
 peasant, who had acquired a great reputation for curing 
 the hydrophobia. M. Marochetti allowed the peasant 
 to dXi&w^ fourteen , reserving one to himself, a female of 
 sixteen, who was cauterized and treated in the usual way. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 103 
 
 the Hydrophobia. 
 
 and expired eight days after the attack. The peasant 
 gave to the fourteen persons placed under his care a 
 strong decoction of the tops of the flowers of the yellow 
 broom (a pound and a half a day). He examined twice 
 a day the under part of the tongue, where he had gener- 
 ally discovered little pimples, containing, as beheved, the 
 hydrophobic poison : these pimples really followed, and 
 were observed by Marochetti himself. As they formed, 
 the peasant opened them, and cauterized the parts with 
 a red hot needle ; after which, the patients gargled with 
 the decoction mentioned above. The result of this treat- 
 ment was, that the fourteen patients were cured, having 
 only drank the decoction for six weeks. Marochetti 
 then states, that, five years afterwards, he himself had 
 an opportuninity of giving this treatment another trial. 
 Twenty-six persons who had been bit by a mad dog, 
 were put under his care, viz. nine men, eleven women, 
 and six children : he ordered the decoction of the tops 
 of the flowers of yellow broom to be given them as soon 
 as possible ; and upon an attentive exammation of their 
 tongues, he discovered pimples on five men, three chil- 
 dren, and all the women. Those who were most wounded 
 Mere afflicted on the third day ; the others on the fifth, 
 seventh, or ninth. One of the women who had been 
 slightly bitten on the leg had no appearance till the 
 twenty-first day. The seven who wei*e free from pimples 
 took the decoction of broom for six weeks, with success. 
 M. Marochetti thinks that the hydrophobic poison, after 
 having remained in the wound, fixes itself under the 
 tongue, in the orifices of the ducts of the submaxillary 
 gland, which are situated on the sides of the fraenum. 
 
104 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Dumb Madness. 
 
 The inflammation, of which the httle pimples are the 
 result, has a peculiar appearance. The time in which 
 these pimples appear, is generally between the third and 
 ninth day after the bite. If they are not opened before 
 twenty-four hours after their appearance, the venom is 
 absorbed and the patient is lost. 
 
 I shall be extremely anxious to hear of the success of 
 this mode of treatment nearer home ; for I must confess 
 I cannot place implicit confidence in the narrative. 
 
 Upon the disease, erroneously denominated Dumb 
 Madness, I will relate what fell under my own observa- 
 tion, and from which a tolerable idea of the disorder may 
 be formed : — In the month of May, 1823, a pointer 
 whelp was presented to me by a friend, which I knew 
 to be as well bred as any in the kingdom, and on that 
 account, I, of course, prized him more highly. The dog 
 was whelped on the 16th of April, of the same year ; 
 and as soon as I received him, a kennel was appropriated 
 for his use in the open air, well littered with wheat straw, 
 and kept clean. He had full liberty, and a clear stream 
 of water close at hand, to quench his thirst whenever he 
 thought proper. The dog, as might be expected, was 
 remarkably healthy ; and, at seven months old, had be- 
 come an amazingly fine animal : at this period, he expe- 
 rienced a slight attack of the distemper, which immedi- 
 ately gave way to bleeding and a dose of tartar emetic ; 
 and in three or four days he was restored to perfect 
 health. His colour was a perfect jet black ; he was: 
 larger than common, and altogether, the finest young 
 pointer I ever saw. On the 8th of January, (of the 
 following year,) I observed the dog keep his mouth 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 10a 
 
 Dumb Madness. 
 
 almost continually open, the inside of which appeared 
 darker coloured than usual, and somewhat swelled. I 
 immediately bled him copiously, which, however, pro- 
 duced no visible alteration ; on the contrary, the next 
 day all the symptoms had evidently increased, and I 
 observed that he was unable to swallow, though he made 
 many attempts both to eat and drink, particularly the 
 latter : but the water, or the milk, which, by putting his 
 nose into the vessel, he contrived to get into his movith, 
 uniformly run out again, and he appeared utterly unable 
 to pass it down his throat : he licked his fore-legs very 
 much, and seemed to have a trifling discharge of mucus, 
 or saliva : but all this time the dog appeared not only 
 perfectly sensible, but even in good spirits, and evidently 
 experienced but little pain. A sporting acquaintance, 
 who saw him, said the disease was what was distin- 
 guished by the appellation of dumb madness, which seems 
 to me altogether a ridiculous term ; and supposing this 
 tx> have been the disorder with which my dog was af- 
 fected, I can testify that the term is very improperly 
 applied, as the animal in question regularly barked on 
 the approach of a stranger, though in a different tone, 
 and with more difficulty than usual. However, I imme- 
 diately searched authorities for dumb madness, with a 
 view to ascertain the proper mode of treatment. In an 
 old writer, (the author of the " Gentleman's Recreation,") 
 I found it thus described: — "The dog that is troubled 
 with dumb madness will not feed, bvit holds his mouth 
 tvide open continually, putting his feet to his mouth fre- 
 quently, as if he had a bone in his throat." Now, though 
 my dog kept his jaws somewhat distended, his mouth 
 
 G 
 
106 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Dumb Madness. 
 
 was not wide open, but only partially so, and that he was 
 able to shut it I can safely attest, as I saw him many 
 times close his jaws, though he never kept them more 
 than a second or two in that position ; further, the animal 
 frequently licked his fore-legs, but I never saw him raise 
 his feet, or otherwise use indications similar to those 
 adopted by a dog when he seems to have a bone in his 
 throat ; and therefore the cases did not appear to agree. 
 
 I had next recourse to the " Sportsman's Dictionary, 
 or Gentleman's Companion ;" the third edition of which 
 was published in 1783, which contained the following 
 observations; — "Dumb madness lies in the blood, and 
 causes the dog not to feed, but to hold his mouth always 
 wide open, frequently putting his feet to his mouth, as if 
 he had a bone in his throat." 
 
 To be brief — I perused every thing within my reach, 
 on the subject of dogs and their diseases, but without 
 gaining the least information ; and, as the disorder, at 
 least in the form in which it presented itself, was new to 
 me, I began to entertain fears for the life of my dog, and 
 the sequel will prove they were but too well founded. I 
 have already remarked, that I first perceived the disease 
 on the 8th of January, and the dog continued much in 
 the same way for four successive days, during which, all 
 his faculties appeared very little, if at all, impaired. He 
 would follow me into the field, and even hunt, frequently 
 attempting to drink, and, in order to accomplish that 
 desirable object, would thrust his nose into the water, 
 instead of attempting to lap ; but he never succeeded in 
 forcing any of the fluid down his throat : his sense of 
 smell was as perfect as ever; and, indeed, though he 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 107 
 
 Dumb Madness. 
 
 evidently became very lean, he might be said to be in 
 good spirits till the morning of the 13th, when I found 
 him very languid, his eye had lost its lustre, and death 
 was evidently fast approaching. He was perfectly sen- 
 sible, and whenever I approached and spoke to him, he 
 raised his heavy eyes, and by these, as well as by the 
 movement of his tail, appeared grateful for my attention. 
 Towards the evening he made a last effort to swallow 
 food, but was not able. On the following morning he 
 was stretched on his side, and had every appearance of 
 death, only that a breathing, at very long intervals, 
 proved that the vital spark was not absolutely extinct. 
 Some few hours afterwards he was perfectly lifeless ; 
 and I was resolved, if possible, to ascertain the cause of 
 his death. For this purpose I called in the assistance of 
 a skilful veterinary surgeon, and the animal was partly 
 dissected in my presence. On opening the body, it was 
 abundantly evident that the dog had been starved to 
 death ; or, in other words, had died for want of food. 
 The lungs, the liver, and, indeed, all those parts of the 
 animal organization were totally unaffected, and mani- 
 fested not the slightest symptom of disease ; the same 
 remark will equally apply to all parts of the throat, and 
 also to the brain ; and the only affection that could be 
 discovered, was in the salivary glands, which were tri- 
 flingly swelled. On the whole, I feel a perfect con- 
 viction, that the disorder of the dog was a glandular 
 affection, which, by rendering him incapable of swallow- 
 ing sustenance, caused his death. 
 
 Of the cure, should a similar case come under my 
 observation, I feel confident ; and I have been thus 
 
108 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Dumb Madness. 
 
 minute for the information of spoi'tsmen in general, par- 
 ticularly as I have been informed, that the disorder which 
 I have attempted to describe, or something very much 
 resembling it, has carried off, within the last few years, 
 great numbers of valuable dogs, especially in Yorkshire. 
 Should a similar case occur with any of my dogs, I 
 should force food, (nourishing broth, for instance), down 
 the throat, with an instrument adapted for the purpose ; 
 and if I found it impossible to get it down, I would inject 
 it into the bowels, when a sufficient quantity would be 
 taken up by the absorbents, to sustain life till the dis- 
 ease of the glands abated. In the first place, I should 
 feel a disposition to bleed the afflicted animal, as this 
 would prevent any superabundant pressure of blood upon 
 the parts affected, which I might perhaps rub well with 
 mercurial ointment. 
 
 It is a lamentable fact, that so little attention has been 
 paid to the diseases of this invaluable animal, though no 
 creature which has yet been taken under human pro- 
 tection affords so good an opportunity for observation, 
 or is so much entitled to the assistance and kind offices 
 of its master. The dog vhas become a domestic of the 
 most familiar description, whose greatest delight is in 
 administering to the pleasures of the sportsman, or those 
 by whom his services are called into action ; his civiliza- 
 tion may be said to proceed in the precise ratio with that 
 of human nature, and he uniformly takes his tone from 
 the circumstance or the situation of his master. As he 
 has closely associated himself with man, therefore, he 
 has brought upon himself a train of diseases, resulting 
 from his artificial mode of life ; and from which, in a 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 109 
 
 Dumb Madness. 
 
 State of nature, there is little doubt, but he is altogether 
 exempt. In fact, living under the same roof, and in the 
 same manner, as his master, he seems to be afflicted 
 something in the same way ; and, upon close examina- 
 tion, it will be found, that many of his disorders bear a 
 strong resemblance to those in man, and would, I have 
 little doubt, give way to a somewhat similar treatment. 
 Thus circumstanced, it seems unaccountable that the 
 medical treatment of this faithful creature should have 
 been so neglected. Generally speaking, whenever a dog 
 is attacked with any disease, little trouble is taken in his 
 recovery ; food is offered him, and if he is able to eat it 
 and recovers, it is all right ; but it very frequently 
 happens, tliat the moment he exhibits symptoms of uidis- 
 position, he is suspected of hydrophobia, and, without 
 any attempts to alleviate his pains, he is placed in a situa- 
 tion of security, and either suffered to pine away, or is 
 prematurely despatched. This may not apply altogether 
 to sportsmen, perhaps ; though many of these, I have 
 not the least doubt, pay but httle attention to the matter. 
 In kennels of hounds, and other large dog establish- 
 ments, there is a certain method followed ; or, in other 
 words, there is a list of disorders which is supposed to be 
 understood by the huntsman, or the game-keeper, and, 
 in like manner, a regular list of antiquated applications 
 or medicines is placed, as it were, opposite the disorders : 
 now, if the medicines were positively applicable to the 
 diseases, is it likely that the latter are so understood, that 
 one is not frecjuently mistaken for another? Or, can it 
 be supposed, that the persons in question are sufficiently 
 skilled in the science of healing, so as to discern those 
 
 g3 
 
no HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Dumb Madness. 
 
 turns or alterations by which the same disease assumes a 
 different form, and, accordingly, requires different treat- 
 ment? This is too much to expect. Huntsmen and 
 gamekeepers, also, are generally much attached to their 
 dogs, and seldom fail to show them considerable atten- 
 tion, when they are diseased ; and though I may have 
 met with some who possessed acute perception and sound 
 sense, yet, in order to acquire a thorough knowledge of 
 the subject on which I have been speaking, a superior 
 education seems indispensable, as well as much more 
 extensive practice than could possibly be afforded by 
 any one dog establishment in the kingdom : if extensive 
 practice be necessary to the physician and the surgeon, 
 why not to the dog-doctor also ? In any science or pro- 
 fession where success must depend very much upon the 
 practitioner's powers of perception, some degree of edu- 
 cation is not only indispensable, but superior abihties or 
 considerable genius also. It is not likely, that the requi- 
 site opportunities and qualifications will be found united 
 in many instances ; and, under such circumstances, I 
 would strongly advise sportsmen to pay as much atten- 
 tion to their diseased dogs as possible ; and whatever 
 reliance they may place upon their servants, it can do no 
 harm to watch the progress of the disorder themselves. 
 Many sportsmen of the old school, in their treatment 
 of the diseases of dogs, seem to have resorted to super- 
 stitious notions, and to have disregarded true philosophy 
 altogether ; so much so, indeed, that it is amusing to 
 read many of their ideas on the subject. It is possible, 
 however, that dog-diseases might formerly have existed, 
 which are unknown at the present day ; but a disease 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. Ill 
 
 called the Yellows, that has sometimes appeared in ken- 
 nels of hounds, I never saw described in any publication, 
 either ancient or modern ; nor is it generally known even 
 among sportsmen, though, wherever it has appeared, its 
 effects have been very violent, and frequently attended 
 with fatal consequences. 
 
 The Yellows. — This would appear to be a disease 
 peculiar to the kennel, which makes its appearance in all 
 ages of the hound. In the first approaches of the yellows, 
 the animal loses his appetite, and of course appears dull. 
 On turning up his eye-lids, a yellow appearance presents 
 itself; the inside of his flanks exhibit a similar hue or 
 colour. Hence it would seem that the disorder is some- 
 thing of a bilious nature ; or, at least, it assumes a com- 
 plexion which would seem to warrant such a conjecture. 
 At all events, if it be not immediately checked, it will 
 end with the death of the dog. This disease, which is 
 not of an ancient date, made considerable havock in 
 many kennels, till at length, the following treatment was 
 found efficacious : — As soon as the dog is perceived to 
 be ill, four grains of calomel should be administered to 
 him, and he should be kept warm during their operation. 
 Then take 
 
 Rhubarb, one ouHce 
 aloes, half an ounce 
 Castile soap, half an ounce 
 (Ethiop's mineral, half an ounce 
 
 These should be mixed up with syrup of buckthorn, 
 and made into bolusses about the size of a nutmeg : one 
 of which should be given every morning for three suc- 
 cessive days, when one may be administered every other 
 
112 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Lameness in the Shoulder. 
 
 morning, for a week or longer, if necessary. For this 
 method of treating the yellows, I am indebted to W. 
 Head, Sir Harry Mainwaring's huntsman ; which, he 
 informed me, he had found successful almost invariably. 
 Lameness in the Shoulder may also be regarded as a 
 disease of the kennel. This, as I have observed at page 
 30, seems to be produced by damp kennels ; and may be 
 prevented by the administration of warmth, though it 
 cannot always be cured when it has taken place ; yet I 
 am inclined to think that warmth is the best remedy, as 
 well as an absolute preventive. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Of the Naming of Hounds. — A List of Names. — Of the 
 Feeder. — Of Boiling and Mixing the Meat, and the 
 proper Food for Hounds. — The Method and Time 
 of Feeding. — Of Bleedhig and Physicking Hounds. 
 — Of Entering Young Hounds. — Summer Hunting, 
 SfC. — Of Flogging Hounds. — Bedford's System. 
 
 Young hounds (says Beckford) are commonly named 
 when they are first put out to their walks, and sometimes 
 indeed ridiculously enough ; nor is it easy, where many 
 are bred, to find suitable and harmonious names for the 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 113 
 
 Naming of Hounds. 
 
 whole ; particularly as it is the cusitom to name all the 
 whelps of a litter with the same initial letter as the sire 
 or the dam. However, one exception at least exists to 
 thus naming young hounds when put out to walks : — 
 At Sandiway Head Inn, (kept by J. Whittle) near Dela- 
 mere Forest, a whelp is kept for Sir Harry Mainwaring, 
 which must uniformly receive the name of Bluecap. 
 The house, as I have already noticed, is known by the 
 name of Sandiway Head Inn ; it is also further distin- 
 guished by the sign of the celebrated hound, Bluecap, 
 whose performance at Newmarket has been stated in the 
 earlier part of this volume, and whose memory is par- 
 ticularly cherished here, from the circumstance of his 
 having formed one of the Cheshire pack, then under the 
 direction of Mr. Barry. In consequence of this parti- 
 ality on the part of honest James Whittle, the hound 
 kept by him has of course to undergo a second baptism 
 on being taken into the kennel. 
 
 A list of names for hoimds seems at first view a waste 
 of time ; yet to render the work as complete as possible, 
 it seems necessary. 
 
 NAMES OF HOUNDS. 
 
 A. dogs. 
 
 Antic 
 
 Artist 
 
 Active 
 
 Audible 
 
 Able 
 
 Anxious 
 
 Atlas 
 
 Actress 
 
 
 Actor 
 
 Arbiter 
 
 Atom 
 
 Affable 
 
 B. dogs 
 
 Adamant 
 
 Archer 
 
 Auditor 
 
 Agile 
 
 Bachelor 
 
 Adjutant 
 
 Ardent 
 
 Augur 
 
 Airy 
 
 Banger 
 
 Agent 
 
 Ardor 
 
 Awful 
 
 Amity 
 
 Baffler 
 
 Aider 
 
 Arrogant 
 
 
 Angry 
 
 Barbarous 
 
 Aimwell 
 
 Arsenic 
 
 A. bitches. 
 
 Animate 
 
 BcllmaH 
 
 Amorous 
 
 Artful 
 
 Accurate 
 
 Artifice 
 
 Bender 
 
114 
 
 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 
 
 Names of Hounds. 
 
 
 Blaster 
 
 Busy 
 
 Constant 
 
 Crazy 
 
 Doubtful 
 
 Bluecap 
 
 Buxom 
 
 Contest 
 
 Credible 
 
 Doubtless 
 
 Blueman 
 
 
 Coroner 
 
 Credulous 
 
 Dreadful 
 
 Bluster 
 
 C. dogs. 
 
 Cottager 
 
 Croney 
 
 Dreadless 
 
 Boaster 
 
 Caitiff 
 
 Counsellor 
 
 Cruel 
 
 Dulcet 
 
 Boisterous 
 
 Capital 
 
 Countryman 
 
 Curious 
 
 
 Bonnyface 
 
 Captain 
 
 Courteous 
 
 
 E. dogs. 
 
 Bouncer 
 
 Captor 
 
 Coxcomb 
 
 D. dogs. 
 
 Eager 
 
 Bowler 
 
 Carol 
 
 Craftsman 
 
 Damper 
 
 Earnest 
 
 Bravo 
 
 Carver 
 
 Crasher 
 
 Danger 
 
 Effort 
 
 Brawler 
 
 Caster 
 
 Critic 
 
 Dangerous 
 
 Elegant 
 
 Brazen 
 
 Catcher 
 
 Critical 
 
 Dapper 
 
 Eminent 
 
 Brilliant 
 
 Catchpole 
 
 Crowner 
 
 Dapster 
 
 Envious 
 
 Brusher 
 
 Caviller 
 
 Cruiser 
 
 Darter 
 
 Envoy 
 
 Brutal 
 
 Cerberus 
 
 Crusty 
 
 Dasher 
 
 Errant 
 
 Burster 
 Bustler 
 
 Challenger 
 Champion 
 
 Cryer 
 Curfew 
 
 Dashwood 
 Daunter 
 
 Excellent 
 
 
 Charon 
 
 Currier 
 
 Dexterous 
 
 E. bitches. 
 
 B. bitches. 
 
 Chaser 
 
 
 Disputant 
 
 Easy 
 
 Baneful 
 
 Chaunter 
 
 C. bitches. 
 
 Downright 
 
 Echo 
 
 Bashful 
 
 Chieftain 
 
 Capable 
 
 Dragon 
 
 Ecstacy 
 
 Bawble 
 
 Chimcr 
 
 Captious 
 
 Dreadnought 
 
 Endless 
 
 Beauteous 
 
 Chirper 
 
 Careless 
 
 Driver 
 
 Energy 
 
 Beauty 
 
 Choleric 
 
 Carefel 
 
 Duster 
 
 Enmity 
 
 Beldam 
 
 Claimant 
 
 Carnage 
 
 
 Essay 
 
 Bellmaid 
 
 Clamorous 
 
 Caution 
 
 D. bitches. 
 
 
 Blameless 
 
 Clangor 
 
 Cautious 
 
 Dainty 
 
 F. degs. 
 
 Blithsome 
 
 Clasher 
 
 Charmer 
 
 Daphne 
 
 Factor 
 
 Blowzy 
 
 Climbank 
 
 Chauntress 
 
 Darling 
 
 Factious 
 
 Bluebell 
 
 Clinker 
 
 Cheerful 
 
 Dashaway 
 
 Fatal 
 
 Bluemaid 
 Bonny 
 
 Combat 
 Combatant 
 
 Cherriper 
 Circe 
 
 Dauntless 
 Delicate 
 
 Fearnought 
 Ferryman 
 
 Bonnybell 
 
 Comforter 
 
 Clarinet 
 
 Desperate 
 
 Fervent 
 
 Bonnylass 
 Boundless 
 
 Comrade 
 Comus 
 
 Clio 
 Comely 
 
 Destiny 
 Dian 
 
 Finder 
 Firebrand 
 
 Brevity 
 Brimstone 
 
 Conflict 
 Conqueror 
 
 Comical 
 Courtesy 
 
 Diligent 
 Docile 
 
 Flagrant 
 Flasher 
 
 
 Conquest 
 
 Crafty 
 
 Document 
 
 Fleecc'm 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 115 
 
 Names of Hounds. 
 
 Fleecer 
 
 Funnylass 
 
 Gladsome 
 
 Helen 
 
 Listener 
 
 FJinger 
 
 Furious 
 
 Governess 
 
 Heroine 
 
 Lounger 
 
 Flippant 
 
 Fury 
 
 Graceful 
 
 Hideous 
 
 Lucifer 
 
 Flourisher 
 
 
 Graceless 
 
 Honesty 
 
 Lunatic 
 
 Flyer 
 
 G.dogs. 
 
 Gracious 
 
 Hostile 
 
 Lunger 
 
 Foamer 
 
 Gainer 
 
 Grateful 
 
 I. dogs. 
 
 Lurker 
 
 Foiler 
 
 Gallant 
 
 Gravity 
 
 Jerker 
 
 Lusty 
 
 Foreman 
 
 Gal Hard 
 
 Guilesome 
 
 Jingler 
 
 
 Foremost 
 
 Galloper 
 
 Guilty 
 
 Impetus 
 
 L. bitches 
 
 Foresight 
 
 Gamboy 
 
 
 Jockey 
 
 Lacerate 
 
 Forester 
 
 Gamester 
 
 H. dogs. 
 
 Jolly 
 
 Laudable 
 
 Forward 
 
 Garrulous 
 
 Hannibal 
 
 Jolly-boy 
 
 Lavish 
 
 Fluminant 
 
 General 
 
 Harbinger 
 
 Jostler 
 
 Lavvless 
 
 Furrier 
 
 Genius 
 
 Hardiman 
 
 Jovial 
 
 Lenity 
 
 
 Gimcrack 
 
 Hardy 
 
 Jubal 
 
 Levity 
 
 F, bitches. 
 
 Giant 
 
 Harlequin 
 
 Judgment 
 
 Liberty 
 
 Faithful 
 
 Giancer 
 
 Harasser 
 
 Jumper 
 
 Lightning 
 
 Fairmaid 
 
 Glider 
 
 Havock 
 
 
 Lightsome 
 
 Fairplay 
 
 Glorious 
 
 Hazard 
 
 I. bitches. 
 
 Likely 
 
 Famous 
 
 Goblin 
 
 Headstrong 
 
 Jealousy 
 
 Lissome 
 
 Fanciful 
 
 Governor 
 
 Hearty 
 
 Industry 
 
 Litigate 
 
 Fashion 
 
 Grapler 
 
 Hector 
 
 Jollity 
 
 Lively 
 
 Favorite 
 
 Grasper 
 
 Heedful 
 
 Joyful 
 
 Lofty 
 
 Fearless 
 
 Griper 
 
 Hercules 
 
 Joyous 
 
 Lovely 
 
 Festive 
 
 Growler 
 
 Hero 
 
 
 Luckylass 
 
 Fickle 
 
 Grumbler 
 
 Highflyer 
 
 L. dogs. 
 
 Lunacy 
 
 Fidget 
 
 Guider 
 
 Hopeful 
 
 Laborer 
 
 
 Fireaway 
 
 
 Hotspur 
 
 Larum 
 
 M. dogs. 
 
 Firetail 
 
 G. bitches. 
 
 Humbler 
 
 Lasher 
 
 Manager 
 
 Flighty 
 
 Galley 
 
 Hurtful 
 
 Launcher 
 
 Manful 
 
 Flourish 
 
 Gambol 
 
 
 Leader 
 
 Marescha! 
 
 Flurry 
 
 Gamesome 
 
 H. bitches. 
 
 Leveller 
 
 Marksman 
 
 Forcible 
 
 Gayety 
 
 • Hasty 
 
 Liberal 
 
 Marplot 
 
 Fretful 
 
 Gayly 
 
 Handsome 
 
 Libertine 
 
 Martial 
 
 Friendly 
 
 Gaylass 
 
 Harlot 
 
 Lictor 
 
 Marvellous 
 
 Frisky 
 
 Ghastly 
 
 Harmony 
 
 Lifter 
 
 Matchem 
 
 Frolic 
 
 Giddy 
 
 Hazardous 
 
 Lightfoot 
 
 Maxim 
 
 Frolicsome 
 
 Gladness 
 
 Heedless 
 
 Linguist 
 
 Maximus 
 
116 
 
 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Kames of Hounds. 
 
 Meanwell 
 
 Modish 
 
 Perfect 
 
 Phrenzy 
 
 Rifler 
 
 Medler 
 
 Monody 
 
 Perilous 
 
 Placid 
 
 Rigid 
 
 Menacer 
 
 Music 
 
 Pertinent 
 
 Playful 
 
 Rigour 
 
 Mendall 
 
 
 Petulant 
 
 Pleasant 
 
 Ringwood 
 
 Mender 
 
 N. dogs. 
 
 Phoebus 
 
 Pliant 
 
 Rioter 
 
 Mentor 
 
 Nervous 
 
 Piercer 
 
 Positive 
 
 Risker 
 
 Mercury 
 
 Nestor 
 
 Pilgrim 
 
 Precious 
 
 RockvFOod 
 
 Morlin 
 
 Nettier 
 
 Pillager 
 
 Prettylass 
 
 Romper 
 
 Merry boy 
 
 Newsman 
 
 Pilot 
 
 Previous 
 
 Rouser 
 
 Merryman 
 
 Nimrod 
 
 Pincher 
 
 Priestess 
 
 Router 
 
 Messmate 
 
 Noble 
 
 Piper 
 
 Probity 
 
 Rover 
 
 Methodist 
 
 Nonsuch 
 
 Playful 
 
 Prudence 
 
 Rudesby 
 
 Mighty 
 
 Novel 
 
 Plodder 
 
 
 Ruffian 
 
 Militant 
 
 Noxious 
 
 Plunder 
 
 R. dogs. 
 
 Ruffler 
 
 Minikin 
 
 
 Politic 
 
 Racer 
 
 Ruler 
 
 Miscreant 
 
 N. bitches. 
 
 Potent 
 
 Rager 
 
 Rummager 
 
 Mittimus 
 
 Narrative 
 
 Prater 
 
 Rallywood 
 
 Rumbler 
 
 Monarch 
 
 Neatness 
 
 Prattler 
 
 Rambler 
 
 Rumour 
 
 Monitor 
 
 Needful 
 
 Premier 
 
 Ramper 
 
 Runner 
 
 Motley 
 
 Negative 
 
 President 
 
 Rampant 
 
 Rural 
 
 Mounter 
 
 Nicety 
 
 Presto 
 
 Rancour 
 
 Rusher 
 
 Mover 
 
 Nimble 
 
 Prevalent 
 
 Random 
 
 Rustic 
 
 Mungo 
 
 Noisy 
 
 Primate 
 
 Ranger 
 
 
 Musical 
 
 Notable 
 
 Principal 
 
 Ransack 
 
 R. bitches. 
 
 Mutinous 
 
 Notice 
 
 Prodigal 
 
 Rantaway 
 
 Racket 
 
 Mutterer 
 
 Notion 
 
 Prowler 
 
 Ranter 
 
 Rally 
 
 Myrmidon 
 
 Novelty 
 
 Prompter 
 
 Rapper 
 
 Ranlipole 
 
 
 Novice 
 
 Prophet 
 
 Rattler 
 
 Rapid 
 
 M. bitches. 
 
 
 Prosper 
 
 Ravager 
 
 Rapine 
 
 Madcap 
 
 P. dogs. 
 
 Prosperous 
 
 Ravenous 
 
 Rapture 
 
 Magic 
 
 Pagan 
 
 Pryer 
 
 Reacher 
 
 Rarity 
 
 Matchless 
 
 Pageant 
 
 
 Reasoner 
 
 Rashness 
 
 Melody 
 
 Paragon 
 
 P. bitches. 
 
 Rector 
 
 Rattle 
 
 Merrylass 
 
 Paramount 
 
 Passion 
 
 Regent 
 
 Reptile 
 
 Mindful 
 
 Partner 
 
 Pastime 
 
 Render 
 
 Resolute 
 
 Minion 
 
 Partyman 
 
 Patience 
 
 Resonant 
 
 Restless 
 
 Miriam 
 
 Pealer 
 
 Phoenix 
 
 Restive 
 
 Rhapsody 
 
 Mischief 
 
 Penetrant 
 
 Phrenetic 
 
 Reveler 
 
 Riddance 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 117 
 
 Names of Hounds. 
 
 Riot 
 
 Spanker 
 
 Songstress 
 
 Torrent 
 
 Thoughtful 
 
 Rival 
 
 Special 
 
 Specious 
 
 Torturer 
 
 Tidings 
 
 Roguish 
 
 Specimen 
 
 Speedy 
 
 Tosser 
 
 Toilsome 
 
 Ruin 
 
 Spinner 
 
 Spiteful 
 
 Touchstone 
 
 Tractable 
 
 Rummage 
 
 Splendor 
 
 Spitfire 
 
 Tracer 
 
 Tragedy 
 
 Ruthless 
 
 Splenetic 
 
 Sportful 
 
 Tragic 
 
 Trespass 
 
 
 Spoiler 
 
 Sportive 
 
 Trampler 
 
 Trifle 
 
 S. dogs. 
 
 Spokesman 
 
 Sportly 
 
 Transit 
 
 Trivial 
 
 Salient 
 
 Sportsman 
 
 Sprightly 
 
 Transport 
 
 Trollop 
 
 Sampler 
 
 Squabbler 
 
 Stately 
 
 Traveller 
 
 Troublesome 
 
 Sampion 
 
 Squeaker 
 
 Stoutness 
 
 Trimbush 
 
 Truelass 
 
 Sanction 
 
 Statesman 
 
 Strenuous 
 
 Trimmer 
 
 Truemaid 
 
 Sapient 
 
 Steady 
 
 Strumpet 
 
 Triumph 
 
 Tunable 
 
 Saucebox 
 
 Stickler 
 
 Surety 
 
 Trojan 
 
 Tuneful 
 
 Saunter 
 
 Stringer 
 
 Sybil 
 
 Trouncer 
 
 
 Scalper 
 
 Stormer 
 
 Symphony 
 
 Truant 
 
 V, do^s. 
 
 Scamper 
 
 Stranger 
 
 
 Trueboy 
 
 Vagabond 
 
 Schemer 
 
 Stripling 
 
 T. dogs. 
 
 Trueman 
 
 Vagrant 
 
 Scourer 
 
 Striver 
 
 Tackier 
 
 Trudger 
 
 Valiant 
 
 Scramble 
 
 Strivewell 
 
 Talisman 
 
 Trusty 
 
 Valid 
 
 Screamer 
 
 Stroker 
 
 Tamer 
 
 Tryal 
 
 Valorous 
 
 Screecher 
 
 Stroller 
 
 Tangent 
 
 Tryer 
 
 Valour 
 
 Scuffler 
 
 Struggler 
 
 Tartar 
 
 Tryweil 
 
 Vaulter 
 
 Searcher 
 
 Sturdy 
 
 Tatler 
 
 Tuner 
 
 Vaunter 
 
 Settler 
 
 Subtile 
 
 Taunter 
 
 Turbulent 
 
 Venture 
 
 Sharper 
 
 Succour 
 
 Teaser 
 
 Twanger 
 
 Venturer 
 
 Shifter 
 
 Suppler 
 
 Terror 
 
 Twig' em 
 
 Venturous 
 
 Signal 
 
 Surly 
 
 Thrasher 
 
 Tryant 
 
 Vermin 
 
 Singer 
 
 Swaggerer 
 
 Threatner 
 
 
 Vexer 
 
 Singwell 
 
 Sylvan 
 
 Thumper 
 
 Tattle 
 
 Victor 
 
 Skirmish 
 
 
 Thunderer 
 
 Telltale 
 
 Vigilant 
 
 Smoker 
 
 S. bitches. 
 
 Thwaekcr 
 
 Tempest 
 
 Vigorous 
 
 Social 
 
 Sanguine 
 
 Thwarter 
 
 Tentative 
 
 Vigour 
 
 Solomon 
 
 Sappho 
 
 Tickler 
 
 Termagant 
 
 Villager 
 
 Solon 
 
 Science 
 
 Tomboy 
 
 Terminate 
 
 Viper 
 
 ' ongster 
 
 Scrupulous 
 
 Topmost 
 
 Terrible 
 
 Volant 
 
 Sonorous 
 
 Shrewdness 
 
 Topper 
 
 Testy 
 
 Voucher 
 
 Sounduell 
 
 Skilful 
 
 Torment 
 
 Thankful 
 
 
118 
 
 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of the Feeder 
 
 V. bitches. 
 
 Vigilance 
 
 Warning 
 
 Workman 
 
 Watchful 
 
 Vanquish 
 
 Violent 
 
 Warrior 
 
 Worthy 
 
 Wasteful 
 
 Vehemence 
 
 Viperous 
 
 Warhoop 
 
 Wrangler 
 
 Welcome 
 
 Vehement 
 
 Virulent 
 
 Wayward 
 
 Wrestler 
 
 Welldone 
 
 Vengeance 
 
 Vitiate 
 
 Wellbred 
 
 
 Whimsey 
 
 Vengeful 
 
 Vivid 
 
 Whipster 
 
 W. bitches. 
 
 Whirligig 
 
 Venomous 
 
 Vixen 
 
 Whynot 
 
 Waggery 
 
 Wildfire 
 
 Venturesome 
 
 Vocal 
 
 Wildair 
 
 Waggish 
 
 Willing 
 
 Venus 
 
 Volatile 
 
 Wildman 
 
 Wagtail 
 
 Wishful 
 
 Verify 
 
 Voluble 
 
 Wilful 
 
 Wanton 
 
 Wonderful 
 
 Verity 
 
 
 Wisdom 
 
 Warfare 
 
 Worry 
 
 Vicious 
 
 W. dogs. 
 
 Woodman 
 
 Warlike 
 
 Wrathful 
 
 Victory 
 
 Wanderer 
 
 Worker 
 
 Waspish 
 
 Wreakful 
 
 Victrix 
 
 Warbler 
 
 
 
 
 Beckford says, and says truly, that a good feeder is 
 an essential part of the kennel establishment ; and he 
 further observes, " let him be young and active ; and 
 have the reputation, at least, of not disliking work : he 
 should be good tempered, for the sake of the animals 
 entrusted to his care ; and who, however they may be 
 treated by him, cannot complain." These are highly 
 commendable qualifications for the office of feeder ; but 
 we do not find them always exactly attended to ; for 
 instance, we do not find feeders always "young;" on the 
 contrary, the task occasionally, perhaps frequently, de- 
 volves upon men somewhat advanced in life, and who 
 are thus enabled to earn a livelihood, when it would be 
 difficult to obtain it in any other way. However, whether 
 the feeder be young or old, he should cheerfully and 
 punctually attend to the directions of the huntsman ; and 
 if the latter understands his business, the age of the 
 feeder will be, in all probability, of little consequence, so 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 119 
 
 and Feeding. 
 
 long as he is able to perform the requisite labour. Feed- 
 ing the hounds is an indispensable part of the business 
 of the kennel ; and if this be regarded as the primary 
 object, cleanhness must be considered as the next in im- 
 portance. 
 
 " O'er all let cleanliness preside, no scraps 
 Bestrew the pavement, and no half pick'd bones 
 To kindle fierce debate, or to disgust 
 That nicer sense, on which the sportsman's hope. 
 And all his future triumphs, must depend. 
 Soon as the growling pack, with eager joy, 
 Have lapp'd their smoking viands, morn and eve. 
 From the full cistern lead the ductile streams. 
 To wash thy court well pav'd, nor spare thy pains, 
 For much to health will cleanliness avail. 
 Seek'st thou for hounds to climb the rocky steep, 
 And brush th'entangled covert, whose nice scent 
 O'er greasy fallows, and frequented roads. 
 Can pick the dubious way, banish far off 
 Each noisome stench, let no offensive smell 
 Invade thy wide enclosure, but admit 
 The nitrous air, and purifying breeze." 
 
 SOMERVILE. 
 
 Boiling for the hounds, mixing the meat, and getting 
 it ready for them at proper hours, is the business of the 
 feeder, of course under the superintendance of the 
 huntsman ; and care should be taken not to let the 
 hounds have their meat too hot ; the thicker it is mixed, 
 perhaps, the better. 
 
 Oat-meal is generally used, and certainly makes the 
 best meat for hounds ; and oat-meal is best for the pur- 
 pose when it is two years old; barley has been tried, 
 but it does not mix up so well ; the proof, or essential 
 
120 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Feeding. 
 
 principle of it, is also much inferior ; even when mixed* 
 with oat-meal it is not advisable food ; and it is, on the 
 whole, more expensive than oat-meal, tho' the first cost 
 may appear not so great. However, I have reason to 
 believe that the quality of the oat-meal is not always 
 sufficiently regarded ; and even the best of oat-meal is 
 very much improved by keeping for two years, as I have 
 already observed. I have known instances, where what 
 is called Bread Dust has been substituted for oat-meal ; 
 but it has not been found equal to the latter : — by Bread 
 Dust is meant the refuse of ship bread or biscuit, which 
 may be purchased in the large sea-port towns in almost 
 any quantity. Where horse flesh happens to be scarce, 
 cow heels, bellies, and sheep's trotters will make an ex- 
 cellent substitute. 
 
 In many kennels, they do not boil for the hounds in 
 summer, I believe ; but give them meal only : — I sliould 
 certainly prefer boiling : though the meat at this period 
 might be mixed up thinner, and be thus more conducive 
 to the health of the hounds. Indeed, in the hunting 
 season, when many of the hounds, after long rest, become 
 too fat, feeding them on thinner meat than the rest is 
 more advisable than stinting them in the quantity of it. 
 
 * On this subject, Beckford observes — " I have enquired of my feeder, 
 who is a very good one, how he mixes up his meat. He tells me that, in 
 his opinion, oat-meal and barley mixt, an equal quantity of each, make 
 the best meat for hounds. The oat-meal he boils for half an hour, and 
 then puts out the fire, puts the barley into the copper, and mixes both well 
 together. I asked him why he boiled one and not the other ? — he told 
 me, boiling, which made the oat-meal thick, made barley thin ; and that 
 when you feed with barley only, it should not be put into the copper, but 
 be scalded with the liquor and mixed up in a bucket." 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 121 
 
 The Duty of a Huntsmm. 
 
 It is the duty of the huntsman always to attend the feed- 
 ing of the hounds ; which shoukl be drafted according to 
 their condition ; that is, making due allowance for other 
 collateral circumstances — some hounds, like some horses, 
 will feed better than others — some will look better than 
 others — and some will be able to endure more fatigue 
 than others : these are matters with which a huntsman, 
 if he possess discernment, will soon become acquainted, 
 and will of course act accordingly: — this, however, is 
 what distinguishes a good kennel huntsman. Beckford 
 says, such as are low in flesh had better be drafted off 
 into a separate kennel ; by this means the hounds that 
 require ^e*/i will have an equal share of it. If any are 
 much poorer than the rest, they should be fed again — 
 such hounds cannot be fed too often. He continues, '' I 
 have been told that in one kennel* in particular, the 
 hounds are under such excellent management, that they 
 are constantly fed with the door of the feeding yard open ; 
 and the rough nature of the fox-hound is changed into 
 so much politeness, that he waits at the door till he is in- 
 vited in ; and what perhaps is not less extraordmary, he 
 comes out again, whether he has satisfied his hunger or 
 not, the moment he is desired — the effect of severe di;-- 
 cipline. But since this is not absolutely necessary, and 
 hounds may be good without it ; and since I well know 
 your other amusements (he is writing to a friend) will 
 not permit you to attend to all this manoeuvring, I would 
 by no means wish you to give such power to your hunts- 
 
 • Alluding no doubt to the Quorndon, when undor the direction of 
 the late Hugo Meynell, Esq. 
 
 H 
 
122 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 man. The business would be injudiciously done, and 
 most probably would not answer your expectations. The 
 hound would be tormented mal-a-propos ; — an animal so 
 little deserving of it from our hands, that I should be 
 sorry to disturb his hours of repose by unnecessary seve- 
 rity. You will perceive it is a nice affair ; and I assure 
 you I know no huntsman who is equal to it. The gen- 
 tleman, who has carried this matter to its utmost perfec- 
 tion, has attended to it regularly himself; has constantly 
 acted on fixed principles ; from which he has never 
 deviated, and I believe has succeeded to the very utmost 
 of his wishes." 
 
 In Beckford's time, the method above described was 
 in its infancy, and he speaks inconsiderately upon it ; 
 he derides a practise of the most essential utihty, (par- 
 ticularly in making hounds well acquainted with their 
 names) which in fact may be said to constitute the per- 
 fection of kennel discipline ; and which, in the field, has 
 the most beneficial influence, inasmuch as it renders the 
 hounds more obedient. The advantages of such a system 
 are evident at the first glance, and the practise has 
 become general throughout the kingdom : — hence the 
 drafting off lean hounds into a separate kennel may be 
 easily avoided, as well as several other rather antiquated 
 methods which the above able writer has taken the 
 trouble to describe. 
 
 " My hounds are generally fed (says Beckford) about 
 eleven o'clock ; and if I am present myself, I take the 
 same opportunity to make my draft for the next day's 
 hunting. I seldom, when I can help it, leave this to my 
 huntsman ; though it is necessary he should be present 
 when the draft is made, that he may know what hounds 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 123 
 
 Discipline. 
 
 he has out. If your hounds are low in flesh, and have 
 far to go to cover, they may all have a little thin lap 
 again in the evening ; but this should never be done if 
 you hunt early. Hounds, I think, should be sharp-set 
 before hunting ; they run the better for it. 
 
 *' I have heard that it is the custom in some kennels 
 to shut up the hounds for a couple of hours after they 
 come in from hunting, before they are fed ; and that 
 other hounds are shut up with them to lick them clean." 
 This is certainly "a custom more honoured in the breach 
 than the observance." It savours strongly of the old 
 school ; and has long been, I have reason to believe, 
 utterly abandoned. Surely, when hounds have under- 
 gone the fatigues of a day's hunting, having commenced 
 their operations too, fasting, nothing can be more reason- 
 able, or more consistent with the laws of nature, than 
 that they should fill their bellies immediately on their 
 return ; when they will not fail to retire comfortably to 
 rest. In the month of November or December, 1825, 1 
 visited the York and Ainsty fox-hounds. When in the 
 kennel, and talking with the huntsman (William Naylor) 
 he observed, that, on his return from hunting, he gene- 
 rally disturbed his hounds, half an hour perhaps after 
 having fed them, and walked them out, before he allowed 
 them to retire to rest for the night :^his motive for this 
 practise was in order to prevent lameness in the shoulder 
 (a disorder which has already been noticed) ; which he 
 thought arose from the hounds being suffered to repose 
 immediately after hard labour, from which stiffness en- 
 sued, and ulthnately lameness in the shoulder. There 
 may be something original in the idea ; but it is a mis- 
 
 11 2 
 
124 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Physicking 
 
 taken notion : lameness in the shoulder unquestionably 
 arises from damp kennels. Some of his hounds, when 
 his kennel was newly erected, had been thus afflicted ; 
 and although it must have proceeded from the cause 
 already mentioned, yet I am not prepared to deny that 
 Naylor's method of walking out the hounds would not 
 render the effect of damp kennels less violent, and con- 
 sequently less injurious. 
 
 When hounds come in from hunting, they should be 
 carefully looked over, or examined ; and those that have 
 sustained any injury should be immediately attended to. 
 Beckford says, that " if you will permit those hounds 
 that are unable to work to run about your house, it will 
 be of great service to them. Of this there can be no 
 doubt, as hounds which are suffered to go at large, are 
 not nearly so liable to disease, as those kept in kennels — 
 it may in fact be justly observed, that liberty is highly 
 conducive to health. But it is not always convenient for 
 hounds to run about a house. 
 
 " Every Thursday during the hunting season (says 
 Beckford) my hounds have one pound of sulphur given 
 them in their meat ; and every Sunday throughout the 
 year they have plenty of greens boiled up with it." I am 
 seldom inclined to give physick to dogs in good health ; 
 yet, although I may entertain no very exalted notion of 
 Beckford's weekly administration of sulphur, I am per*- 
 fectly convinced that greens may be occasionally (per- 
 haps frequently) given to hounds with the most bene- 
 ficial effect. 
 
 The same writer further observes — " I am not fond of 
 bleeding hounds, unless I see they want it." Yet, I am 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 125 
 
 inclined to think that hounds will derive benefit from 
 bleeding much oftener than Beckford seems to suppose. 
 A dog is relieved by bleeding in many of the diseases to 
 which he is liable, and in none more than the distemper. 
 In the first place, it should be considered that the dog's 
 skin is not porous, that he never perspires ; and that 
 consequently oppressed nature is not relieved in him by 
 that general and copious evacuation, which is frequently 
 found so salutary in man, as well as in many animals : in 
 many of the casual illnesses of the dog (to say nothing 
 of his well known diseases) there seems to be a determi- 
 nation of blood towards the head ; or, at least, the animal 
 will appear dull and heavy about the eyes — in all cases 
 of this description, bleeding invariably relieves him. 
 
 " It has long been the custom in my kennel (continues 
 the same writer) to physick the hounds twice a year — 
 after they leave off hunting and before they begin. It 
 is given in hot weather, and at an idle time. It cools 
 their bodies, and without doubt is of service to them. 
 If a hound is in want of physick, I prefer giving it in balls." 
 I have already observed, that when a hound is in good 
 health, I should be seldom disposed to physick him ; and 
 I cannot help thinking that periodical physicking is quite 
 unnecessary. If a hovmd be perfectly well, what more 
 can be required ; and under such circumstances, gene- 
 rally speaking, to administer physick seems utterly un- 
 called for, if not altogether ridiculous. I differ from 
 Beckford also in his mode of administering medicine to 
 hounds : I prefer mixing it in their meat, to giving it 
 " in balls." His physick, he observes, was composed of 
 '* two pounds of sulphur, one pound of antimony, and a 
 
 h3 
 
126 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Management of 
 
 pint and a half of syrup of buckthorn, for about forty 
 couple of hounds." I am induced to suppose syrup of 
 buckthorn alone will answer the purpose as well, if not 
 better, given in the proportion of a large table spoonful for 
 each hound. I have always thought, and still continue 
 to think, that the mode and manner of physicking hounds 
 partakes too much of parade and mystery, and that these 
 animals are sometimes (perhaps often) physicked, when 
 there is not the slightest occasion for such a process. 
 Of exercise, during summer, I would give them as much 
 as possible. 
 
 " A regular course of whey and vegetables during the 
 hot months must certainly be wholesome (says Beckford, 
 in which I perfectly agree.) Every Monday and Thurs- 
 day my hounds go for whey till the hunting season begins ; 
 are kept out several hovu-s, and are often made to swim 
 through rivers during the hot weather." 
 
 In writing to his friend, the same author observes, 
 " You little think, perhaps, how difficult it is to be a 
 good kennel huntsman, nor can you as yet know the 
 nicety that is required in feeding hounds properly. You 
 are not aware that some hounds will hunt best when fed 
 late ; others, when fed early : — that some should have 
 but little ; that others cannot have too much. I shall 
 only advise you, while you endeavour to keep your 
 hounds in good order, not to let them get too fat." 
 
 As soon as young hounds are reconciled to the kennel, 
 they should be put into couples and walked out with 
 their attendants on foot — if amongst sheep, so much the 
 better ; and indeed amongst deer also. If any of them 
 happen to be very stubborn and troublesome, it will be 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 127 
 
 Young Hounds. 
 
 advisable to couple them to old hounds rather than to 
 young ones. If the young hounds are particularly awk- 
 ward, they should be sent out by a few at a time. They 
 will thus soon become tractable and handy enough to 
 follow a horse. 
 
 When they have often been walked out in the manner 
 just described, and have become obedient, a few should 
 be uncoupled at a tune, and such as oft'er to run sheep 
 or any kind of riot, should be chastised. The less, 
 however, the whip is used the better ; and if they stop 
 at the word, the whip should not be applied. If they 
 have tasted mutton, it will be much more difficult to 
 reclaun them — indeed they are to be viewed with sus- 
 picion ever after : not that there is much danger to be 
 .apprehended when hounds have been taken into the ken- 
 nel, and have undergone a regular course of disciplme, 
 as they are afterwards under proper care, and have few 
 opportunities of committing depredations, however well 
 they may be inclined for it. But accidents sometimes 
 occur. " My hounds (says Beckford) were near being 
 spoiled by the accident of a horse's falling. The whip- 
 per-in was thrown from his horse. The horse ran away, 
 and the whole pack followed him. A flock of sheep, 
 which were at a little distance, took fright, began to run, 
 and the hounds pursued them. The most vicious set on 
 the rest, and several sheep were soon pulled down and 
 killed. " I have sometimes observed even old hounds to 
 cast a sort of a longing eye when passing a small lamb. 
 Wlien hounds are taken out for air or exercise, it is 
 perhaps advisable to couple the young ones, as they are 
 prone to mischief. To air and exercise young hounds 
 
128 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Entering 
 
 in the covintry they are meant to begin to hunt, is an ad- 
 vantage: they acquire a knowledge of it; and if they 
 happen to be left behind, they will thus be enabled to 
 find their way home more easily. 
 
 " Summer hunting, though useful to young hounds, is 
 prejudicial to old ones : I think therefore (observes the 
 writer whom I have had frequent occasion to quote) you 
 will do well to reserve some of the best of your draft 
 hounds to enter your young ones with, selecting such as 
 are most likely to set them a good example. I need not 
 tell you they should not be skirters ; but, on the contrary, 
 should be fair hunting hounds, such as love a scent, and 
 that hunt closest on the line of it : — it will be necessary 
 that some of them should be good finders, and all must 
 be steady. Thus you procure for your young hounds the 
 best instructions, and at the same time prevent two evils, 
 which would necessarily ensue, were they taught by the 
 whole pack ; one, that of corrupting and getting into 
 scrapes, such as are not much wiser than themselves; 
 and the other, that of occasioning much flogging and 
 rating, which always shies and interrupts the hunting of 
 an old hound. An old hound is a sagacious animal, and 
 is not fond of trusting himself in the way of an enraged 
 whipper-in, who, as experience has taught him, can flog, 
 and can flog unjustly. By attending to this advice, you 
 will improve one part of your pack, without any injury 
 to the other ; whilst such as never separate their young 
 hounds from the old, are not likely to have any of them 
 steady." 
 
 The time of entering young hounds must depend upon 
 circumstances. The sooner they are entered the better 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 129 
 
 Young Hounds. 
 
 certainly ; but, in corn countries this business cannot be 
 conveniently commenced till the corn is cut; grass 
 countries are better adapted for the purpose (and indeed 
 for hunting altogether) ; and in woodlands cub hunting 
 may begin almost at any period. 
 
 I am no advocate for stooping young hounds to any 
 scent but the one which they are intended to hunt ; 
 perfectly convinced that they will thus, not only give less 
 trouble, but are more to be depended on afterwards. 
 
 " If, owing to scarcity of foxes, you should stoop your 
 hounds at hare, let them not have the blood of her at 
 least ; nor, for the sake of consistency, give them much 
 encouragement. Hare hunting has one advantage — 
 hounds are chiefly in open ground, where you can easily 
 command them ; but, notwithstanding that, if foxes arc 
 in tolerable plenty, keep them to their own game." 
 
 Trail scents are objectionable; as well as the method 
 piu'sued by sportsmen of the old school, such as di'ag- 
 ging a cat along the ground for a mile or two, turning 
 out a badger, &c. If a few foxes can be aftbrded for 
 the purpose, they are highly preferable to any thing else. 
 Young hounds should be first taken where there is least 
 riot, putting some of the steadiest old hounds amongst 
 them. If, in such a place, there fortunately happens to 
 be a litter of foxes, there will be but little trouble with 
 young hounds afterwards. Cub hunting should be com- 
 menced as early as possible in the morning ; as soon, in 
 fact, as objects can be clearly distinguished. 
 
 Frequent hallooing is of use to young hounds ; it keeps 
 them forward, prevents their being lost, and hinders 
 them from hunting after the rest. The oftener therefore 
 
130 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Ot Chastising 
 
 a fox is seen and hallooed the better ; it serves to let 
 them in, makes them eager, induces them to exert them- 
 selves, as well as to become handy. The case, however, 
 is very different with old hounds, to whom much halloo- 
 ing is highly prejudicial — a fault, by the bye, into which 
 ignorant huntsmen generally fall. At the same tune it 
 may be justly observed that there is a time when hallooing 
 is of use ; a time when it is injurious ; and a time when 
 it is indifferent : practice and attention can alone teach 
 the correct application. 
 
 Young hounds, at their first entering, require encour- 
 agement. As soon as they have become handy, love a 
 scent, and begin to know what is right, it will be soon 
 enough to chastise them for doing ivrong : in which case, 
 let it be recollected, one severe flogging will save much 
 trouble afterwards. Whenever a hound is undergoing 
 castigation, the voice should accompany the stroke ; and 
 the whipper-in (whose duty it is to flog) should recollect 
 that the sound or smack of the whip will frequently an- 
 swer the purpose better than the lash, to a hound that 
 has already felt it. If any are very unsteady, it may be 
 advisable to take them out by themselves : a hare may 
 be found sitting, and be put off before them ; and thus 
 the most riotous may be reduced to obedience. Young 
 hounds should be frequently taken out amongst deer, 
 (as I have already observed) and they will sooner learn 
 to disregard them. When a cur dog is met with on the 
 road or other place, it may not be amiss for the hunts- 
 maxi to gallop after it, as it were, should not the hounds 
 attempt to run it Avithout that manoeuvre, and they will, 
 by these means, be thoroughly taught what to pursue, 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 131 
 
 and what to disregard altogether. Turning a cub out 
 before them, with some old steady hounds to lead them, 
 is an excellent method of rendering them steady to their 
 own game. 
 
 As soon as young hounds are become handy, stoop to 
 the scent, know a rate, and stop easily, they may be put 
 into the pack, a few at a time. The horn may be re- 
 garded as an indispensable appendage to a pack of fox- 
 hounds ; or at least, if not indispensable, it is very useful. 
 
 " Flogging hounds in kennel, the frequent px'actice of 
 most huntsmen, I hold in abhorrence ; it is unreasonable, 
 unjust, and cruel ; and, carried to the excess we some- 
 times see it, is a disgrace to humanity. Hounds that 
 are old offenders, that are very riotous, and at the same 
 time very cunning, may be difficvdt to catch — such 
 hounds may be excepted: — they deserve punishment 
 whenever it happens, and you should not fail to give it 
 them when you can. This, you will allow, is a particular 
 case, and necessity may excuse it ; but let not the peace 
 and quiet of your kennel be often thus disturbed. When 
 hounds offend, punish them : when caught in the fact, 
 then let them suffer ; and, if you are severe, at least be 
 just." Whatever might have been the practice of hunts- 
 men in the days of the writer (Beckford) from which 1 
 have quoted the above, I have reason to believe that 
 flogging hounds in the kennel for faults committed in the 
 field has been long since abandoned, except perhaps 
 where the whipper-in was not able to reach or secure the 
 culprit ; but, even in this case, the offending hound 
 should be pursued immediately, and the chastisement in- 
 flicted while the animal is conscious of the crime ; since. 
 
1S2 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Chastising Hounds. 
 
 if he be allowed to continue out, and the punishment 
 delayed till the regular period of returning home, he 
 becomes ignorant for what it is inflicted ; and the correc- 
 tion, which, under other circumstances would have been 
 necessary and wholesome, is thus converted into cruelty, 
 and the purpose intended to be answered by its applica- 
 tion rendered completely abortive. When, however, 
 hounds are unruly or disobedient in the kennel, they 
 should of course be punished there ; and, in all cases, the 
 more quickly the chastisement follows the commission of 
 the crime, the better. But, in no case would I apply 
 the lash, where the smack of the whip, accompanied by 
 angry words, would answer the purpose. At the same 
 time, I am well aware, that flogging, and severe flogging 
 too, is frequently indispensable to the requisite discipline 
 and well-being of a pack of fox-hounds ; and the higher 
 these animals are bred, the more will they require the 
 application of the lash : this arises from the inferiority of 
 their olfactory organs, which disqualifies them from per- 
 ceiving the difference of scents with that discriminating 
 nicety which distinguishes the deep-flewed hound, and 
 they in consequence become more unsteady. 
 
 The management of hounds should be considered as 
 a regular system of education ; and "if you expect sa- 
 gacity in your hoimd when he is old, you must be mind- 
 ful what instruction he receives from you in his youth ; 
 for, as he is of all animals, the most docile, he is also 
 most liable to bad habits. A diversity of character, con- 
 stitution, and disposition is to be observed amongst 
 them ; which, to be made the most of, must be carefully 
 attended to, and treated differentlv," 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 133 
 
 Time of Entering Young Hounds. 
 
 Beckford having detailed his own system consecutively, 
 I here insert it, stating in notes where I happen to differ 
 from him in opinion. 
 
 " I begin to hunt my young hounds in August. The 
 employment of my huntsman the preceding months, is 
 to keep his old hounds healthy and quiet, by giving them 
 proper exercise, and to get his young hounds forward. 
 They are called over often in the kennel ; it uses them 
 to their names,* to the huntsman, and to the whipper-in. 
 They are walked out often among sheep, hares, and deer ; 
 it uses them to a rate. Sometimes he turns down a catf 
 before them, which they hunt up to and kill ; and, when 
 the time of hunting approaches, he turns out badgersf 
 or young foxes, taking out some of the steadiest of his 
 old hounds to lead them on — this teaches them to hunt. 
 He draws small covers and furze brakes with them, to 
 use them to a halloo, and to teach them obedience. If 
 they find improper game, and hunt it, they are stopped 
 and brought back ; and as long as they will stop at a 
 rate, they are not chastised. Obedience is all that is 
 required of them, till they have been sufficiently taught 
 the game they are to hunt. An obstinate deviation from 
 it afterwards is never pardoned. 
 
 * This is an excellent plan ; upon which modern sportsmen have, liow- 
 tver, greatly improved ; since it has been carried to such perfection, that 
 the dogs separate from the bitches at a word, and vice versa. In some es- 
 tablishments, a pack is formed entirely of bitches; by which means no' 
 only these, but the other packs, become more sizeable, and have a more 
 pleasing appearance. Mr. OsbalJeston's bitch pack in 1825-6 presented 
 the most beautiful appearance I ever beheld. 
 
 f I have already expressed my disapproval of the above practises. 
 
134 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of the Hunting of 
 
 " When my young hounds are taken out to air, my 
 huntsman takes them into the country in which they are 
 to begin to hunt. It is attended with this advantage : 
 they acquire a knowledge of the country, and when left 
 behind at any time, cannot fail to find their way home 
 more easily. 
 
 "When they begin to hunt, they are first taken into 
 a large cover of my own, which has many ridings cut in 
 it ; and where young foxes are turned out every year for 
 them. Here it is they are taught the scent they are to 
 hunt, are encouraged to pursue it, and are stopped from 
 every other. Here they are blooded to fox. I must 
 also tell you, that as foxes are plentiful in this cover, the 
 principal earth is not stopped, and the foxes are checked 
 back, or some of them let in, as may best suit the purpose 
 of blooding. After they have been hunted a few days 
 in this manner, they are then sent to distant covers, 
 and more old hounds are added to them ; there they 
 continue hunting till they are taken into the pack, which 
 is seldom later than the beginning of September ; for by 
 that time they will have learned what is required of them, 
 and they seldom give much trouble afterwards. In Sep- 
 tember, I begin to hunt in earnest, and after the old 
 hounds have killed a few foxes, the young hounds are 
 put into the pack, two or three couple at a time, till all 
 have hunted. They are then divided ; and as I seldom 
 have occasion to take in more than nine or ten couple, 
 one half are taken out one day, the other half the next, 
 till all are steady. 
 
 " Two other methods of entering young hounds I have 
 practised occasionally, as the number of hounds has 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 135 
 
 Young Hounds. 
 
 required ; for instance, when that number is very con- 
 siderable, I make a large draft of my steadiest hounds, 
 Avhich are kept with the young hounds in a separate 
 kennel, and are hunted with them all the fore part of 
 the season. This, when the old hounds begin to hunt, 
 makes two distinct packs, and is always attended with 
 great trouble and inconvenience. Nothing hurts a pack 
 so much as to enter many young hounds, since it must 
 weaken it considerably by robbing it of those which are 
 the most steady ; and yet young hounds can do nothing 
 without their assistance. Such, therefore, as constantly 
 enter their young hounds in this manner, will, sometimes 
 at least, have two indifterent packs, instead of one good 
 one. 
 
 *' In the other method, the young hounds are well 
 awed from sheep, but never stooped to a scent, till they 
 are taken out with the pack ; they are then taken out 
 a few only at a time ; and if your pack is perfectly steady, 
 and well manned, may not give you much trouble. The 
 method I first mentioned, which is the one I most com- 
 monly practise, will be necessary when you have many 
 young hounds to enter ; when you have only a few, the 
 last will be most convenient. The other, which requires 
 two distinct packs, is on too extensive a plan to suit your 
 establishment, requiring more horses and hounds than 
 you intend to keep. 
 
 "Though I have mentioned, in a former letter, from 
 eight to twelve couple of young hounds, as a sufficient 
 number to keep up your pack to its present establish- 
 ment, yet it is always best to keep a few couple more 
 than you want, in reserve, in case of accidents : since, 
 
136 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Blooding Young Hounds. 
 
 from the time you make your draft, to the time of hunt- 
 ing, is a long period ; and their existence at that age and 
 season very precarious : besides, when they are safe 
 from the distemper, they are not always safe from each 
 other; and a summer, I think, seldom passes without 
 some losses of that kind. At the same time I must tell 
 you, that I should decline the entering of more than are 
 necessary to keep up the pack, since a greater number 
 would only create useless trouble and vexation. 
 
 " You wish to know what number of old hounds you 
 should hunt with the young ones : — that must depend on 
 the strength of your pack, and the number which you 
 choose to spare ; if good and steady, ten or twelve couple 
 will be sufficient. 
 
 " The young hounds, and such old ones as are in- 
 tended to hunt along with them, should be kept in a 
 kennel by themselves, till the young hounds are hunted 
 with the pack. I need not, I am sure, enumerate the 
 many reasons that make this regulation necessary. 
 
 *■ I never trust my young hounds in the forest till they 
 have been well blooded to fox, and seldom put more than 
 a couple into the pack at a time. The others are walked 
 out amongst the deer, when the men exercise their 
 horses, and are severely chastised if they take any notice 
 of them. They also draw covers with them ; choosing 
 out such, where they can best see their hounds, and 
 most easily command them, and where there is the least 
 chance to find a fox. On these occasions I had rather 
 they should have to rate their hounds than to encourage 
 them. It requires less judgment ; and, if improperly 
 done, is less dangerous in its consequences. One halloo 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 137 
 
 Entering Young Fox-hounds. 
 
 of encouragement to a wrong scent, more than undoes 
 all that you have been doing. 
 
 " When young hounds begin to love a scent, it may be 
 of use to turn out a badger* before them ; you will then 
 be able to discover what improvement they have made ; 
 I mention a badger, on a supposition that young foxes 
 cannot so well be spared ; besides, the badger, being a 
 slower animal, he may easily be followed, and driven the 
 way you choose he should run. 
 
 *' The day you intend to turn out a fox, or badger, 
 you will do well to send them amongst hares or deer. 
 A little rating and flogging, before they are encouraged 
 to vermin, is of the greatest use, as it teaches them both 
 what they should, and what they should not, do ; I have 
 known a badger run several miles, if judiciously managed ; 
 for which purpose he should be turned out in a very 
 open country, and followed by a person who has more 
 sense than to ride on the line of him. If he does not 
 meet with any cover or hedge in his way, he will keep 
 on for several miles ; if he does, you will not be able to 
 get him any farther. — You should give him a great deal 
 of law, and you will do well to break his teeth. 
 
 " If you run any cubs to ground in an indifferent 
 country, and do not want blood, bring them home, and 
 they will be of use to your young hounds. Turn out 
 bag foxes to your young hounds, but never to your old 
 ones. 
 
 "The day after your hounds have had blood, is also 
 a proper tune to send them where there is riot, and to 
 
 * See note, page 133. 
 I 
 
138 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Various Methods of 
 
 chastise them if they deserve it : it is always best to cor- 
 rect them when they cannot help knowing what they are 
 corrected for. When you send out your hounds for 
 this purpose, the later they go out, I think, the better ; 
 as the worse the scent is, the less incUnable will they be 
 to run it, and of course will give less trouble in stopping 
 them. It is a common practice with huntsmen to flog 
 their hounds most unmercifully in the kennel : I have al- 
 ready told you I like it not ; but if many of your hounds 
 are obstinately riotous, you may with less impropriety 
 put a live hare into the kennel to them, flogging them 
 as often as they approach her ; they will then have some 
 notion at least, for what they are beaten : but, let me 
 entreat you, before this chaviari begins, to draft off your 
 steady hounds : an animal to whom we owe so much 
 good diversion, should not be ill used unnecessarily. — 
 When a hare is put into the kennel, the huntsman and 
 both the whippers-in should be present, and the whip- 
 pers-in should flog every hound, calling him by his name, 
 and rating him as often as he is near the hare, and upon 
 this occasion they cannot cut them too hard, or rate them 
 too much ; when they think they have chastised them 
 enough, the hare should be taken away, the huntsman 
 should halloo off his hounds, and the whippers-in should 
 rate them to him. — If any one loves a hare more than 
 the rest, you may tie a dead one round his neck, flogging 
 him and rating him at the same time. 
 
 " I would advise you to hunt your large covers with 
 your young hounds ; it will tire them out ; a necessary 
 step towards making them steady; and will open the 
 cover against the time you begin to hunt in earnest, and 
 by disturbing the large covers early in the year, foxes 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 139 
 
 Entering Young Fox-hounds. 
 
 will be shy of them in the season, and shew you better 
 chases : besides, as they are not likely to break from 
 thence, you can do no hurt to the corn, and may begin 
 before it is cut. 
 
 " If your hounds are very riotous, and you are obliged 
 to stop them very often from hare, it will be advisable, I 
 think, to try on (however late it may be) till you find a 
 fox, as the giving them encouragement should, at such 
 a time, prevail over every other consideration. 
 
 " Such as are very riotous should have little rest ; you 
 should hunt them one day in large covers, where foxes 
 are in plenty ; the next day they should be walked out 
 amongst hares and deer, and stopped from riot ; the day 
 following be hunted again as before. Old hounds, that 
 I have had from other packs (particularly such as have 
 been entered at hare) I have sometimes found incorrigible ; 
 but I never yet knew a young hound so riotous, but, by 
 this management, he soon became steady. 
 
 "When hounds are rated and do not answer the rate, 
 they should be coupled up immediately, and be made to 
 know the whipper-in : in all probability this method will 
 save any farther trouble. These fellows sometimes flog 
 hounds most unmercifully, and some of them seem to 
 take pleasure in their cruelty. 
 
 "I have heard, that no fox-hounds will break off to deer, 
 after once a fox is found. — I cannot say the experience 
 I have liad of this diversion will any ways justify the re- 
 mark ; let me advise you therefore to seek a surer de- 
 pendance. Before you hunt your young hounds where 
 hares are in plenty, let them be awed, and stopped from 
 hare : before you hunt amongst deer, let them not only 
 
 i2 
 
HO HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Importance of First Impressions. 
 
 see deer, but let them draw covers where deer are : for 
 you must not be surprised, if, after they are so far steady, 
 as not to run them in view, they should challenge on the 
 scent of them. Unless you take this method with your 
 young hounds, before you put them into the pack, you 
 will run a great risk of corrupting such as are steady, 
 and will lose the pleasure of hunting with steady hounds. 
 I have already said, that after my young hounds are taken 
 into the pack, I still take out but very few at a time, 
 when I hunt among deer. I also change them when I 
 take out others ; for the steadiness they may have ac- 
 quired could be but little depended on, were they to 
 meet with any encouragement to be riotous. 
 
 " I confess I think first impressions of more conse- 
 quence than they are in general thought to be : I not 
 only enter my young hounds to vermin on that account, 
 but I even use them, as early as I can, to the strongest 
 covers and thickest brakes, and I seldom find they are 
 ever shy of them afterwards. A friend of mine has as- 
 sured me, that he once entered a spaniel to snipes, and 
 the dog ever after was partial to them, preferring them 
 to every other bird. 
 
 ^'Ifyouhavemarterns* within your reach, as all hounds 
 
 * Beckford seems, in some degree, to contradict himself; in the pre- 
 ceding paragraph, the instance of the spaniel and snipes seems at variance 
 with the advice which immediately follows for entering young hounds at 
 the martern. In his sixth letter he also observes ; — "You had better enter 
 them at their own game — it will save you much trouble afterwards. Many 
 (logs, I believe, like that scent best they were first blooded to; but be that 
 as it may, it is certainly most reasonable to use them to that which it is in- 
 tended they should hunt.'' — He also severely reprobates the practice of en- 
 tering young hounds at hare, as will be seen by the following pages. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 141 
 
 Summer Hunting. 
 
 are fond of their scent, you will do well to enter your 
 young hounds in covers which they frequent. The mar- 
 tern being a small animal, by running the thickest brakes 
 it can find, teaches hounds to run cover, and is therefore 
 of the greatest use. — I do not much approve of hunting 
 them with the old hounds ; they shew but little sport, 
 are continually climbing trees ; and as the cover they 
 run seldom fails to scratch and teai- hounds considerably, 
 I think you might be sorry to see your whole pack dis- 
 figured by it. The agility of this little animal is really 
 wonderful ; and though it falls frequently from a tree, in 
 the midst of a whole pack of hounds, all intent on catch- 
 ing it, there are but few instances, I believe, of a mar- 
 tern's being caught by them in that situation. 
 
 **In summer, hounds might hunt in an evening ; — I 
 know a pack, that, after having killed one fox in the 
 morning with the young hounds, killed another in the 
 evening with the old ones. Scent generally lies well at 
 the close of the day, yet there is a great objection to 
 luniting at that time ; animals are then more easily dis- 
 turbed, and you have a greater variety of scents than at 
 an earlier hour. 
 
 "Having given you all the information I can possibly 
 recollect with regard to my own management of young- 
 hounds, I shall now take notice of that part of your last 
 letter, where I am soi'ry to find that our opinions diftbr. 
 Obedience, you say, is every thing necessary in a hound, 
 and that it is of little consequence by what means it is 
 obtained. I cannot concur altogether in that opinion ; 
 for I think it very necessary, that the hound should at 
 the same time understand you. Obedience, under i)roper 
 
 1 3 
 
H2 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Obedience indispensable 
 
 management, will be a necessary consequence of it. 
 Obedience, surely, is not all that is required of them : 
 they should be taught to distinguish of themselves right 
 from wrong, or I know not how they are to be managed ; 
 when, as it frequently happens, we cannot see what they 
 are at, and must take their words for it. A hound that 
 hears a voice which has often rated him, and that hears 
 the whip he has often ^elt, I know, will stop. — I also 
 know, he will commit the same fault again, if he has been 
 accustomed to be guilty of it. 
 
 " Obedience, you very rightly observe, is a necessary 
 quality in a hound, for he is useless without it. It is 
 therefore an excellent principle for a huntsman to set 
 out upon ; yet, good as it is, I think it may be carried too 
 far. I would not have him insist on too much, or tor- 
 ment his hounds, mal-a-propos, by exacting of them by 
 force what is not absolutely necessary to your diversion. 
 You say, he intends to enter your hounds at hare — is it 
 to teach them obedience? — Does he mean to encourage 
 vice in them, to correct it afterwards ? — I have heard, 
 indeed, that the way to make hounds steady from hare, 
 is to enter them at hare : that is, to encourage them to 
 hunt her. It requires more faith than I pretend to, to 
 believe so strange a paradox. 
 
 "It concerns me to be obliged to differ from you in 
 opinion ; but since it cannot now be helped, we will pur- 
 sue the subject, and examine it throughout ; permit me 
 then to ask you, what it is you propose from the entering 
 of your hounds at hare ? Two advantages, I shall pre- 
 sume, you expect from it ; — The teaching of your hounds 
 to hunt, and teaching them to be obedient. — However 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 143 
 
 in Fox-hounds. 
 
 necessary you may think these requisites in a hound, I 
 cannot but flatter myself they are to be acquired by less 
 exceptionable means. The method I have already men- 
 tioned to make hounds obedient, as it is practised in my 
 own kennel — that of calling them over often in the ken- 
 nel, to use them to their names, and walking them out 
 often amongst sheep, hares, and deer, from which they 
 are stopped to use them to a rate, in my opinion, would 
 answer your purpose better. The teaching your hounds 
 to hunt is by no means so necessary as you seem to ima- 
 gine. Nature will teach it them, nor need you give 
 yourself so much concern about it. Art only will be ne- 
 cessary to prevent them hunting what they ought not to 
 hunt — and do you really think your method a proper one 
 to accomplish it ? 
 
 " The first and most essential thing towards making 
 hounds obedient, I suppose, is to make them understand 
 you ; nor do I apprehend you will find any difficulty on 
 their parts, but such as may be occasioned on yours. — 
 The language we use to them, to convey our meaning 
 should never vary : — still less, should we alter the very 
 meaning of the terms we use. — Would it not be absurd 
 to encourage, when we mean to rate? and if we did, 
 could we expect to be obeyed ? — You will not deny this, 
 and yet you are guilty of no less an inconsistency, when 
 you encourage your hounds to run a scent to-day, which 
 you know, at the same time, you must be obliged to 
 break them from to-morrow : — is it not running counter 
 to justice and reason ? 
 
 " I confess there is some use in hunting young hounds, 
 where you can easily command them ; but even this you 
 
144 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Impropriety of Entering 
 
 may pay too clearly for. Enter your hounds in small 
 covers, or in such large ones as have ridings cut in them ; 
 whippers-in can then get at them, can always see what 
 they are at, and I have no doubt that you may have a 
 pack of fox-hounds steady to fox by this means, without 
 adopting so preposterous a method as that of first making 
 hare-hunters of them. You will find, that hounds, thus 
 instructed what game they are to hunt, and what they 
 are not, will stop at a word ; because they will under- 
 stand you ; and after they have been treated in this 
 manner, a smack only of the whip, will spare you the 
 inhumanity of cutting your hounds in pieces (not very 
 justly) for faults which you yourself have encouraged 
 them to commit. 
 
 " I think, in your last letter, you seem very anxious to 
 get your young hounds well blooded to fox, at the same 
 time that you talk of entering them at hare. How am I 
 to reconcile such contradictions ? If the blood of fox is 
 of so much use, surely you cannot think the blood of a 
 hare a matter of indifference, unless you should be of 
 opinion that a fox is better eating. — Nature, I suppose, 
 never intended they should hunt sheep, yet we very well 
 know, when once they have killed sheep, that they have 
 no dislike to mutton afterwards. 
 
 "You have conceived an idea, perhaps, that a fox- 
 hound is designed by nature to hunt a fox. Yet, surely, 
 if that vi^as your opinion, you would never think of enter- 
 ing him at any other game. I cannot, however, think 
 nature designed the dog, which we call a fox-hound, to 
 hunt fox only, since we know he will also hunt other 
 animals. That a well-bred fox-hound may give a pre- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 145 
 
 Young Fox-hounds at Hare. 
 
 ference to vermin, caeteris paribus, I will not dispute ; I 
 think it very possible he may ; but this I am certain of — 
 that every fox-hound will leave a bad scent of fox, for a 
 good one of either hare or deer, unless he has been made 
 steady from them ; and in this, I shall not fear to be con- 
 tradicted. But, as I do not wish to enter abstruse rea- 
 soning with you, or think it any ways material to our 
 present purpose, whether the dogs we call fox-hounds 
 w^ere originally designed by nature to hunt fox or not, 
 Ave will drop the subject. I must at the same time beg 
 leave to observe, that dogs are not the only animals in 
 which an extraordinary diversity of species has happen- 
 ed since the days of Adam. Yet a great naturalist tells 
 us, that man is nearer, by eight degrees, to Adam, than 
 is the dog to the first dog of his race ; since the age of 
 man is fourscore years, and that of a dog but ten. It 
 therefore follows, that if both should equally degenerate, 
 the alteration would be eight times more remarkable in 
 the dog than in the man. 
 
 " The two most necessary questions which result from 
 the foregoing premises, are — whether hounds entered at 
 hare are perfectly steady, afterwards, to fox ; — and 
 whether steadiness is not attainable by more reasonable 
 means. Having never hunted with gentlemen who fol- 
 low this practise, I must leave the first question for others 
 to determine ; but having always had my hounds steady, 
 I can myself answer the second." 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Of the Huntsman and the Whippers-in, and their respec- 
 tive Duties. 
 
 It very often happens, that the laborious or working 
 classes of the community foolishly repine at the situation 
 in which Providence has placed them, and are dissatis- 
 fied with the means by which they obtain a livelihood ; 
 to this, however, the huntsman is an evident, indeed a 
 very striking, exception. A huntsman's life cannot be 
 otherwise than happy, since he is liberally paid for doing 
 that which gives him the greatest possible gratification.* 
 
 Beckford observes that a huntsman " should be young, 
 strong, and active, bold and enterprising ; fond of the 
 diversion and indefatigable in the pursuit of it; he should 
 be sensible and good-tempered ; he ought also to be 
 sober ; he should be exact, civil, and cleanly ; he should 
 be a good horseman and a good groom ; his voice should 
 be strong and clear, and he should have an eye so quick, 
 as to perceive which of his hounds carries the scent, 
 when all are running ; and should have so excellent an 
 ear, as always to distinguish the foremost hounds when 
 he does not see them. He should be quiet, patient, and 
 without conceit. Such are the excellencies which con- 
 stitute a good huntsman : he should not, however, be 
 
 * The above remarks will also apply to the gamekeeper; but scarcely 
 perhaps to any other avocations in life— at least, in a manner so forcible 
 and striking. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 147 
 
 Duty of the Huntsman. 
 
 too fond of displaying them till necessity calls them forth. 
 He should let his hounds alone whilst they can hunt, and 
 he should have genius to assist them when they cannot" 
 The above qualifications will, however, rarely be found 
 united in the same person. Good temper is a most de- 
 sirable quality in a huntsman, as circumstances frequently 
 occur where it is put to a very severe trial : — when, for 
 instance, a fox is found, imprudent sportsmen are apt to 
 ride over the scent, as well as to head him back. If the 
 cover be small, so that the fox cannot go away unseen, 
 heading back may not perhaps be of very great conse- 
 quence ; but the case is frequently very different, and 
 very vexatious ; but to ride over the scent is, I think, 
 more provoking. When a fox has just broke cover, and 
 before the hounds have got settled to the scent, how 
 often have I seen the scent ridden over ! and that too in 
 the most vexatious manner : — it certainly is not to be 
 wondered at, however it may be regretted, if, on such 
 occasions, the huntsman should forget the respect due 
 to his superiors. On the 7th of last January (1826) I 
 met the hounds of Hugo Meynell, Esq. at Radborne, 
 about three miles from the town of Derby. A fox was 
 found in a cover, called the Pasture : he was well viewed 
 away ; in fact, he went off in such a manner as to enable 
 a number of thoughtless and highly reprehensible sports- 
 men to ride before the hounds — they rode over the 
 scent : the hounds endeavoured to pick it out from among 
 the horses' legs ; but the country presenting no formi- 
 dable fences, the mercurial spirits above alluded to were 
 enabled to head the hounds repeatedly, so that they 
 could not get settled to the scent ; and we ultimately lost 
 
148 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Anecdotes of the 
 
 the fox ! Could any thing be more provoking ? A few 
 weeks prior to this period, I met the York and Ainsty 
 fox-hovmds at Skehon Springs, near York. We found 
 in Overton Wood, a cover of very considerable extent ; 
 which renard seemed very unwilling to leave. At 
 length, he broke away, and faced the open country in 
 the direction of Beningborough ; but, at a short distance 
 from the wood, he crossed a lane, where several secon- 
 dary sort of sportsmen were waiting ; who rode over the 
 scent in all directions : and though the pursuit was con- 
 tinued for more than half an hour, the hounds were 
 unable to run well up to their fox, (owing no doubt to 
 the circumstance just mentioned) and we of course lost 
 him. However, Naylor, the huntsman, kept his temper ; 
 though he informed me, that, some time before this 
 period, he had broken out into a great rage, in conse- 
 quence of a gentleman, not merely riding over the scent, 
 but also over the best hound in the pack, and killing it ! 
 I have met with several huntsmen who possessed good 
 sense, who were not altogether destitute of what is un- 
 derstood by the word genius ; but who, however, had 
 received scai'cely a common village education. The 
 famous Dick Knight, who was huntsman to Lord Althorp, 
 and who, with his favourite horse (Contract) is repre- 
 sented in a well-known series of engravings, was as 
 illiterate as possible, but occasionally elicited something- 
 like strokes of genius. This man was a great favourite 
 with his master ; was a desperate rider ; and one who 
 excelled in low games at cards, in which he passed most 
 of his leisure hours. The features of Dick Knight's face 
 were by no means prepossessing ; yet they were strongly 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 149 
 
 jjn^ i r i f i r^jij »iiii rriv i fr i 'r < r i -' i ■■■■ — ».■■■..■..»■■. i ■■ ■ * i ' iii>» 
 
 famous Dick Knight, 
 
 marked, and very expressive. He is celebrated for 
 several extraordinary feats, amongst which, his leap 
 down the precipice, known by the name of Dick Knight's 
 leap, was perhaps the most remarkable and the most dan- 
 gerous. Dick had repeatedly run a particular fox, which 
 uniformly beat his hounds ; this same fox became well 
 known, and Knight always knew where to find him. 
 Renard invariably made for and reached a cover, (Cank 
 Wood) distant about ten miles, in defiance of every ex- 
 ertion made to kill him ; and in this cover he uniformly 
 eluded all further pursuit. Knight was bent on killing 
 this fox, whose acknowledged game ought, however, to 
 have insured him fau- play ; but Dick, chafed by the 
 sneers of the sportsmen who attended his hounds, and 
 finding it impossible to kill this fox in the ordinary 
 manner, adopted the following mode in order to accom- 
 phsh his purpose. He gave his whippers-in the requisite 
 directions as to the manner in which they were to second 
 his exertions ; and, placing himself in a situation where 
 he might be able to view away his old acquaintance, the 
 hounds were thrown into the cover, the fox found, and 
 viewed off by Dick Knight. But Knight was not content 
 with this ; he had resolved to keep him company as long 
 or as far as possible : he therefore went away with him 
 and kept him in sight for four or five miles : this was an 
 exertion of which very few would have been capable ; 
 but it answered the purpose, (not a praiseworthy purpose 
 certainly ;) for by this method the fox was so pressed 
 and so blown, that he was unable to reach the place that 
 had always afibrded him secure protection : however, he 
 made the most desperate ellbrts, and the hounds reached 
 him only one mile from his place of safety ! 
 
150 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Notices of several 
 
 Shaw, one of the most famous huntsmen of modern 
 days, appeared to have something hke genius in his com- 
 position, though he was not able to write till he entered 
 the service of the Duke of Rutland, when he was about 
 thirty years of age. The first time I ever saw this man 
 was with the harriers of Lord Moira (Marquis of Hast- 
 mgs) about thirty-iive years ago, to which he was hunts- 
 man, and it was the first season he had ever acted in 
 that capacity. These harriers were afterwards replaced 
 by fox-hounds, and Shaw continued to hunt them (several 
 years) till they were sold by Lord Moira to Sir Henry 
 Harper, of Caulk, Derbyshire. Shaw afterwards became 
 huntsman to Sir Thomas Mostyn ; and ultimately served 
 the Duke of Rutland in that capacity; with both of 
 whom he was a great favourite. He continued in the 
 Duke's service for a series of years, until, in fact, he was 
 afflicted with some disorder, which disabled him from 
 fulfilling the duties of his office. He quitted the service 
 of his Grace for some time, and returned again at the 
 express desire of the latter ; but he was still incapable of 
 going through the fatigue necessarily attendant upon the 
 office of huntsman, and he retired. Such, however, had 
 been the kindness of his master, that Shaw had realized, 
 not a splendid fortune, but sufficient to live respectably 
 and keep a couple of hunters. When Sir Bellingham 
 Graham had the Pycheley hunt, Shaw was frequently 
 out; he also visited other parts, and I believe resides at 
 present in Northamptonshire. 
 
 Shaw was not only a favourite with the Duke, his 
 master, but with those who attended his hounds. He 
 was a good horseman, very active in the field, civil and 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 151 
 
 Modern Huntsmen. 
 
 respectful, and sometimes manifested what Beckford 
 would call genius. On one occasion, when he had been 
 running a fox for some time in the Vale of Belvoir, the 
 hounds came to a cover, which the fox had evidently 
 entered : they were soon through it ; and went away as 
 merrily as possible on the other side. But, before they 
 had run far, Shaw stopped them, and led them again to 
 the cover against the opinion of the field ; where, how- 
 ever, he found his original fox and killed him ! A fresh 
 fox had evidently gone away when the hounds first en- 
 tered the cover, and they changed ; of which Shaw was 
 soon aware, and hence we see his reason for returning. 
 Shaw became a huntsman without going through those 
 probationary steps, which generally lead to the office : — 
 he never officiated in the subordinate capacity of whip- 
 per-in. 
 
 I have seen several good huntsmen within the last half 
 score years ; and I am of opinion that few packs of fox- 
 hounds were ever better managed in the field than the 
 Quorndon, a few years ago, when Sebright was the 
 huntsman, assisted by those two very active whippers-in, 
 Richard Burton and Will Head. — They are all light 
 weights, and good riders — Sebright in particular. The 
 latter is huntsman to Lord Fitzwilliam ; Burton remains 
 still at Quorndon with Mr. Osbaldeston ; Head has for 
 several years hunted Sir Harry Mainwaring's hounds. 
 
 Richards, who hunts the Badsworth, seems to under- 
 stand his business ; but, unfortunately for a huntsman, 
 he cannot be called a ligJit weight. He is, however, a 
 good rider, and an active man in the field. In the year 
 1825, 1 visited the Badsworth ; and had thus an oppor- 
 
152 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Slow Huntsmen improper for Fox-hounds. 
 
 tunity of observing the motions of Richards : I pro- 
 ceeded to Lord Harewood's hunt, where the operations 
 of George Payne (his lordship's huntsman) formed a 
 striking contrast to those of Richards. The hounds 
 must, in a certain degree, take their tone and manner 
 from the character of the huntsman : — the Badsworth 
 are quick and active ; Lord Harewood's are more slow 
 and more philosophical. There was one hound in par- 
 ticular in Lord Harewood's pack that struck my atten- 
 tion : I remarked to Payne, the huntsman, that I was 
 much pleased with the hound in question : — " That 
 hoxmd, Sir, (said he) would hunt through York Min- 
 ster." 
 
 Slow huntsmen will kill but very few foxes : they are 
 in fact a check upon their hounds ; which, with a high 
 scent only, are able to run up to their game ; when it is 
 indeed out of the huntsman's power to prevent it. " What 
 avails it to be told which way the fox is gone when he 
 is so far before that you cannot hunt him ? A New- 
 market boy, with a good understanding and a good 
 voice, might be preferable perhaps to an indifferent and 
 slack huntsman ; he would press on his hounds while the 
 scent was good, and the foxes he killed, he would kill 
 handsomely. — A perfect knowledge of the intricacies of 
 hunting is chiefly of use to slow huntsmen and bad hounds, 
 since they more often stand in need of it. — Activity is 
 the first requisite in a huntsman to a pack of fox-hounds ; 
 a want of it no judgment can make amends for ; but the 
 most difficult of all his undertakings is the distinguishing 
 of different scents, and knowing, with any certainty, the 
 scent of the hunted fox. Much speculation is here re~ 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 153 
 
 Lord Darlington as a Huntsman. 
 
 quired — the length of time hounds remain at fault — 
 the difference of ground — change of weather — all these 
 contrihute to increase the difficulty, and require a nicety 
 of judgment and a precision, much above the compre- 
 hension of most huntsmen." 
 
 Lord Darlington performs the duty of huntsman to 
 his own pack ; but I cannot say that I much admire his 
 lordship in that capacity. He appears to be impatient, 
 and his method seems to partake as much of coursing the 
 fox, as of hunting him. 
 
 The qualification of being a ''good groom,'' which 
 Beckford states as essential in a huntsman, is not, how- 
 ever, so indispensable as he seems to think. Fox-hunting 
 has been on the increase since Beckford's time ; the es- 
 tablishments in general are more extensive ; and, on this 
 account, the management of the hounds and the care of 
 the horses form two distinct arrangements. In small 
 establishments, the huntsman may officiate as principal 
 groom ; but it is probably too much to expect that a 
 clever groom and a good huntsman should be united in 
 the same person. 
 
 A huntsman should be very punctual in arriving at the 
 fixture or place of meeting ; and, when at the cover side, 
 he should throw in his hounds as quietly as possible, and 
 see that they spread the cover properly. When the fox 
 has gone away, "the huntsman should certainly set oft' 
 with his foremost hounds, and keep as close to them 
 afterwards as he conveniently can. No hounds then can 
 slip dow n the wind, and get out of his hearing ; he will 
 also see how far they carry the scent ; a necessary know- 
 
 K 
 
154 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 When a Huntsman 
 
 ledge ; for without it, he never can make a cast, with 
 any certainty. 
 
 '* It is his business to be ready at all times, to lend 
 them that assistance they so frequently stand in need of, 
 and which, when they are first at fault, is most critical. 
 A fox-hound, at that time, will exert himself most ; he 
 afterwards cools, and becomes more indifferent about 
 his game. Those huntsmen who do not get forward 
 enough, to take advantage of this eagerness and impetu- 
 osity, and direct it properly, seldom know enough of 
 hunting to be of much use to them afterwards. 
 
 "A huntsman should always listen to his hounds, 
 whilst they are running in cover ; he should be particu- 
 larly attentive to the head hounds, and he should be 
 constantly on his guard against a skirter, for if there ai-e 
 two scents, he must be wrong. — Generally speaking, the 
 best scent is least likely to be that of the hunted fox : 
 and as a fox seldom suffers hounds to run up to him, as 
 long as he is able to prevent it ; so, nine times out of ten, 
 when foxes are hallooed early in the day, they are all 
 fresh foxes. The hounds most likely to be right, are the 
 hard-running, line-hunting hounds ; or such as the hunts- 
 man knows had the lead, before there arose any doubt 
 of changing. With regard to the fox, if he breaks over 
 an open country, it is no sign that he is hard run, for 
 they seldom at any time will do that, unless they are a 
 great way before the hounds. Also, if he runs up the 
 -wind — they seldom or ever do that, when they have been 
 long hunted, and grow weak ; and when they run their 
 .foil, that also may direct him. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 155 
 
 should assist his Hounds. 
 
 " The huntsman, at a check, had better let liis liounds 
 alone, or content himself with holding them forward, 
 without taking them off their noses. Hounds that are 
 not used to be cast, will of themselves acquire a better 
 cast than it is in the power of any huntsman to give them ; 
 will spread more, and try better for the scent; and, if 
 they are in health and spirits, they will want no en- 
 couragement. 
 
 "If they are at fault, and have made their own cast, 
 (which the huntsman should always first encourage them 
 to do) it is then his business to assist them further. The 
 first cast I bid my huntsman make, is generally a regular 
 one ; not choosing to rely entirely on his judgment : if 
 that does not succeed, he is then at liberty to follow his 
 own opinion, and proceed as observation and genius may 
 direct. When such a cast is made, I like to see some 
 mark of good sense and meaning in it ; whether down 
 the wind, or towards some likely cover, or strong earth : 
 however, as it is at best uncertain, and as the huntsman 
 and the fox may be of different opinions, I always wish 
 to see a regular cast, before I see a knowing one ; which, 
 as a last resource, should not be called forth till it is 
 wanted. The letting homids alone is but a negative 
 goodness in a huntsman ; whereas it is true, that thts last 
 shows real genius ; and to be perfect, must be born u ith 
 him. There is a fault, however, which a knowing hunts- 
 man is too apt to commit: he will find a fresh fox, and 
 then claim the merit of having recovered the hunted one. 
 It always is dangerous to throw hounds into a cover to 
 retrieve a lost scent; and, unless they hit him in, is not 
 to be depended on. OvWen to the last extremity, should 
 
 k2 
 
156 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 a knowing cast not succeed, your huntsman is in no wise 
 blameable : mine, I remember, lost me a good chace, by 
 persevering too long in a favourite cast : but he gave me 
 so many good reasons why the fox ought to have gone 
 that way, that I returned perfectly well satisfied, telling 
 him at the same time, that, if the fox was a fool, he 
 
 could not help it. 
 
 "A huntsman will complain of hounds for staying 
 behind in cover : it is a great fault, and makes the hound 
 that has it of little value ; a fault frequently occasioned 
 by his own mismanagement. Having drawn one cover, 
 he hurries away to another, and leaves the whipper-in 
 to bring on the hounds after him ; but the whipper-in is 
 seldom less desirous of getting forward than the hunts- 
 man; and, unless they come off easily, it is not often that 
 he gives himself much concern about them. Also, hounds 
 that are left too long at their walks, will acquire this trick 
 from hunting'by themselves, and are not easily broken 
 
 off it. 
 
 '« Before a huntsman goes into the kennel to draft his 
 hounds, let him determine within himself the number of 
 hounds'he intends to take out ; as likewise the number 
 of young hounds that he can venture in the country 
 where he is going to hunt. Different countries may 
 require different hounds ; some may require more hoimds 
 than others : it is not an easy matter to draft hounds 
 properly ; nor can any expedition be made in it, without 
 
 some method. 
 
 '' If the huntsman, without inconvenience, can begm 
 drawing at the farthest cover down the wind, and so 
 draw from cover to cover up the wind till you find, let 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 157 
 
 Fox Huunds should draw. 
 
 him do it — it will have many advantages attending it : 
 he will draw the same covers in half the time ; there will 
 be less difficulty in getting the hounds off; and as the 
 fox will most probably run the covers that have already 
 been drawn, you are certain not to change. 
 
 "Judicious huntsmen will observe where foxes like 
 best to lie. Generally speaking, I think they are fondest of 
 such covers as lie high, and are dry and thick at bottom ; 
 such also as lie out of the wind ; and such as are on the 
 sunny side of hills. The same cover where you find one 
 fox, when it has remained quiet any time, will probably 
 produce another. 
 
 " It is to little purpose to draw hazle coppices at the 
 time when nuts are gathered ; furze covers, or two or 
 three years coppices, are then the only quiet places a 
 fox can kennel in : they also are disturbed when pheasant 
 shooting begins, and older covers are more likely. The 
 season when foxes are most wild and strong is about 
 Christmas ; a huntsman then must lose no time in drawing 
 — he must draw up the wind, unless the cover be very 
 large, in which case it may be better perhaps to cross it, 
 giving the hounds a side wind, lest he should be obliged 
 to turn down the wind at last : in either case, let him 
 draw as quietly as he can. 
 
 " Young coppices, at this time, are quite bare : the 
 most likely places are four or five years coppices, and 
 such as are furzy at bottom. 
 
 " Some huntsmen draw too quick — some too slow. 
 The time of the day, the behaviovu- of his hounds, and 
 the covers they are drawing, will direct an observing 
 huntsman in the pace which he ought to go. 
 
 k3 
 
158 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Casting 
 
 " When you try a furze brakcy let me give you one 
 caution : never halloo a fox till you see he is got quite 
 clear of it. When a fox is found in such places, hounds 
 are sure to go off" well at him ; and it must be owing 
 either to bad scent, bad hounds, bad management, or 
 bad luck, if they fail to kill him afterwards. Huntsmen, 
 whilst their hounds are drawing, or are at fault, fre- 
 quently make so much noise themselves, that they can 
 hear nothing else ; they should always have an ear to a 
 halloo. 
 
 " Though a huntsman ought to be as silent as possible 
 at going into a cover, he cannot be too noisy at coming 
 out of it again ; and if at any time he should turn back 
 suddenly, let him give as much notice of it as he can to 
 his hounds, or he will leave many of them behind him ; 
 and, should he turn down the wind, he may see no more 
 of them. 
 
 ''Though I Uke to see fox hounds cast wide and for- 
 ward, and dislike to see them pick a cold scent through 
 flocks of sheep to no purpose, yet I must beg leave to 
 observe, that I dislike still more to see that unaccount- 
 able hurry, which huntsmen will sometimes put themselves 
 into, the moment their hounds are at fault. Time ought 
 always to be allowed them, to make their own cast ; and 
 if a huntsman is judicious, he will take that opportunity 
 to consider, what part he himself has next to act ; but 
 instead of this, I have seen hounds hurried away the 
 very instant they came to a fault, a wide cast made, and 
 the hounds at last brought back to the very spot whence 
 they were so abruptly taken, and where, if the huntsman 
 had had a minute's patience, they would have hit off the 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 159 
 
 scent themselves. It is always great impertinence in a 
 huntsman to pretend to make a cast himself, before the 
 hounds have made theirs. Prudence should direct hun 
 to encourage, and, I may say, humour his hounds, in the 
 cast they seem inclined to make, and either to stand still, 
 or trot round with them, as circumstances may require. 
 
 " I have seen huntsmen make their cast on bad ground, 
 when they might as easily have made it on good. I have 
 seen them suffer their hounds to try in the midst of a 
 flock of sheep, when there was a hedge, near which they 
 might have been sure to take the scent ; and I have seen 
 a cast made with every hound at their horses' heels. — 
 When a hound tries for the scent, his nose is to the 
 ground : when a huntsman makes a cast, his eye should 
 be on his hounds ; and when he sees them spread wide, 
 and try as they ought, his cast may then be quick. 
 
 " When hounds are at fault, and the huntsman halloos 
 them off the line of the scent, the whippers-in smacking 
 their whips, and rating them after him, if he trots away 
 with them, may not they think the business of the day 
 is over ? — Hounds never, in my opinion, (unless in par- 
 ticular cases, or when you go to a halloo) should be taken 
 entirely off their noses : but, when lifted, should be con- 
 stantly made to try as they go. Some huntsmen have 
 a dull, stupid way of speaking to their hounds ; at these 
 times, little should be said ; and that should have both, 
 meaning and expression in it. 
 
 *' When your huntsman makes a cast, I hope he makes 
 it perfect one way, before he tries another, as much time 
 is lost by going backwards and forwards. You will see 
 huntsmen, when a forward cast docs not succeed, come 
 
160 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Foxes running the Roads. 
 
 slowly back again : they should return as fast as they 
 can. 
 
 " When hounds are at fault, and it is probable that 
 the fox has headed back, your cast forward should be 
 short and quick ; for the scent is then likely to be behind 
 you : too obstinate a perseverance forward has been the 
 loss of many foxes. In heathy countries, if there are 
 many roads, foxes will always run them in dry weather ; 
 when hounds, therefore, overrun the scent, if your 
 huntsman returns to the first cross road, he probably 
 will hit off the scent again. 
 
 *' In large covers, if there are many roads, in bad 
 scenting days when these roads are dry, or after a thaw, 
 when they carry, it is necessary your huntsman should 
 be near to his hounds to help them, and hold them for- 
 ward. Foxes will rvui the roads at these times, and 
 hounds cannot always own the scent. When they are 
 at fault on a dry road, let not your himtsman turn back 
 too soon ; let him not stop till he can be certain the fox 
 is not gone on. The hounds should try on both sides the 
 road at once : if he perceives that they try on one side 
 only, on his return let him try the other. 
 
 " If a fox runs up the wind when first found, and af- 
 terwards turns, he seldom, if ever, turns again. This 
 observation may not only be of use to your huntsman in 
 his cast, but may be of use to you, if you should lose the 
 hounds. 
 
 ** When you are pursuing a fox over a country, the 
 scent being bad, and the fox a long way before, without 
 ever having been pressed, if his point should be for strong- 
 earths that are open, or for large covers, where game is 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 161 
 
 Recovering a hunted Fox when Scent fails. 
 
 in plenty, it may be acting wisely to take oft' the hounds 
 at the first fault they come to ; for the fox will go many 
 miles for your one, and probably will run you out of all 
 scent ; but if he should not, you wiU be likely to change 
 at the first cover you come into : when a fox has been 
 hard pressed, he should not be easily given up. 
 
 " When you would recover a hunted fox, and have no 
 longer a scent to hunt him by, a long cast to the first 
 cover he seems to point to, is the only resource you have 
 left : get there as fast as you can, and then let your 
 hounds try as slowly and as quietly as possible : if hunt- 
 ing after him is hopeless, and a long cast does not succeed ^ 
 you had better give him up. Need I remind you, that, 
 when the scent lies badly, and you find it impossible for 
 hounds to run, you had better return home, since the 
 next day may be more favourable. It surely is a great 
 fault in a huntsman to persevere in bad weather, when 
 hounds cannot riui, and when there is not a probabihty 
 of kilHng a fox. Some there are, who, after they have 
 lost one fox for want of scent to hunt him by, will find 
 another ; this makes their hounds slack, and sometimes 
 vicious ; it also disturbs the covers to no purpose. Some 
 sportsmen are more lucky in their days than others. If 
 you hunt every other day, it is possible they may be all 
 bad, and the intermediate days all good ; an indifferent 
 pack therefore, by hunting on good days, may kill foxes, 
 without any merit ; and a good pack, notwithstanding 
 all their exertion, may lose foxes which they deserved to 
 kill. 
 
 "A perfect knowledge of his country certainly is a 
 great help to a huntsman ; if your's as yet has it not, 
 
162 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of a tired Fox. 
 
 great allowance ought to be made. The trotting away 
 with hounds to make a long and knowing cast, is a pri- 
 vilege which a new huntsman cannot pretend to : an ex- 
 perienced one may safely say, a fox has made for such 
 a cover, when he has known, perhaps, that nine out of 
 ten, with the wind in the same quarter, have constantly 
 gone thither. 
 
 " In a country where there are large earths, a fox 
 that knows the country, and tries any of them, seldom 
 fails to try the rest. A huntsman may take advantage 
 of this ; they are certain casts, and may help him to get 
 nearer to his fox. 
 
 " Great caution is necessary when a fox runs into a 
 village : if he is halloo'd there, get forward as fast as you 
 can. Foxes, when tired, will lie down any where, and 
 are often lost by it. A wide cast is not the best to recover 
 a tired fox with tired hounds : they should hvmt him out, 
 inch by inch, though they are ever so long about it, for 
 the reason I have just given, that he will lie down any 
 ivhere. 
 
 " In chases and forestSj where high fences are made to 
 preserve the coppices, I like to see a huntsman put only 
 a few hounds over, enough to carry on the scent, and 
 get forward with the rest : it is a proof that he knows 
 his business. 
 
 "A huntsman must take care, where foxes are in 
 plenty, that he does not run the heel ; for it frequently 
 happens, that hounds can run the wrong way of the scent 
 better than they can the right, when one is up the wind 
 and the other down. 
 
 " Fox-hunters, I think, are never guilty of the fault of 
 trying up the wind, before they have tried down. I 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 163 
 
 Kunning the Foil. 
 
 have known them lose foxes, rather than condescend to 
 try up the wind at all. 
 
 '* When a huntsman hears a halloo, and has five or 
 six couple of hounds along with him, the pack not 
 running, let him get forward with those which he has : 
 when they are on the scent, the rest will soon join them. 
 
 " Let him lift his tail hounds, and get them forward 
 after the rest : it can do no hurt. But let him be cautious 
 how he lifts any hounds to get forward before the rest : 
 it always is dangerous, and foxes are sometimes lost by it. 
 
 ** When a fox runs his foil in cover, if you suffer all 
 your hounds to hunt on the line of him, they will foil the 
 ground, and tire themselves to little purpose. I have 
 before told you, that your huntsman, at such a time, may 
 stop the tail hounds, and throw them in at head. I am 
 almost inclined to say, it is the only tune it should be 
 done. Whilst hounds run straight, it cannot be of any 
 use ; for they will get on faster with the scent than they 
 would without it. 
 
 "When hounds are hunting a cold scent, and point 
 towards a cover, let a whipper-in get forward to the op- 
 posite side of it. Should the fox break before the hounds 
 reach the cover, stop them, and get them nearer to him. 
 
 " When a fox persists in running in a strong cover, 
 lies down often behind the hounds, and they are slack in 
 hunting him, let the huntsman get into the cover to them. 
 It may make the fox break, it may keep him off his foil, 
 or may prevent the hounds from giving him up. 
 
 " When hounds are at fault, and cannot make it out 
 of themselves, let the first cast be quick ; the scent is 
 then good, nor are the hounds likely to go over it : as 
 
164 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Hounds Casting themselves. 
 
 the scent gets worse, the cast should be slower, and be 
 more cautiously made. This is an essential part of 
 hunting, and which, I am sorry to say, few huntsmen 
 attend to. I wish they would remember the following 
 rules, viz. that with a good scent, their cast should be 
 quick ; with a bad scent, slow ; and that, when the 
 hounds are picking along a cold scent, they are not to 
 cast them at all. 
 
 "When hounds are at fault, and staring about, trust- 
 ing solely to their eyes, and to their ears, the making a 
 cast with them, I apprehend, wovdd be to little purpose. 
 The likeliest place for them to find a scent, is where 
 they left it ; and when the fault is evidently in the dog, 
 a forward cast is least likely to recover the scent. 
 
 " When hounds are making a good and regular cast, 
 trying for the scent as they go, suffer not your huntsman 
 to say a word to them : it cannot do any good, and pro- 
 bably may make them go over the scent. 
 
 "When hounds come to a check, a huntsman should 
 observe the tail hounds : they are the least likely to 
 overrun the scent, and he may see by them how far they 
 brought it. In most packs there are some hounds that 
 will shew the point of the fox ; and, if attended to, will 
 direct his cast : when such hounds follow unwillingly, he 
 may be certain the rest of the pack are running without 
 the scent. 
 
 "When he casts his hounds, let him not cast wide, 
 without reason ; for of course it will take more time. 
 Huntsmen, in general, keep too forward in their casts ; 
 or, as a sailor would say, keep too long on one tacJc. 
 They should endeavour to hit off the scent by crossing 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 165 
 
 Of Casting lound Sheep. 
 
 the line of it. Two parallel lines, you know, can never 
 meet. 
 
 " When he goes to a halloo, let him be careful, lest his 
 hounds run the heel, as much time is lost by it. I once 
 saw this mistake made by a famous hvmtsman : — after we 
 had left a cover, which we had been drawing, a disturbed 
 fox was seen to go into it ; he was halloo'd, and we re- 
 turned. The huntsman, who never enquired njhere the 
 fox was seen, or on which side the cover he entered, 
 threw his hounds in at random; and, as it happened, on 
 the opposite side : they immediately took the heel of 
 him, broke cover, and hunted the scent back to his very 
 kennel. 
 
 " Different countries require different casts : such 
 huntsmen as have been used to a woodland, and inclosed 
 country, I have seen lose time in an open country, where 
 wide casts are always necessary. 
 
 " When you want to cast round a flock of sheep, the 
 whipper-in ought to drive them the other way, lest they 
 should keep running on before you. 
 
 "A fox seldom goes over or under a gate, when he 
 can avoid it. 
 
 *' Huntsmen are frequently very conceited, and very 
 obstinate. Often have I seen them, when their hounds 
 came to a check, turn directly back, on seeing hounds at 
 head, which they had no opinion of. They supposed 
 the fox was gone another way ; in which case, Mr. 
 Bayes's remark in the Rehearsal always occurs to me : 
 " that if he should not, what then becomes of their sup- 
 pose." Better, gurely, would it be, to make a short cast 
 forward first; they then might be certain the hounds 
 
166 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of obstinate Hounds and obstinate Huntsmen. 
 
 were wrong, and of course, could make their own cast 
 with greater confidence. The advantage, next to that 
 of knowing where the fox is gone, is that of knowing, 
 with certainty, where he is not. 
 
 " Most huntsmen hke to have all their hounds turned 
 after them, when they make a cast : I wonder not at 
 them for it, but I am always sorry when I see it done ; 
 for, till I find a huntsman that is infallible, I shall con- 
 tinue to think, the more my hounds spread, the better : 
 as long as they are within sight or hearing, it is sufficient. 
 Many a time have I seen an obstinate hound hit off" the 
 scent, when an obstinate huntsman, by casting the wrong- 
 way, has done all in his power to prevent it.* Two 
 foxes I remember to have seen killed in one day, by 
 skirting hounds, whilst the huntsman was making his 
 cast the contrary way. 
 
 * It is recorded, that, "in drawing a strong cover, a young bitch gave 
 tongue very freely, while none of the other hounds challenged: the whipper- 
 in rated to no purpose ; the huntsman insisted she was wrong, and the 
 whip was applied with great severity — in doing this, the lash accidentally 
 struck one of her eyes out of the socket. Notwithstanding this painful 
 situation, the bitch again took the scent, and proved herself right, for a fox 
 had stole away, and she broke cover after him unheeded and alone. How- 
 ever, after much delay and cold hunting, the pack did hit off the chase : 
 at some distance a farmer informed the sportsmen that they were far behind 
 their fox ; for that a single hound, very bloody about the head, had passed 
 a field off from him, and was running breast high, and that there was little 
 chance of their getting up to him. The pack, from her coming to a check, 
 did at length get up ; and after some cold hunting, the bitch again hit off 
 the scent : the fox was killed, after a long and severe run, and the eye of 
 the bitch, which had hung pendant during the chase, was taken off by a 
 pair of scissors after the fox was dead !" 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 167 
 
 Trying back for a Fox. 
 
 " When hounds, running in cover, come into a road, 
 and horses are on before, let tlie huntsman hold them 
 quickly on beyond where the horses have been, trying 
 the opposite side as he goes along. Should the horse- 
 men have been there long enough to have headed back 
 the fox, let them then try back. Condemn me not for 
 suftering hounds to try back, when the fox has been 
 headed back ; I recommend it at no other time. 
 
 *' When your hounds are divided into many parts, you 
 had better go off with the first fox that breaks. The 
 ground will soon get tainted, nor will hounds like a cover 
 where they are often changing. 
 
 " The heading a fox back at first, if the cover be not 
 a large one, is oftentimes of service to hounds, as he will 
 not stop, and cannot go off unseen. When a fox has 
 been hard run, I have known it turn out otherwise ; and 
 hounds that would easily have killed him out of the cover, 
 have left him in it. 
 
 " When a fox has been often headed back on one side 
 of a cover, and a huntsman knows there is not any body 
 on the other side to halloo him, the first fault his hounds 
 come to, let him cast that way, lest the fox should be 
 gone off; and if he is in the cover, he may still recover 
 him. 
 
 ''The two principal things which a huntsman has to 
 attend to, are the keeping of his hounds healthy and 
 steady. The first is attained by cleanliness and proper 
 food ; the latter, by putting as seldom as possible, any 
 unsteady ones amongst them. 
 
 " When a fox is lost, the huntsman, on his return home, 
 should examine himself, and endeavour to find in what 
 
168 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 What constitutes a Perfect Huntsman. 
 
 he might have done better ; he may by this means make 
 the very losing of a fox of use to him. 
 
 ** Sometimes you will meet with a good kennel hunts- 
 man ; sometimes an active and judicious one in the field ; 
 some are clever at finding a fox, others are better after 
 he is found ; whilst perfection in a huntsman, like per- 
 fection in any thing else, is scarcely any where to be met 
 with. 
 
 " The keeping hounds clean and healthy, and bringing 
 them into the field in their fullest vigour, is the excellence 
 of a good kennel huntsman; if besides this, he makes 
 his hounds both love and fear him ; if he is active, and 
 presses them on while the scent is good, always aiming 
 to keep as near to the fox as he can ; if, when his hounds 
 are at fault, he makes his cast with judgment, not casting 
 the wrong way first, and blundering on the right at last, 
 as many do ; if, added to this, he is patient and perse- 
 vering, never giving up a fox while there remains a 
 chance of killing him, he then is a perfect huntsman." 
 
 With regard to the whippers-in — on leaving the kennel, 
 the place of the first whipper-in is before the hounds ; 
 the second whipper-in should follow them at some little 
 distance. — The first whipper-in may be considered as a 
 second huntsman, and should possess as nearly as pos- 
 sible the same good qualities ; but acting, as he must,under 
 the direction of the huntsman, a person may fulfil the 
 duties of this office without the experience so essential 
 to a good huntsman. He must always maintain to the 
 huntsman's halloo, and stop such hounds as divide from 
 it : when stopped, he should get to the huntsman with 
 them as soon as possible. He must always be content 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 169 
 
 Anecdote of Will Dean. 
 
 to act in a subordinate capacity, except when circum- 
 stances require that he should act otherwise. If, for 
 instance, the huntsman happen to be thrown out, it is 
 the duty of the first whipper-in to supply his place. — 
 Beckford says, " I prefer an excellent Avhipper-in to an 
 excellent huntsman. The opinion I believe is new ; — I 
 must endeavour to explain it. My meaning is this, that 
 I think I should have better sport, and kill more foxes, 
 with a moderate huntsman, and an excellent whipper-in, 
 than with the best of huntsmen, without such an assist- 
 ant. You will say, perhaps, that a good huntsman will 
 make a good whipper-in ; not such a one as I mean; his 
 talent must be born with him. My reasons are, that 
 good hounds, (and I would not keep bad ones) stand 
 oftener in need of the one than the other ; and genius, 
 which in a whipper-in, if attended by obedience, his first 
 requisite, can do no hurt ; in a huntsman, is a dangerous, 
 though desirable, quality : and if not accompanied with 
 a large share of prudence, and I may s^y humility, will 
 often spoil your sport, and hurt your hounds. A gen- 
 tleman told me, he heard the famous Will Dean, when 
 his hoimds were running hard in a line with Daventry, 
 from whence they were at that time many miles distant, 
 swear exceedingly at the whipper-in, saying, " What 
 business have yoti here?" the man was amazed at the 
 question, 'W/y dont you know" said he, "and be d — 'd 
 to yon, that the great earth at Daventry is open ?" — 
 The man got forward, and reached the earth just time 
 enough to see the fox go in. If therefore whippers-in 
 are at liberty to act as they shall think right, they are 
 much less confined than the himtsman himself, wlio must 
 
 L 
 
170 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Steadiness of a Pack of Fox Hounds 
 
 follow his hounds ; and consequently they have greater 
 scope to exert their genius, if they have any." 
 
 There ai*e many sportsmen, however, who do not agree 
 in opinion with Beckford on the subject just quoted ; 
 nor can I help thinking that the success of the chase 
 depends more upon the genius of the huntsman, than 
 upon that of the first whipper-in. The making and 
 keeping the pack steady depends much upon him, as a 
 huntsman should seldom, if ever, flog a hound. When 
 a whipper-in is desirous to stop the head hounds, he 
 should, if possible, get to the head of them before he 
 attempts to stop them. Rating behind is often of little 
 use, and if they are in cover, it may prevent him from 
 ascertaining which are the culprits. When hounds are 
 running a fox, he should content himself with stopping- 
 such as are riotous, and should get them forward. " They 
 may be condemned on the spot, but the punishment 
 should be deferred till the next day, when they may be 
 taken out on purpose to commit the fault, and receive 
 the punishment." 
 
 Sometimes a whipper-in will rate young hounds, when 
 he perceives them about to commit a fault ; this may 
 prevent them for that time; but will not deter them 
 pei'haps for the future, as they will bo very likely to do 
 the same again on the first opportunity which is presented 
 to them. He should let them alone till he has completely 
 ascertained what they would be at— and he may then 
 chastise them according to the degree of the offence. If 
 when a whipper-in rate a hound, the hound pays no at- 
 tention to it, he should take him up immediately and 
 give him a severe flogging. Whippers-in are too apt to 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 171 
 
 depends much on the \Vhi|iper-in. 
 
 continue rating when tliey find rating is of no avail ; at 
 the same time, he should never strike a hound without 
 the animal being perfectly conscious for what the blow 
 has been inflicted. A blow should never be given to a 
 hound that does not deserve it ; but whenever a blow is 
 called for, it should be severely administered. 
 
 " Such hounds as are notorious offenders should also 
 feel the lash and hear a rate as they go to cover ; it may 
 be an useful hint to thein, and may prevent a severe 
 flogging afterwards. A sensible whipper-in will wait his 
 opportunity to single out his hound ; he will then hit him 
 hard, and rate him well ; whilst a foolish one will often 
 hit a dog he did not intend to strike ; will ride full gallop 
 into the midst of the hounds ; will perhaps i*ide over 
 some of the best of them, and put the whole pack into 
 confusion ! " Whenever a hound deserves the lash, the 
 whipper-in should hit him first and rate him afterwards ; 
 as a hound, if rated first, will naturally enough avoid the 
 whip, if possible. 
 
 The second whipper-in is frequently a youth, ignorant 
 in a great degree of the business of hunting ; and indeed, 
 if such an one be tractable, he will answer the purpose. 
 He should never encourage or rate a hound, but when 
 he is quite certain it is right to do so ; nor should he 
 ever get forward whilst a single hound remains behind — 
 he should be particularly careful to suffer no hound to 
 remain behind in cover. 
 
 Beckford says the first whipper-in is sometimes con- 
 ceited ; I have known instances where the second whip- 
 per-in has manifested more than a sufficient portion of 
 this baneful quality: as a specimen of which, I give the 
 
 1.2 
 
172 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Funeral of Moody, 
 
 following instance : — The Cheshire fox-hounds (Sir 
 Harry Mainwaring's) on the 31st of January, 1826, met 
 at Shavington, the seat of Lord Kilmorey. A brace of 
 foxes were found in a neighbouring plantation, one of 
 which gave us a run of nearly an hour, and was lost. 
 Another fox was found at Combermere, which afforded 
 a very good run of fifty minutes. But, prior to the con- 
 clusion of the business, Will Head's (the huntsman) horse 
 came to a stand still ; the horse of the first whipper-in 
 (Joseph Howard) was completely exhausted at the same 
 time, and took his station by the side of the huntsman's 
 horse: Henry GaiF(the second whipper-in) had his horse 
 still in a going condition. The huntsman called to him 
 to lend him his horse, when he replied, " 111 see you 
 
 d 'd first ; exultingly rode forward, and killed the 
 
 fox." 
 
 The merits of famous huntsmen have frequently been 
 recorded ; but perhaps Moody alone, as a whipper-in, 
 has been rendered immortal through the medium of the 
 press. Moody was, for thirty years, whipper-in to Mr. 
 Forrester's hounds in Shropshire. He was carried to 
 his last home by six earth stoppers, attended by many 
 friends. Directly after the coi-pse, followed his favourite 
 horse (whom he used to call Old Soul) with a fox's brush 
 at the front of the bridle ; his cap, whip, boots, &c. 
 across the saddle. After the burial service was read, 
 three view halloos were given over his grave. This 
 mode of consigning the earthly remains of Moody to the 
 grave was in consequence of his own express desire 
 while living : and the event has been commemorated by 
 the following song frf)m the pen of W. Pearce, Esq^ 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 173 
 
 the famous Whipper-in. 
 
 which was frequently sung with uncommon effect by 
 Incledon : — 
 
 You all knew Tom Moody, the Whipper-in, well: 
 
 The bell just done tolling was honest Tom's knell : 
 
 A more able sportsman ne'er follow'd a hound 
 
 Through a country, well known to him, fifty miles round s 
 
 No hound ever chnllcngd so deep in the wood, 
 
 But Tom well knew the sound, and could tell if 't was good ; — 
 
 And ALL, with attention, would eagerly mark, 
 
 When he cheer'd up the pack witli — " Hark ! Ratller ! hark! hark ! 
 
 High ! — wind him ! and cross him ! 
 
 Now, Rattler, boy ! —Hark !" 
 
 Six crafty hearth-stoppers, in hunter's-green drest, 
 Supported poor Tom to "an earth" made for rest: 
 His horse, which he styld his " Old Soul," next apjjear'd, 
 On whose forehead the brush of his last fox was rear'd ; 
 Whip, cap, boots, and spurs, in a trophy were bound ; 
 And here and there follow'd an old straggling hound. 
 Ah ! no more at his halloo yon vales will they trace ! 
 Nor the Wrekin* resound his first scream in the chase! 
 
 With " high-over ! now press him ! 
 
 Tally ho! tally ho!" 
 
 Tom thus spoke to his friends, ere he gave up his breath ; — 
 " Since I see you're rcsolv'd to be in at the death. 
 One favour bestow — 'tis the last I shall crave ; — 
 Give a rattling view halloo thrice over my grave : 
 And unless at that warning I lift up my head. 
 My boys ! you may fairly conclude I am dead !" 
 Honest Tom was obey'd, and the shout rent the sky, 
 For ev'ry voice join'd in th' enlivening cry ! 
 
 " Tally ho ! hark forward I 
 
 Tally ho! tally ho!" 
 
 # The famous mountain ja Shropshire. 
 
 l3 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Of the Time of Meeting.— Of Blood.— The Opinion of 
 the late Mr. Meynell upon the Subject of Blood, as 
 well as on Homids and Fox Hunting. — Of Draiving. — 
 Riding to Hounds, and the Manageinent of the Run. — 
 Changing Foxes.— Hounds at Fault. — Of Halloos. 
 — Bag Foxes. — Of Fox Courts. — Treatment of Cubs. 
 — Digging Foxes. — Of Badgers. 
 
 I have already made a few observations on the methods 
 of the ancient and modern schools of fox-hunting, in 
 which I have not forgotten to notice the difference of 
 the hour of meeting. It is not likely that any remarks 
 which I may offer upon this subject will have much in- 
 fluence upon what has become the general custom ; but, 
 it must be admitted that an early hour is most favourable 
 to sport. A fox is then more easily found than at a later 
 period, and the mol'ning is perhaps the time which gene- 
 rally affords best scent : blood is consequently more 
 easily obtained under such circumstances; which, ac- 
 cording to Beckford, constitutes the leading principle 
 and indeed the very essence of fox-hunting. He thus 
 expresses himself — " the whole art of fox-hunting being 
 to keep the hounds well in blood : sport is but a secon- 
 dary consideration with a true fox-hunter. The first is, 
 the killing of the fox — hence arises the eagerness of 
 pursuit and the chief pleasure of the chase. I confess 
 I esteem blood so necessary to a pack of fox-hounds, 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 175 
 
 Difi'erence of Opinion in respect to Blood. 
 
 that, with regard to myself, I ahva) s return home better 
 pleased with an indifferent chase, with death at the end 
 of it, than with the best chase possible if it ends with the 
 loss of the fox." It cannot" be denied that the death of 
 the fox is a satisfactory termination of the chase ; but, 
 on the indispensable necessity of blood to a pack of fox- 
 hounds, all fox-huntei's are not agreed. I am perfectly 
 aware that the opinion expressed by Beckford on the 
 subject of blood is generally entertained; but there has 
 been one exception at least, and that exception entitled 
 to much more than ordinary consideration : — the justly 
 celebrated Mr. Meynell, we are told, "was more indif- 
 ferent about blood than most masters of hounds." His 
 notions on the subject of fox-hunting having appeared 
 through the medium of the press, I will quote them in 
 this place for the benefit of the reader : — 
 
 " Hugo Meynell, Esq. of Quorndon, in the county of 
 Leicester, was, doubtless, the most successful sports- 
 man of his time ; producing the steadiest, wisest, best, 
 and handsomest pack of fox-hovmds in the kingdom. 
 
 " His object in breeding hounds was, to combine 
 strength with beauty, and steadiness with high mettle. 
 
 " His idea of perfection of shape was, short backs, 
 open bosoms, straight legs, and compact feet; as the 
 greatest and first considerations in form. 
 
 "The first qualities he considered were, fine noses 
 and stout runners. 
 
 " In the spring of the year he broke in his hounds at 
 hare, to find out their propensities, which, when at all 
 flagrant, they early manifested, and he drafted them ac- 
 cordinti to their defects. 
 
176 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The System of the 
 
 " After hare-hunting, they were, the remaming part 
 of the summer, daily walked amongst riot. 
 
 " When the hunting season commenced, his hounds 
 wei'e hunted in the woodlands, amidst abundance of 
 foxes, for two months. 
 
 "In the month of November, the pack was carefully 
 divided into the old and young pack. The old pack 
 consisted of three years' old and upwards ; and no two 
 years' old was admitted, except a very high opinion was 
 entertained of his virtues and abilities. 
 
 " The young hounds were hunted twice a week, as 
 much in woodlands as possible, and in the most un- 
 popular coverts. The young pack had always a few 
 couple of steady old hounds with them. 
 
 " The old pack hunted the best country. When any 
 bad faults were discovered, they were immediately draft- 
 ed, for fear of contamination. 
 
 " Skirting, over-running the scent, and babbling, were 
 the greatest faults. 
 
 " Perfections consisted of true guiders in hard run- 
 ning, and close patient hunters in a cold scent — together 
 with stoutness. 
 
 "Mr. Meynell's hounds were criticised, by himself 
 and his friends, in the most minute manner : every hound 
 had his peculiar talents, and was sure to have a fair op- 
 portunity of displaying them. Some had the remark- 
 able faculty of finding a fox, which they would do, almost 
 invariably, notwithstanding twenty or thirty couple were 
 out in the same cover ; some had the propensity to hunt 
 the doubles and short turns ; some were inclined to be 
 hard runners ; some had a i-emarkable faculty of hunting 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY 177 
 
 celebrated Hugo Mcyncll, Esq. 
 
 the drag of a fox, which they would do very late in the 
 day ; and sometimes the hardest runners were the best 
 hunters : and fortunate was the year when such excel- 
 lencies prevailed. 
 
 " Mr. Meynell prided himself on the steadiness and 
 docility of his hounds, and their hunting through sheep 
 and hares, which they did in a very superior manner. 
 He seldom, or ever, attempted to lift his hounds through 
 sheep ; and from habit, and the great flocks the hounds 
 were accustomed to, they carried the scent on most cor- 
 rectly and expeditiously, much sooner than any lifting 
 could accomplish. 
 
 " Mr. Meynell was not fond of casting hounds : when 
 once they were laid upon the line of scent, he left it to 
 them — he only encouraged them to take pains, and kept 
 aloof, so that the steam of the horses could not interfere 
 with the scent. 
 
 " When a fox was found in a gorse covert, very httle 
 noise or encouragement was made ; and, when he went 
 away, as soon as the hounds were apprised of it, they did 
 not go headlong after, but commenced very quietly — 
 settled and collected together gradually, mending their 
 pace, and accumulating their force, as they went along ; 
 completing what was emphatically termed — a terrible 
 burst ! 
 
 " When his hounds came to a check, every encourage- 
 ment was given them to recover the scent, without the 
 huntsman getting amongst them, or the whippers-in 
 driving them about, which is the common practice of 
 most packs. The hounds were halloo'd back to the 
 place where they brought the scent, and encouraged to 
 
178 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The System of the 
 
 try round in their own way, which they generally did 
 successfully ; avoiding the time lost in the mistaken 
 practice of casting the hounds at the heels of the hunts- 
 man. 
 
 " When the hounds were cast, it was in two or three 
 different lots, by Mr. Meynell, his huntsman, and whip- 
 per-in ; and not driven together in a body like a flock of 
 sheep. They were allowed to spread and use their own 
 sagacity, at a very gentle pace ; and not hurried about in 
 a blustering manner, but patiently. 
 
 " It was Mr. Meynell's opinion, that a great noise, and 
 scolding of hounds, made them wild : correcting them in 
 a quiet way was the most judicious method. 
 
 " Wliippers-in should turn hounds quietly ; and not 
 call after them in a noisy, disagreeable manner. 
 
 " When hounds are going to the cry, they should be 
 encouraged in a pleasant way : not driven and rated, as 
 if discord was a necessary ingredient in the sport and 
 music of a fine cry of hounds. Whippers-in are too apt 
 to think their own importance and consequence consists 
 in shouting, hallooing, and unnecessary activity. When 
 hounds can hear the cry, they get together sooner than 
 any whipper-in can drive them. If any hound is con- 
 ceited, and disinclined to go to the cry, he should be 
 immediately drafted. 
 
 " Should there be only one fox in cover, and two or 
 three hounds get away with him whilst the body of the 
 pack are hunting the line behind, some judicious sports- 
 man should ride to them, and view halloo for the rest of 
 the pack to join them. It is the most certain way to 
 ensure the run, and the hounds will very speedily get 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 179 
 
 celebrated Hugo Meynell, Esq. 
 
 together, when properly treated. If there are many 
 foxes in cover, and one should go away, and the hounds 
 are running m various parts, you may, if a favourable 
 opportunity presents itself, try to halloo the pack away ; 
 but do not attempt it without such favourable circum- 
 stance, as a good rummaging in cover will do the hounds 
 service. When a fox dwells in cover, and will not go 
 away, the best plan is to leave him, and not kill him ; 
 another day he may afford a good run. 
 
 *' Blood ivas a thing Mr. Meynell was more indifferent 
 about than most owners of hounds. The wildest packs 
 of hounds were known to kill the most foxes in cover, 
 but very seldom shewed good runs over a country. 
 
 " Hounds chopping foxes in cover, is more a vice than 
 a proof of their being good cover hounds. Murdering 
 foxes is a most absurd prodigality. Seasoned foxes are 
 as necessary to sport as experienced hounds. 
 
 " To obtain a good run, your hounds should not only 
 have good abilities, but they should be experienced, and 
 well acquainted with each other. To gviide a scent well 
 over a country for a length of time, and through all the 
 difficulties usually encountered, requires the best and 
 most experienced abihties : a faulty hound, or injudicious 
 rider, by one improper step, may defeat the most pro- 
 mising run. 
 
 " Gentlemen, and every person who makes hunting 
 his pursuit, should learn to ride judiciously to hounds ; 
 it is a contemplative amusement, and much good diver- 
 sion might be promoted by a few regular precautions. 
 The principal thing to attend to is, not to ride too near 
 the hounds, and always as much as possible anticipate a 
 
180 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Mr. Meynell's System. 
 
 check ; by which means, the leading men will pull their 
 horses up in time, and afford the hounds fair oppor- 
 tunity to keep the line of scent unbroken : sheep, cattle, 
 teams at plough, and arable land, are all causes of checks, 
 -ffif Thoughtless sportsmen are apt to press too much 
 on hounds, particularly down a road. Every one should 
 consider, that every check operates against the hounds, 
 and that scent is of a fleeting nature — soon lost — never 
 again to be recovered. 
 
 " Mr. Meynell's hounds had more good runs than any 
 pack of his day : two very extraordinary ones happened 
 of a very rare description : — one was a run of one hour 
 and twenty minutes, without a check, and killed their 
 fox : the other was two hours and fifty minutes, without 
 a cast, and killed. The hounds, in the first run, kept 
 well together, and only two horses performed it ; the 
 rest of the field were unequal to its fleetness : the other 
 run alluded to was performed by the whole of the pack ; 
 and though all were up at the death, two or three slack- 
 ened in their pace just at the last : one horse only went 
 the whole of it. 
 
 *' Mr. Meynell's natural taste led him to admire large 
 hounds ; but, his experience convinced him that small 
 ones were generally the stoutest, soundest, and in every 
 respect the most executive. 
 
 "Various are the attentions necessary to manage a 
 pack of hounds, and quite sufficient to engage the occu- 
 pation of an active man's mind. Should the master of 
 the hounds have other important concerns to call his 
 attention off, sensible and confidential agents and servants 
 should be chosen in every department. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 181 
 
 The Subject of Blood considered. 
 
 " Fox-hunting is manly and fine exercise, aftbrding 
 health to the body, and food for a contemplative mind ; 
 in no situation are the faculties of man more displayed. 
 Fortitude, good sense, and collectiveness of mind, have 
 a wide field for exercise ; and a sensible sportsman would 
 be a respectable character in any situation of life. 
 
 " The field is a most agreeable coffee-house, and there 
 is more real society to be met with there than in any 
 other situation of life : it links all classes together, from 
 the peer to the peasant — it is the Englishman's pecuhar 
 privilege — it is not to be found in any other part of the 
 globe, but in England's true land of liberty — and may it 
 flourish to the end of time ! " 
 
 But to return — I have already stated that an opinion 
 is generally entertained that blood is indispensable to a 
 pack of fox hounds. — If we reason by analogy on the 
 subject, we shall find that the stag hound is seldom al- 
 lowed to taste blood, and yet he continues to pursue the 
 chase with the utmost ardour ; the same remark will in 
 some degree apply to the harrier, though not to the same 
 extent ; the greyhound pursues the hare with headlong 
 impetuosity, though he is never allowed to share the 
 prize when he has obtained it ; but, if we extend this 
 reasoning to the pointer, the setter, and the spaniel, we 
 shall find that they are cautiously prevented from ever 
 tasting blood — they are taught indeed never to expect 
 it, and yet this certainly has not the effect of slackening 
 their mettle, or rendei'ing them less eager in the pursuit. 
 Even amongst fox hounds there are individuals to be 
 foimd not inclined to devour the fox ; and I have seen 
 excellent fox hounds, which, though tliey ran tlie fox in 
 
182 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Considerations on the Necessity of 
 
 tlie most gallant and determined manner imaginable, 
 Avould, nevertheless, refuse to eat him, nor indeed could 
 they ever be induced to swallow a morsel ! Young fox 
 hounds frequently testify no great desire to eat the fox, 
 though they may run into him with the utmost fury ; nor, 
 in fact, would a fox, one hour after his death, be very 
 eagerly devoured by old hoimds, accustomed to blood — 
 they would perhaps refuse him altogether. Fox hounds 
 are maddened with the pursuit — they are worked up to 
 a pitch of fury ; and unless the fox is devoured before 
 their anger is allowed to cool, they would, in all proba- 
 bility, feel but little disposed for such a repast. 
 
 Hence it might appear that the capture, and not the 
 blood, of the object of pursuit is the main stimulus to 
 that extraordinary exertion which we frequently see dis- 
 played by hounds ; and that perhaps if fox hounds were 
 left intirely to themselves, and had never been encouraged 
 to devour their game, it is doubtful whether many of 
 them ( if not the whole pack) would not be satisfied with 
 killing him. I am aware that this would not be the case 
 with stag hounds or harriers ; but it must be recollected 
 that a fox is not a very enticing delicacy, like a deer or a 
 hare, and can only be rendered a tempting morsel under 
 an extraordinary degree of excitement — under, in fact, 
 the circumstances which generally precede and attend 
 his death. 
 
 In support of this hypothesis, it may be further ob- 
 served, that a pointer or any of those dogs that are used 
 in the pursuit of winged game, however excellent they 
 may previously have been, soon become vmeasy, unruly, 
 and ultimately good for nothing, unless a reasonable 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 183 
 
 Blood to a Pack of Fox Hounds. 
 
 quantity of game be killed to them : — for instance, a 
 pointer, which, in the hands of a good shot, is a capital 
 dog, and performs his work in the best possible style, 
 will soon manifest uneasiness and disappointment, if he 
 happen to be taken out by an indifferent or bad marks- 
 man: if tlie game fall not before him, he soon loses the 
 inclination to pursue it, at least in a proper manner : and 
 hence it would clearly appear that the capture of the ob- 
 ject of pursuit is necessary to the excellence of the dog, 
 though blood is by no means indispensable, since he ea- 
 gerly pursues that which he can never expect to taste. 
 Similar remarks are applicable to the greyhound ; and 
 harriers, I am inclined to think, which seldom reach the 
 game, will never be remarkable for their excellence. — 
 The dog feels an indescribable pleasure in the gratifica- 
 tion of his master — to accomplish this he exerts his 
 powers to the utmost, and when he is conscious of having 
 accomplished it, he may be fairly supposed to be satis- 
 fied. 
 
 Fox hunters, however, in general, will have some dif- 
 ficulty in reconciUng themselves to the idea of blood not 
 being essential to a pack of fox hounds ; yet, from what 
 has been stated, it is reasonable to conclude, that, though 
 the death of the fox may be indispensable to the excel- 
 lence of the hounds, devouring him afterwards is a cir- 
 cinnstance not absolutely called for, and no further ne- 
 cessary than merely giving a better and more complete 
 finish to the business than could be otherwise accom- 
 plished. 
 
 There is a decree of interest and animation about fox 
 
184 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Enthusiasm of a Fox Chase. 
 
 hunting which fox hunters only can well understand, 
 and upon which Somervile thus expresses himself: — 
 
 " Huntsman, prepare ! Ere yet the morning peep, 
 
 Or stars retire from the first blush of day, 
 
 With thy far-echoing voice alarm thy pack. 
 
 And rouse thy bold compeers. Then to the copse, 
 
 Thiek with entangling grass, or prickly furze, 
 
 With silence, lead thy many-coloured hounds, 
 
 In all their beauty's pride. See ! how they range, 
 
 Dispers'd, how busily this way. and that, 
 
 They cross, examining with curious nose 
 
 Each likely haunt. Hark ! on the drag I hear 
 
 Their doubtful notes, preluding to a cry 
 
 More nobly full and swell'd with every mouth. 
 
 As straggling armies, at the trumpet's voice, 
 
 Press to their standard, hither all repair, 
 
 And hurry through the woods; with hasty step 
 
 Rustling, and full of hope ; now driven on heaps 
 
 They push, they strive ; while from his kennel sneaks 
 
 The conscious villain. See ! he skulks along. 
 
 Sleek at the shepherd's cost, and plump with meals 
 
 Puiloin'd : so thrive the wicked here below. 
 
 Though high his brush he bear, though tipt with white 
 
 It gaily shine ; yet ere the sun declin'd 
 
 Recal the shades of night, the pamper'd rogue 
 
 Shall rue his fate revers'd ; and at his heels 
 
 Behold the just avenger, swift to seize 
 
 His forfeit head, and thirsting for his blood. 
 
 Heavens! what melodious strains ! how beat our hearts , 
 Big with tumultuous joy ! the loaded gales 
 Breathe harmony ; and as the tempest drives 
 From wood to wood, through every dark recess 
 The forest thunders, and the mountains shake. 
 The chorus swells ; less various, and less sweet, 
 The thrilling notes, when in those very groves, 
 The feather'd choristers salute the spring. 
 And every bush in concert joins ; or when 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 185 
 
 The Fox Chase. 
 
 The master's band, in modulated air, 
 Bids the loud organ breathe, and all the powers 
 Of music in one instrument combine. 
 An universal minstrelsy. And now 
 In vain each earth he tries, the doors are barr'd 
 Impregnable, nor is the covert safe ; 
 He pants for purer air ! Hark ! what loud shouts 
 Re-echo tlirough the groves ! he breaks away. 
 Shrill boms proclaim his flight. Each straggling hound 
 Strains o'er tbc lawn to reach the distant pack. 
 'Tis triumph all and joy. Now, my brave youths, 
 Now give a loose to the clean generous steed ; 
 Flourish the whip, nor spare the galling spur ; 
 But, in the madness of delight, forget 
 Your fears. Far o'er the rocky hills we range, 
 And dangerous our course; but in the brave 
 True courage never fails. In vain the stream 
 In foaming eddies whirls ; in vain the ditch 
 Wide gaping threatens death. The craggy steep, 
 Where the poor dizzy shepherd crawls with care, 
 And clings to every twig, gives us no pain ; 
 But down we sweep, as stoops the fakon bold 
 To pounce his prey. Then up th' opponent hill. 
 By the swift motion flung, we mount aloft. 
 What lengths we pass ! where will the wandering chase 
 Lead us bewildered ! smooth as swallows skim 
 The new-shorn mead, and far more swift, we fly. 
 See my brave pack ; how to the head they press, 
 Jostling in close array, then more diffuse 
 Obliquely wheel, while from their opening mouths 
 The voUied tli under breaks. Now far behind 
 The hunter crew, wide-straggling o'er the plain ! 
 The panting courser now with trembling nerves 
 Begins to reel ; urg'd by the goring spur, 
 Makes many a faint effort: he snorts, he foams. 
 The big round drops run trickling down his sides, 
 With sweat and blood distain'd. Look back and view 
 The strange confusion of the vale below, 
 M 
 
186 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Fox Chase. 
 
 Where sour vexation reigns; see }'on poor jade, 
 
 In vain th' impatient rider frets and swears ; 
 
 With galling spurs harrovps his mangled sides ; 
 
 He can no more : his stiff unpliant limbs 
 
 Rooted in earth, unmov'd and fix'd he stands, 
 
 For every cruel curse returns a groan, 
 
 And sobs, and faints, and dies. 
 
 While these, with loosen'd reins and dangling heels, 
 
 Hang on their reeling palfreys, that scarce bear 
 
 Their weights : another in the treacherous bog 
 
 T/ies floundering, half ingulf 'd. What biting thoughts 
 
 Torment th' abandon'd crew ! Old age laments 
 
 His vigour spent : the tall, plump, brawny youth 
 
 Curses his cumberous bulk ; and envies now 
 
 The short pygmaean race, he whilom kenn'd 
 
 With pi'oud insulting leer. A chosen few 
 
 Alone the sport enjoy, nor droop beneath 
 
 Their pleasing toils. Here, huntsman, from this height 
 
 Observe yon birds of prey : if I can judge, 
 
 'Tis there the villain lurks : they hover round 
 
 And claim him as their own. Was I not right? 
 
 See ! there he creeps along ; his brush he drags, 
 
 And sweeps the mire impure; from his wide jaws 
 
 His tongue unmoisten'd hangs ; symptoms too sure 
 
 Of sudden death. Ha ! yet he flies, nor yields 
 
 To black despair. But one loose more, and all 
 
 His wiles are vain. Hark ! through yon village now 
 
 The rattling clamour rings. The barns, the cots, 
 
 And leafless elms return the joyous sounds. 
 
 Through every homestall, and through every yard. 
 
 His midnight walks, panting, forlorn, he flies ; 
 
 Through every hole he sneaks, through every jakes 
 
 Plunging he wades besmear'd, and fondly hopes 
 
 In a superior stench to lose his own : 
 
 But, faithful to the track, th' unerring hounds 
 
 With peals of echoing vengeance close pursue. 
 
 And now distress'd, no sheltering covert near, 
 
 Into tlie hen roost crpcj>s, whose walls witli gore 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 187 
 
 The Huntsman should draw up the Wind. 
 
 Distain'd attest his guilt. There, villain, there 
 Expect thy fate deserv'd. And soon from thence 
 The pack inquisitive, with clamour loud, 
 Drag out their trembling prize ; and on his blood 
 With greedy transport feast." — Somervile. 
 
 I agree with Beckford that the huntsman should, 
 generally speaking, draw quietly, and up the wind : the 
 following are his observations on the subject: — "With 
 regard to drawing quietly, that may depend on the kind 
 of cover which he is drawing, and also on the season of 
 the year. If your covers are small, or such from which 
 a fox cannot break unseen, then noise can do no hurt ; if 
 you draw at a late hour, and when there is no drag, then 
 the more the cover is disturbed the better ; the more 
 likely you are to find. Late in the season, the foxes 
 are generally wild, particularly in covers that are often 
 hunted. If you do not draw quietly, he will get off a 
 long way before you : when you have any suspicion of 
 this, send on a whipper-in to the opposite side of the 
 cover, before you throw in your hounds. With regard 
 to the drawing up the wind, that is much more material. 
 You never fail to give the wind to a pointer or a setter 
 — why not to a hound ? — Besides the fox, if you draw 
 up the wind, does not hear you coming ; and your hounds, 
 by this means, are never out of your hearing ; moreover, 
 if he turns down the wind, as most probably he will, it 
 lets them all in." 
 
 Speaking of gentlemen who ride after hounds, the 
 same writer observes, that few of them are sportsmen. 
 " Few gentlemen, (says he) will take any pains, few of 
 them will stop a hound, though he should run riot close 
 
 m2 
 
188 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 01 Riding to Hounds. 
 
 by the side of them, or will place themselves for a mo- 
 ment, though it be to halloo a fox ; it is true, they will 
 not fail to halloo if he comes in their way, and they will 
 do the same to as many foxes as they see. Some will 
 encourage hounds which they do not know ; it is a great 
 fault : were every gentleman who follows hounds to fancy 
 himself a huntsman, what noise, what confusion, would 
 ensue ! I consider many of them as gentlemen riding out, 
 knd I am never so well pleased as when I see them riding 
 home again. You may perhaps have thought that I 
 wished them all to be huntsmen. Most certainly not ; 
 but the more assistance a huntsman has, the better, in 
 all probability, his hounds will be. Good sense, and a 
 little observation, will soon prevent such people from 
 doing amiss ; and I hold it as almost an invariable rule in 
 hunting, that those who do not know how to do good, 
 are always liable to do harm : there is scarcely an instant 
 during the whole chase, when a sportsman ought not to 
 be in one particular place : and I will venture to say, that 
 if he is not tliere^ he might as well be in his bed." Not- 
 withstanding the above assertion that the more assistance 
 a huntsman receives the better, I am of opinion that the 
 huntsman should be as little interfered with as possible. 
 I have generally observed, that those gentlemen who are 
 the most busy and forward in giving advice seldom un- 
 derstand the business sufficiently, to render it acceptable 
 or pleasing. Nothing can be more obvious than the 
 situation in which gentlemen should place themselves 
 during the run, as no person but the huntsman and his 
 assistants should be within a certain space of the hounds : 
 it is true, when the scent is good, those who are not well 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 189 
 
 Of Hounds running well up to their Vox. 
 
 mounted, will not easily keep their proper places with 
 modern fox hoimds ; yet, by falling behind, they only 
 lose the delight of the chase, and cannot possibly do any 
 injury to the hunting of the hounds. However, it very 
 frequently happens, when a fox is viewed away, that 
 impetuous and thoughtless sportsmen are apt to ride 
 after him instead of following the hounds : nothing can 
 be more vexatious to a good sportsman than to see the 
 scent thus ridden over, the hounds prevented from 
 settling to it, and the run frequently spoiled. On bad 
 scenting days, fonvard sportsmen are a great plague to 
 the huntsman, and are highly detrimental to the sport 
 by riding too close upon and pressing the hounds. When 
 the scent is good, and the hounds have got fairly away, 
 there is little or nothing to fear from the sportsmen just 
 alluded to, as it is then seldom in their power to do any 
 serious mischief. 
 
 If the scent is good, hounds cannot well be pressed on 
 too much ; but this is the huntsman's duty, and not the 
 business of the gentlemen who follow the hounds. If 
 hounds can run well up to their fox at the commence- 
 ment or in the early part of the chase, there is every 
 reason to anticipate a satisfactory conclusion ; but if the 
 fox is suffered to get far a-head, he will regulate his 
 pace, according to circumstances, and will most likely 
 beat the hounds. A fox should, if possible, be blown at 
 first, when his death is almost sure to follow. A fox, 
 no doubt, like the hounds, after some time, gets second 
 wind, when his pace becomes well regulated and steady ; 
 if, at this period, he be far before the hounds, the business 
 
 m3 
 
190 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 style of Fox Hounds running. 
 
 will be much protracted, and will most likely end in the 
 loss of the fox. 
 
 If, however, hounds should be pressed when the scent 
 is good, they should not be hurried when it is bad. 
 "Most fox-hunters wish to see their hounds run in a good 
 style. I confess I am myself one of those. I hate to see 
 a string of them, nor can I bear to see them creep where 
 they can leap. It is the dash of the fox hound which 
 distinguishes Mm as truly as the motto of William of 
 Wickham distinguishes us. A pack of harriers, if they 
 have time, will kill a fox ; but I defy them to kill him in 
 the style in which a fox ought to be killed ; they must 
 hunt him down. If you are to tire him out, you must 
 expect to be tired yourself also : I never wish a chase 
 to be less than one hour, or to exceed two : it is suffi- 
 ciently long, if properly followed." Hounds, after five 
 or six seasons running, frequently do more harm than 
 good : too many old hounds should not be kept, if the 
 pack are expected to run well together ; and every hound 
 that is off the scent, or behind the rest, should not fail 
 to come to a halloo. 
 
 Changing foxes is a very unpleasant occurrence ; nor 
 is it possible always to guard against it. " Could a fox 
 hound (says Beckford) distinguish a hunted fox, as the 
 deer hound does the deer that is blown, fox-hunting 
 would then be perfect." On this subject Beckford does 
 not seem to be well infomied : he does not seem to be 
 aware that this distinction arises rather fi-om the capacity 
 of the hound than the scent of the objects of pursuit ; 
 since there is every reason to believe that the scent of 
 the fox is stronger and more obvious than that of the 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 191 
 
 Of the Olfactory Organs of the Fox Hound. 
 
 deer. The deer hounds formerly in use were nearly 
 alhed to the old Talbot ; the}' possessed exquisite olfac- 
 tory organs, and were thus enabled to distinguish and 
 pursue the very scent upon which they were first laid ; 
 but some of the modern deer hounds, those of the Earl 
 of Derby, for instance, would not be able to do it, as 
 they have not the requisite capacity — they are high-bred 
 fleet hounds, (fox hounds in appearance) and could no 
 more distinguish the hunted deer, were another to cross 
 them, than the fox hound is able to recognize the scent 
 of a fresh fox : while it may be justly observed, that if 
 the fox hound possessed similar olfactory organs to those 
 which distinguished the stag hound of old, he would be 
 able to distinguish a fresh fox from the hunted fox. 
 Could the olfactory organs of the Talbot, or something 
 like them, be united with the speed of the modern fox 
 hoimd, fox-hunting, to use the words of Beckford, 
 " would then be perfect." 
 
 When hounds come to a check, there should be as 
 little noise as possible. At this time whippers-in are 
 frequently coming on with the tail hounds. Tliey should 
 never halloo to them when the liounds are at fault ; the 
 least thing is injurious at such a time ; but a halloo more 
 than any other. When hounds come to a check, gen- 
 tlemen should stop their horses some distance behind ; 
 they should be careful not to ride over the scent, nor 
 should they ever meet a hound in the face, unless with a 
 design to stop hun. If a gentleman at any time happen 
 to be before the hounds, he should turn his horse's head 
 the way they are going, get out of the way, and let them 
 pass. In dry weather foxes will sometimes run the roads : 
 
192 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Fox Hoiincis coining to a Fault. 
 
 if gentlemen, at such a time, ride close upon the hounds, 
 they may drive them miles without any scent ; as fox 
 hounds are seldom inclined to stop whilst horses are 
 close upon them. 
 
 The first moment hoinids come to a fault is a critical 
 one. Gentlemen should then be very attentive. Those 
 who look forward may possibly see the fox ; or the move- 
 ments of crows, magpies, or sheep may afford some 
 tidings of him. A halloo may be heard, and nothing 
 that can give any intelhgence at such a time as this, 
 should be neglected : but caution is requisite in going to 
 a halloo. " The halloo itself must in a great measure 
 direct you ; and though it affords no certain rule, you 
 may frequently guess by it, whether it is to be depended 
 on or not. At the sowing time, when boys are bird 
 keeping, if you are not very much on your guard, their 
 halloo will sometimes deceive you. It is best, when you 
 are in doubt, to send on a whipper-in to know ; the worst 
 then that can befal you is the loss of a little time; 
 whereas, if you gallop away with the hounds to the halloo, 
 and are obliged to return, it is a chance if they try for 
 the scent afterwards : on the other hand, if you are 
 certain of the halloo, and intend going to it, then the 
 sooner you get to it the better. Huntsmen who are slow 
 at getting to a halloo are void of common sense. They 
 frequently commit ailbther fault by being in too great a 
 hurry when they get there. It is hardly credible how 
 much our eagerness is apt, at such a time, to mislead 
 our judgment : for instance, when we get to the halloo, 
 the first questions are naturally enough — Did you see 
 the fox ? — which way did he go ? The man points with 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 193 
 
 Of Halloos and Tired Foxes. 
 
 his finger perhaps, and then away you all ride as fast as 
 you can ; and in such a hurry, that not one will stay to 
 hear the answer which you were all so desirous of 
 knowing : the general consequence of which is, you 
 mistake the place, and are obliged to return to the man 
 for better information. Depend upon it the less hurry 
 you are in on this occasion, the less time you lose ; and 
 wherever the fox was seen for a certainty, whether near 
 or distant, that will not only be the surest, but also the 
 best, place to take the scent. 
 
 " Once a man hallooed us back a mile (says Beckford) 
 only to tell us that we were right before ; and we lost 
 the fox by it." 
 
 Hounds ought not to be cast as long as they are able 
 to hunt ; and though it is a good maxim for a fox-himter 
 to suppose that a hunted fox never stops, that he may 
 be active and lose no time, yet tired foxes must stop 
 somewhere ; and I once recollect observing one lying on 
 a dunghill, in a farm yard, amongst the pigs. He had 
 been run for more than one hour and a half, and the 
 hounds came in full cry up to a farm yard, when they 
 could no longer make out the scent. A gentleman posi- 
 tively declared that he saw the fox go through the stack 
 yard and make off, and was anxious that the huntsman 
 should proceed in that direction : the latter, however, 
 appeared very doubtful of the correctness of this infor- 
 mation, and after casting his hounds round the buildings, 
 became convinced that renard had not gone forward. 
 On examining the farm yard, he was found to have 
 placed himself in the midst of the pigs on the dunghill, 
 where he lay completely exhausted. A tired fox ought 
 
194 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Cold Hunting, coming to a Check, &c. 
 
 not easily to be given up, since he has been known some- 
 times to lie down in cart ruts, and to get up very unex- 
 pectedly in the midst of the hounds. 
 
 When hounds are at cold hunting with a bad scent, 
 a whipper-in may be sent forward : if he can see the fox, 
 a little mobbing, as Beckford says, at such a time as 
 this, may be reasonably allowed. When hounds come 
 to a check on a high road, by the fox being headed back, 
 if, in that case the hounds are suffered to try back, it 
 gives them the best chance of hitting off the scent again. 
 
 When hounds are running in cover, the sportsmen 
 should be as quiet as possible. If renard be near his 
 end — if he be running short, and the hounds are catching 
 at him, not a word should be spoken : this is a difficult 
 time for hounds, as the fox is continually turning, and 
 will sometimes lie down, and let them pass him. A fox 
 is more likely to be lost, when first found, and when he 
 is sinking, than at any other period : at these times, he 
 will frequently run short, and the eagerness of the hounds 
 is apt to carry them beyond the scent. 
 
 In regard to halloos, it may be observed that those 
 who have good voices are too apt to use them. When 
 a fox is hallooed, those who understand the business, 
 and get forward, may halloo him again ; yet they should 
 recollect that, if the hounds go the contrary way, and do 
 not seem to come on upon the line of him, to halloo no 
 more, as it is tolerably evident he has not seen the hunted 
 fox, though most persons are willing to persuade them- 
 selves that whatever fox they see must be the hunted fox 
 and no other. Halloos of encouragement to the leading 
 liounds, if injudiciously given, are highly injurious; hut 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 195 
 
 Hounds should not be too much used to Halloos. 
 
 such halloos as get on the tail hounds, or serve to keep 
 the hounds together, are always useful. View halloos 
 are prejudicial — in a strong cover, full of foxes, for 
 instance — if, under such circumstances, view halloos are 
 frequently given, hounds will not take the requisite 
 trouble in hunting. 
 
 While hounds are running with a good scent, they 
 should never be taken off to go to a halloo ; but, under 
 other circumstances, when the fox, for instance, is a great 
 distance ahead, such a step may be very advisable. 
 When the fox persists in running his foil, the tail hounds 
 may be thrown in at head ; as such foxes are difficult to 
 kill ; and it frequently happens that, the longer you hunt 
 after such foxes, the further you are behind them. Such 
 a manoeuvre will most likely put renard out of his pace, 
 or off his foil ; and whenever it is resorted to, the 
 whipper-in should stop the pack from hunting after, and 
 get forward with them to the huntsman. 
 
 If hounds, however, are often used to halloos, they 
 will expect them, and may trust to their ears and eyes in 
 preference to their noses. If they are often taken from 
 the scent, it teaches them to shuffle, and will probably 
 make them slack in cover : halloos, therefore, should be 
 used with due circumspection, and never employed 
 vmnecessarily. Whilst hounds can get well on with the 
 scent, it is not advisable to take them off from it ; but 
 when they are stopped for want of it, in such case it 
 cannot be wrong to assist them as much as possible. 
 
 Hounds should not be suffered to hunt after other 
 hounds that are gone on with the scent, since they are 
 not likely to get up with a worse scent. Besides, it makes 
 
196 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Fox Hounds being left to themselves. 
 
 them tie on the scent, to run dog, and destroys that most 
 essential quality in the fox hoimd, an eagerness to get 
 forward. If the head hounds happen to get away from 
 the huntsman, he should sink the wind with the rest of 
 the pack, in order to reach the leading hounds as soon 
 as possible : when, however, a single hound is gone on 
 with the scent, it is best to send forward a whipper-in to 
 stop him ; were the pack to be taken off the scent to get 
 to him, and he should no longer have any scent when 
 they reach him, it is very hkely the fox would be lost by it. 
 Skirting is a bad quality either in men or dogs. Those 
 sportsmen who skirt to save their horses or themselves, 
 are very liable to head the fox. " I cannot (says Beck- 
 ford) subscribe to the doctrine that a pack of fox hounds, 
 if left to themselves, would never lose a fox ;" yet it is 
 probable that if fox hounds were left to themselves, they 
 would miss few foxes. There are, in every pack, line 
 himting hounds that will not come on but with the scent — 
 they perseveringly proceed on the line of the fox ; the 
 brilliant running hounds are perfectly aware of this cir- 
 cumstance, as when their impetuosity has hurried them 
 beyond the scent, they lean as naturally as possible to 
 the line hunting hounds, and thus recover it. If, how- 
 ever, foxes would seldom be missed by hounds, if left to 
 themselves, the run would generally be tedious, and the 
 foxes would be killed in a style inconsistent with the 
 spu'it of the diversion. When the scent is good, fox 
 hounds require but little assistance from the huntsman, 
 nor are the most eager horsemen able to accomplish 
 much mischief; but when the atmosphere is unfavour- 
 able, hounds, by imprudent sportsmen, are often hurried 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 197 
 
 Change of Country injurious to Hounds. 
 
 beyond the scent ; while the steam, issuing in vokimes 
 from the horses, mixed with the hounds, must be highly 
 prejudicial to the sport. 
 
 If covers are much disturbed, foxes will be in a state 
 of alarm, and will break as soon as they hear a hound, 
 and sometimes before. Such foxes seldom return ; and 
 if you can get well away with one, a good run will most 
 likely follow. On such occasions a whipper-in should be 
 posted to halloo one away, upon which the hoimds 
 should be immediately laid. 
 
 Hounds should be as little used to change of country 
 as possible. Should they change from a good scenting 
 country to a bad one, they will most likely be some time 
 without killing a fox. Hounds have a decided advantage 
 in a country with which they are familiar : they know 
 where to find their game ; and they will pursue more 
 eagerly when it is found. 
 
 Beckford says, " no good country should be hunted 
 after February ; nor should there be any hunting at all 
 after March. Spring hunting is sad destruction of foxes : 
 in one week you may destroy as many as would have 
 shewn you sport during a whole season. We killed a 
 bitch fox one morning, with seven young ones, which 
 were all alive : I can assure you we missed them very 
 much the next year, and had many blank days, which 
 we need not have had, but through our own fault. If 
 you should hunt late in the season, you should at least 
 leave your terriers behind you." Fox-hunting, however, 
 is seldom given up till the middle or latter end of Ajn-il, 
 and in some places it is customary to kill a May fox. 
 With regard to the bitch fox just mentioned, had she 
 
198 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Injurious Consequences of late Hunting. 
 
 been killed at an early period of the season, it would have 
 produced precisely the same effect, though the mischief 
 would have been less obvious. When bitch foxes are 
 heavy (in a state of gestation) they are very ill calculated 
 to stand up before hounds : however, the death of such 
 may, with proper management, be generally avoided. 
 But I am no advocate for late hunting ; nor indeed are 
 hounds able to hunt in hot weather, neither are horses 
 able to follow them. In 1825, the month of April, or at 
 least the greater part of it, was remarkably warm: I 
 recollect, on this occasion, one of the best packs in Eng- 
 land (Sir Harry Mainwaring's) being unable to hunt. I 
 would never have a single fox unnecessarily destroyed. 
 Huntsmen are anxious for a great display of foxes' 
 heads — to kill so many brace — but they should never be 
 suffered to commit miu'der. 
 
 " I told you, (says Beckford) I believe, at the begin- 
 ning of our correspondence, that I disliked bag foxes ; 
 I shall now tell you what my objections to them are : — 
 the scent of them is different from that of other foxes : 
 it is too good, and makes hounds idle ; besides, in the 
 manner in which they are generally turned out, it makes 
 hounds very wild. They seldom fail to know what you 
 are going about before you begin, and if often used to hunt 
 bag foxes, will become riotous enough to run any thing. 
 A fox that has been confined long in a small place, and 
 carried out afterwards many miles perhaps, in a sack, 
 his own ordure hanging about him, must needs stink 
 extravagantly. You are also to add to this account, 
 that he most probably is weakened for want of his natural 
 food and usual exercise ; his spirit broken by despair. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 199 
 
 Of Bag Foxes and Breeding Cubs. 
 
 and his limbs stiffened by confinement : he then is turned 
 out in open ground, without any point to go to. He 
 runs down the wind, it is true ; but he is so much at a 
 loss all the while, that he loses a deal of time in not 
 knowing what to do ; while the hounds, who have no 
 occasion to hunt, pursue as closely as if they were tied 
 to him. If, notwithstanding these objections, you still 
 choose to turn one out, turn him into a small cover, give 
 him what time you judge necessary, and lay on your 
 hovmds as quietly as you can ; and^ if it be possible, let 
 them think they find him. If you tiu'n out a fox for 
 ])lood, I should, in that case, prefer the turning him into 
 a large cover, first drawing it well, to prevent a change. 
 The hounds should then find themselves ; and the sooner 
 he is killed the better. Fifteen or twenty minutes is as 
 long as I should ever wish a bag fox to run, that is de- 
 signed for blood : the hounds should then go home. 
 
 " Bag foxes always run down the wind : such sports- 
 men, therefore, as choose to turn them out, may at the 
 same time choose what country they shall run. Foxes 
 that are found, do not follow this rule invariably. Strong 
 earths and large covers are great inducements to them, 
 and it is no inconsiderable wind that will keep them from 
 them. 
 
 " If you breed up cubs, you will find a fox court neces- 
 sary : they should be kept there till they are large enough 
 to take care of themselves. It ought to be open at the 
 top and walled in. I need not tell you that it must be 
 every way well secured, and particularly the floor of it, 
 which must be either bricked or paved. A few boards 
 fitted to the corners will also be of use to shelter and to 
 
500 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Breeding and Rearing Cubs. 
 
 hide them. Foxes ought to be kept very clean, and have 
 plenty of fresh water : birds and rabbits are their best 
 food : horse flesh might give them the mange ; for they 
 are subject to this disorder. 
 
 '^ I have kept foxes too long : I also have turned them 
 out too young. The safest way, I believe, will be to 
 avoid either extreme. When cubs are bred in an earth 
 near you, if you add two or three to the number, it is 
 not improbable that the old fox will take care of them. 
 Of this you may be certain, that if they live they will be 
 good foxes ; for the others will show them the country. 
 Those which you turn into an earth should be regularly 
 fed. If they are once neglected, it is probable they will 
 forsake the place, wander away, and die for want of food. 
 When the cubs leave the earth (which they may soon do) 
 your gamekeeper should throw food for them in parts 
 of the cover where it may be most easy for them to find 
 it ; and when he knows their haunt, he should continue 
 to feed them there. Nothing destroys so much the 
 breed of foxes, as buying them to turn out ; unless care 
 is taken of them afterwards. 
 
 " Your country being extensive, probably it may not 
 be all equally good : it may be worth your while, there- 
 fore, to remove some of the cubs from one part of it into 
 the other : it is what I frequently do myself, and find it 
 answer. A fox court, therefore, is of great use : it 
 should be airy, or I would not advise you to keep them 
 long in it. I turned out one year ten brace of cubs, 
 most of which, by being kept till they were tainted before 
 they were turned out, were found dead in the covers, 
 with scarce any hair upon them : whilst a brace, which 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 201 
 
 Of Diseased or Mangy Cubs. 
 
 had made their escape by making a hole in the sack in 
 which they Mere brought, lived, and showed excellent 
 sport. If the cubs are large, you may turn them out 
 immediately : — a large earth will be the best for that pur- 
 pose, where they shovdd l)e regularly fed with rabbits, 
 birds, or sheep's henges, whichever you can most con- 
 veniently get. I believe, when a fox is once tainted, he 
 never recovers it. The weather being remarkably hot, 
 those that I kept irrmy fox court (which at that time 
 was a very close one) all died, one after the other, of the 
 same disorder. 
 
 " Where rabbits are plentiful, iiature will soon teach 
 them how to catch the young ones ; and, till that period 
 of abundance arrives, it may be necessary to provide 
 food for them. Where game is scarce, wet weather will 
 be most favourable to them : they can then live on bee- 
 tles, chaffers, worms, &c. which they will find great 
 plenty of. I think the morning is the best time to turn 
 them out : if turned out in the evening, they will be more 
 likely to r;imble ; but if turned out early, and fed on the 
 earth, I think there is little doubt of their remaining 
 there. I also recommend to you to turn them into large 
 covers and strong earths: out of small earths they are 
 more liable to be stolen, and from small covers are more 
 likely to wander away. Your gamekeepers, at this time 
 of the year, having little else to do, may feed and take 
 care of them. When you stop any of these earths, re- 
 member to have them opened again, as I have reason to 
 think I lost some young foxes one year by not doing it. 
 For your own satisfaction, put a private mark on every 
 fox which you turn out, tbat you may know him again. 
 
 N 
 
'202 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Purchasing Foxes condemned. 
 
 Your cvibs, though they may get off from the covers 
 where they were bred, when hunted, will seldom fail to 
 return to them. 
 
 " Gentlemen who buy foxes do great injury to fox- 
 hunting : they encourage the robbing of neighbouring 
 hunts ; in which case, without doubt, the receiver is as 
 bad as the thief. It is the interest of every fox-hunter 
 to be cautious how he behaves in this particular: indeed, 
 I believe most gentlemen are so ; %nd it may be easy to 
 retaliate on such as are not. I am told, that in some 
 hunts it is the constant employment of one person to 
 watch the earths at the breeding time, to prevent the 
 cubs from being stolen. Furze covers cannot be too 
 much encouraged, for that reason ; for there they are 
 safe. They have also other advantages attending them : 
 they are certain places to find in : foxes cannot break 
 from them unseen ; nor are you so liable to change as in 
 other covers. 
 
 " With respect to the digging of foxes that you run 
 to ground, — what I myself have observed in that busi- 
 ness I will endeavour to recollect. My people usually, 
 I think, follow the hole, except when the earth is large, 
 and the terriers have fixe'd the fox in an angle of it ; for 
 they then find it a more expeditious method to sink a 
 pit as near to him as they can. You should always keep 
 a terrier in at the fox ; for if you do not, he not only may 
 move, but also, in loose ground, may dig himself further 
 in. In digging, you should keep room enough ; and 
 care should be taken not to throw the earth whence you 
 may have to move it again. In following the hole, the 
 surest way not to lose it is to keep below it. — When 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 203 
 
 Of Digging Foxes. 
 
 your hounds are in v\ ant of blood, stop all the holes, lest 
 the fox should bolt out unseen. It causes no small eon- 
 fusion when this happens. The hounds are dispersed 
 about, and asleep in different places : the horses are 
 often at a considerable distance ; and many a fox, by 
 taking advantage of this favoiu'able moment, has saved 
 his life. 
 
 " If hounds are in want of blood, and they have had 
 a long run, it is the best way, without doubt, to kill the 
 fox upon the earth ; but if they have not run long, if 
 the fox is easy to be digged, and the cover is such a one 
 as they are not likely to change in, it does the hounds 
 more good to turn him out upon the earth, and let 
 them work for him. It is the blood that will dp them 
 most good, and may be serviceable to the hounds, to 
 the horses, and to yourself. Digging a fox is cold 
 work, and may i*equire a gallop afterwards to warm you 
 all again. Before you do this, if there are any other 
 earths in the cover, they should be stopped, lest the 
 fox should go to ground again. 
 
 " Let your huntsman try all around, and let him be 
 perfectly satisfied that the fox is not gone on, before you 
 try an earth : for want of this precaution, I dug three 
 hours to a terrier that lay all the time at a rabbit : there 
 was another circumstance which I am not likely to forget, 
 — ' that I had twenty miles to ride home afterwards.' 
 A fox sometimes runs over an earth, and does not go 
 into it : he sometimes goes in, and does not stay : he 
 may find it too hot, or may not like the company he 
 meets with there. 1 make no doubt that he has good 
 
204 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Mciliod of Drawing a Fox. 
 
 reasons for every tiling he does, though we are not 
 always acquainted with them. 
 
 " Huntsmen, when they get near the fox, will some- 
 times put a hound in to draw him. This is, however, a 
 cruel operation, and seldom answers any other purpose 
 than to occasion the dog a bad bite, the fox's head gene- 
 rally being towards him ; besides, a few minutes digging 
 will make it unnecessary. If you let the fox first seize 
 your whip, the hound will draw him more readily. 
 
 " You should not encourage badgers in your woods : 
 they make strong earths, which will be expensive and 
 troublesome to you to stop, or fatal to your sport if 
 you do not. You, without doubt, remember an old 
 Oxford toast : 
 
 " Hounds stouf, and horses healthy, 
 Earths welt slopj/d, and foxes plenty. 
 
 All certainly very desirable to a fox-hunter; yet I 
 apprehend the earths stopped to be the most necessary ; 
 for the others, without that, would be useless. Besides, 
 I am not certain that earths are the safest places for 
 foxes to breed in ; for frequently, when poachers cannot 
 dig them, they will catch the young foxes in trenches, 
 dug at the mouth of the hole, which I believe they call 
 timning them. A few large earths near to your house 
 are certainly desirable, as they will draw the foxes thither, 
 and, after a long day, will sometimes bring you home. 
 
 " If foxes are bred in an earth which you think unsafe, 
 yovi had better stink them out : that, or indeed any dis- 
 turbance at the mouth of the hole, Avill make the old one 
 carry them off to another place. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 205 
 
 OfTcrriers best suited lor l'"ox Huntiii;:. 
 
 " In open countries, foxes, when they are much dis- 
 turbed, will lie at earth. If you have difficulty in finding, 
 stinking the earths will sometimes produce them again. 
 The method which I use to stink an earth is as follows : — 
 Three pounds of sulphur and one pound of assafoetida 
 are boiled up together ; matches are then made of brown 
 paper, and lighted in the holes, which are afterwards 
 stopped very close. Earths that are not used by badgers 
 may be stopped early, which will answer the same pur- 
 pose ; but where badgers frequent it would be useless, 
 as they would open them again. 
 
 " Badgers may be caught alive in sacks, placed at the 
 mouth of the hole : setting traps for them would be 
 dangerous, as you might catch your foxes also. They 
 may be caught by stinking them out of a great earth, 
 and afterwards following them to a smaller one, and 
 digging them. 
 
 "lour country requires a good terrier. I should 
 prefer the black or white terrier : some there are so like 
 a fox, that awkward people frequently mistake one for 
 the other. If you like terriers to run with your pack, 
 large ones, at times, are useful ; but in an earth they do 
 but little good, as they cannot always get up to the fox. 
 You had better not enter a young terrier at a badger : 
 young terriers have not the art of shifting like old ones ; 
 and, if they are good for any thing, most probably will 
 go up boldly to him at once, and get themselves most 
 terribly bitten : for this reason, you should enter them 
 at young foxes when you can. 
 
 " Besides the digging of foxes, by which method many 
 young ones are taken and old ones destroyed, traps, &c. 
 
 N li 
 
206 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Fox Hunting superior to all other Diversions. 
 
 too often are fatal to tliem. Farmers, for their lambs 
 (which, by the bye, few foxes ever kill), gentlemen for 
 their game, and old women for their poultry, are their 
 inveterate enemies. 
 
 " Fox-hunting, an acquaintance of mine says, is only 
 followed because you can ride hard, and do less harm in 
 that than in any other hunting. There may be some 
 truth in the observation; but to such as love the riding- 
 part only of hunting, would not a trail scent be much 
 more suitable ? Gentlemen who hunt for the sake of a 
 ride, who are indifferent about the hounds, and know 
 little of the business, if they do no harm, it is to the full 
 as much as we have reason to expect from them ; while 
 those of a contrary description do good, and have much 
 greater pleasure. Such as are acquainted with the 
 hounds, and can at tunes assist them, find the sport 
 more interesting, and frequently have the satisfaction to 
 think that they themselves contribute to the success of 
 the day. My spirits are always good after good sport in 
 hunting ; nor is the rest of the day ever disagreeable to 
 me afterwards. What are other sports compared with 
 this, which is all enthusiasm ! Fishing is, in my opinion, 
 a dull diversion ; shooting, though it admits of a com- 
 panion, does not allow of many : both therefore may be 
 considered as selfish and solitary amusements compared 
 with hunting ; to which as many as please are welcome. 
 The one might teach patience to a philosopher ; and the 
 other, though it occasions great fatigue to the body, 
 seldom affords much occupation to the mind. Whereas, 
 fox-hunting is a kind of warfare ; its uncertainties, its 
 fiitigues, its difficulties, and its dangers, rendering it 
 interesting above all other diversions." 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 207 
 
 Of Hare Hunting. 
 
 It has of late been much the fashion for gentlemen to 
 perform the office of huntsman to their own pack : I see 
 no objection to such a system, if they will take the 
 necessary trouble for that })urpose, which I am inclined 
 to think is not always the case. 
 
 CHAPTER VHI. 
 
 Of Hare Hunting. — The Opinion of a Sportsman of 
 the last Century upon this Subject. — The Hounds best 
 calculated for Hare Hunting. — Of the Huntsman 
 and Whipjier-iti to a Pack of Harriers. — Hare 
 Finders. — The Doubles of the Hare. — Warren 
 Hares. — Pedestrian Sportsmen. — Of Music and 
 Speed. 
 
 From what has been said in the preceding pages of 
 this work, it will easily be perceived that fox-hunting 
 stands pre-eminent in my estimation ; however, there are 
 those who entertain a different opinion, and prefer the 
 chase of the hare to the pursuit of the fox : a writer, 
 known by the denomination of the " Country Scjuire," 
 who published his notions on the subject of hunting in 
 the year 11 AS, tlni.s expresses himself:- 
 
208 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 An old Sportsman's Opinion 
 
 " There is certainly something noble and heroic in 
 hunting the wild boar, the tiger, and the lion ; but we 
 inhabit an island wherein art and activity are more 
 requisite to the huntsman than strength of body, and 
 where safety must compensate for the want of glory. 
 
 " The principal games of Great Britain are the deer, 
 the fox, the hare, the otter, the badger, and martin ; 
 though the three last of these would hardly deserve the 
 honour of being hunted, were they not in season in the 
 spring of the year, when the poor hare ought to be in 
 peace to mviltiply her species, and were not our young 
 gentlemen contented to play at a small game rather than 
 stand idle. 
 
 "There are authors before me on this subject, who 
 have with accurate judgment and great learning described 
 the pursuit after each of the animals above mentioned, 
 and been so particular as to lay down at large the terms 
 of art, the ways of finding, recovering, and taking each 
 distinct species ; as well as the kinds and marks of the 
 dogs proper to be chosen for the different games ; to 
 such therefore I refer my readers, it being my design to 
 repeat very little of other men's labours, and not to 
 enlarge on topics that every green coat officer under- 
 stands, or at least pretends to do it, better than myself. 
 
 *' The stag, I confess, is a noble prize ; and as the taking 
 it requires a large pack of dogs, the very best of horses, 
 and a great expence, to the nobility and men of noble 
 estates I have long since resigned it. The pursuit after 
 the fox is also violent, and fit rather for those youthful 
 heroes who glory in breaking the hearts of their horses, 
 and venturinff their own necks. The fliffht of these two 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 209 
 
 of Hare Hunting. 
 
 animals is swift, and (though they make some few heads 
 and turnings) most commonly in straight lines towards a 
 place of refuge at some distance. The scent they leave 
 is generally so high, that the pack (though ever so w'ell 
 matched) is forced to folloAV after two or three strong- 
 winded leaders in a straggling yelping string, and the 
 horsemen are cast, though ever so well mounted: by 
 this means the music is broken, the art of the huntsman 
 of little use, and the pleasure of those who designed to 
 be spectators, dwindles into enquiries — which way went 
 the dogs ? However, as these games afford an oppor- 
 tunity to our generous youth to shew their courage, to 
 boast of the performance of themselves and their horses, 
 and to excel one another in feats of activity ; as the pre- 
 servation of lambs or geese is an act of charity to the 
 honest farmer ; and as a venison pasty is a savoury orna- 
 ment to my lady's table, I would by no means depreciate 
 the triumphs obtained by our gallant Nimrods in the 
 conquest of such beasts. 
 
 " Yet I hope for pardon from my more sprightly 
 brethren, if I give my vote for the innocent hare above 
 all other game. The transports of every mortal breast 
 at the sight of that little quadruped is no less amazing 
 than unaccountable, and has often made me inclined to 
 imagine she has some^hidden mechanical attractive power 
 over man as well as beast : whatever it be, it ought to be 
 a constant motive of gratitude to the indulgent Creator, 
 that has furnished us with this physic, so delicious to 
 the taste, as well as salutary in effect. Let the philo- 
 sopher, the grave Stoic himself, be present at the tracing 
 and unravelling the morning walk, and see this subtle 
 
210 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Doubles, &c. of the Hare. 
 
 absconding creature suddenly starting in view of the 
 whole cry, and he shall feel a passion that all his affected 
 apathy cannot cover, that all his most lucky discoveries 
 could never equal ! Let the most morose and incredu- 
 lous sceptic suffer himself to be persuaded to ride the 
 chase, or but to stand on an eminence and observe the 
 perplexing shifts and wiles of the flyer and the pursuers, 
 and he must be convinced that God's providence is over 
 all his works, that the minutest and vilest part of the 
 creation have been the care and contrivance of infinite 
 wisdom. The swiftness and subtilty of this incom- 
 parable creature demonstrate that she was made to give 
 us pleasure, with purpose to tempt us into the wholesome 
 fields : the doubles and indentures she is perpetually 
 making, argues a design in their great Creator that every 
 hound should come in to bear a part of the chorus — that 
 each should have an opportunity of shewing his acute- 
 ness and policy in the pursuit ; and the tours and rings 
 she naturally traverses and repeats over the same ground, 
 gives an advantage to every one of the company to enjoy 
 their share, even old men and maidens. 
 
 ** The chase after the fox or stag is violent, and little 
 more than riding and running ; but the hare displays the 
 very art of hunting — she affords a pleasure worthy of a 
 philosopher— a curiosity that may justly raise the admi- 
 ration of the wisest statesman, physician, or divine. Let 
 the most learned and inquisitive naturalist dissect the 
 carcase of this feeble animal, let him carefully trace every 
 sinew and muscle, let him note the smallness of her head 
 and neck, the fullness and prominency of her eyes, the 
 leanness of her shoulders, the depth of her chest, the 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY 211 
 
 Every Hare has her particular Play. 
 
 largeness of her heart and lungs, the strength of her 
 joints, the hardness of her little bones, the firm braces 
 of her back, the slenderness of her belly, the portable 
 shape of her paps or udders, the measure of her ears, 
 the firmness of her gaskins, the superior length of her 
 hinder legs, the obscurity of her colour, and the inimi- 
 table contexture of her feet ; and let him then declare 
 the causes and ends of this wonderful formation; let 
 him dare to say she could have been formed better in 
 any one part to qualify her for lying hid in her form, for 
 nimbleness of flight, for holding out against her foes, or 
 for giving pleasure to man. 
 
 " We must never forget that every hare (as we say of 
 fencers) has her particular play ; that, however, that 
 play is occasionally changed, according to the variation 
 of wind and weather, the weight of the air, the nature of 
 the ground, and the degree of eagerness with which she 
 is pursued. Nor are we to be unmindful of the numerous 
 accidents she may meet in her way, to turn her out of 
 her course, to cover her flight, to quicken her speed, or 
 to furnish her with an opportunity for new devices. I 
 say, it is not enough to have a general knowledge of 
 these things before the game is started ; but in the heat 
 of action (when we are most tempted to be in raptures, 
 with the sound of the horns, the melody of the cry, and 
 the expectation of success) we must carry them in our 
 heads ; every step we make we must calmly observe the 
 alterations of the soil, the position of the wind, the time 
 of the year ; and no less take notice with what speed she 
 is driven — how far she is before — to what place she 
 tends — whether she is likely to keep on forward, or to 
 
212 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Individual Character of the Hounds. 
 
 turn short behind — whether she has not been met by 
 passengers, frighted by curs, intercepted by sheep — 
 whether an approaching storm, a I'ising wind, a sudden 
 blast of the sun, the going off of a frost, the repetition 
 of foiled ground, the decay of her own strength, or any 
 other probable turn of affairs, has not abated or altered 
 the scent. There are other things still no less necessary 
 to be remembered than the former : as, the particular 
 quality and character of each dog — whether the present 
 leaders are not apt to overrun it — which are most in- 
 clined to stand on the double — which are to be depended 
 upon in the highway, on the ploughed ground, or a bare 
 turf, in an uncertain scent, in the crossing of fresh game, 
 through a flock of sheep, upon the foil or stole-back. 
 The size also and strength of the hare will make a dif- 
 ference ; nor must the hounds themselves be followed so 
 closely, or so loudly cherished when fresh and vigorous, 
 as after they have run off their speed and mettle, and 
 begin to be tired. 
 
 " I would advise a young huntsman, when the scent 
 lies well, always to keep himself pretty far behind : at 
 such a time (especially if it be against the wind) it is 
 impossible for the poor hare to hold it forward ; nor has 
 she any trick or refuge for her life, but to stop short by 
 a way or path, and, when all are past, to steal immedi- 
 ately back, which is often the occasion of an irrecoverable 
 fault, in the midst of the warmest sport and expectations, 
 and is the best trick the poor hare has for her life in 
 scenting weather. Whereas, if the huntsman were not • 
 too forward, he would have the advantage of seeing her 
 steal off, and turniiig her aside ; or more probably the 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 213 
 
 Harriers should be well matched in Speed. 
 
 pleasure of the clogs returning, and thrusting her up in 
 view. 
 
 *' It is very common for the fleet dog to be the great 
 favourite, though it would be much better if he were 
 hanged or exchanged. Be a dog in his own nature 
 never so good, yet he is not good in that pack that is too 
 slow for him. There is at most times work enough for 
 every one of the train, and every one ought to bear his 
 part : but this it is impossible for the heavy ones to do, 
 if they are run out of breath by the unproportionable 
 speed of a light-heeled leader ; for it is not enough that 
 they are able to keep up, (which a true hound will labour 
 hard for) but they must be able to do it with ease, with 
 retention of breath and spirits, and with their tongues at 
 command. It must never be expected that the inden- 
 tures of the hai-e can be well covered, or her doubles 
 struck oft", (nor is the sport worth a farthing) if the har- 
 riers run yelping in a long string, like deer or fox hounds. 
 
 " Another thing I would advise my friends, is to hang 
 up every liar and chanter, not spai'ing even those that 
 are silly and trifling, without nose or sagacity. It is 
 common enough in numerous kennels, to keep some for 
 their music or beauty ; but this is perfectly wrong. It 
 is a certain maxim, that every dog that does no good, 
 does a great deal of hurt : they serve only to foil the 
 ground, and confound the scent ; to scamper before, and 
 interrupt their betters in the most difficult points. And 
 I may venture to affirm (by long experience) that four 
 or five couple, all good and trusty, will do more execu- 
 tion than thirty or forty, where a third of them are eager 
 and headstrong, and (like coxcombs among men) noisy 
 in doing nothing. 
 
214 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Hare should be fairly hunted. 
 
 " Above all, I abhor joining with strangers ; for that 
 is the way to spoil and debauch the staunchest hunters — 
 to turn the best mettled into mad-headed gallopers, liars, 
 and chatterers ; and to put them on nothing but outrun- 
 ning their rivals, and overrunning the scent. The emu- 
 lation of leading (in dogs and their masters) has been the 
 utter ruin of many a good cry. Nor are strange huntsmen 
 of much better consequence than strange companions ; 
 for as the skill and excellence of these animals consist 
 in use and habit, they should be always accustomed to 
 the same voice, the same notes or hallooings, and the 
 same terms of chiding, cherishing, pressing, or recalling ; 
 nor should the country fellows be allowed in their tran- 
 sports to extend their throats. 
 
 " It will be taken ill if I should also speak against a 
 change of game ; because mere Squires would be at a 
 great loss to kill some of their time, had they nothing to 
 kill when hares are out of season. However, I am well 
 satisfied, that the best harriers are those that know no 
 other. Nor is it advisable to let them change for a fresh 
 hare, as long as they can possibly follow the old ; nor to 
 take off their noses from the scent they are upon, for 
 the cutting shorter or gaining of ground. This last is 
 a common trick with pot-hunters ; but as it is unfair and 
 barbarous to the hare, so you will seldom find it of ad- 
 vantage to the hounds." 
 
 "By inclination (says Beckford) I was never a hare- 
 hunter : I followed this diversion merely for air and exer- 
 cise ; and if I could have persuaded myself to ride on 
 the turnpike road to the three-mile stone and back again, 
 I should have thought I had no need of a pack of har- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 215 
 
 Number of the Pack. 
 
 riers. Excuse me, brother hare-hunters ! I mean not 
 to offend ; I speak only of the country where I live. 
 The hare-hunthig there is so bad, that, did you know 
 it, your wonder would be how I could have persevered 
 in it so long, not that I should forsake it now. I respect 
 hunting, in whatever shape it appears : it is a manly and 
 a wholesome exercise, and seems by nature designed to 
 be the amusement of a Briton. 
 
 " You ask, how many hounds a pack of harriers should 
 consist of? and what kind of hound is best suited to that 
 diversion ? You should never, I think, exceed twenty 
 couple in the field ; it might be difficult to get a greater 
 number to run well together, and a pack of harriers 
 cannot be complete if they do not : besides, the fewer 
 hounds you have, the less you foil the ground, which 
 you otherwise would find a great hindrance to your 
 hunting. Your other question is not easily answered : 
 the hounds, I think, most likely to show you sport, are 
 between the large slow-hunting harrier and the littleyb.f 
 beagle :* one is too dull, too heavy, and too slow : the 
 
 • Fox Beagle. — In this place, Beckford does not appear sufficiently 
 explicit. Hounds may be divided into three classes, viz. the Talbot, the 
 Southern Hound, and the Beagle. Fox hounds have a portion of the 
 blood of the first or second, or both ; but the beagle, 1 am inclined to 
 tliink, would seldom, if ever, be resorted to for the same purpose. The 
 beagle is the smallest of the hound tribe, with short legs and of an elon- 
 gated form, and calculated for the pursuit of the hare. 7he genuine 
 Beagle may be regarded as the dwarf Talbot : like the latter, he has a very 
 capacious head and large pendant ears, and, like the latter also, he is re- 
 markable for tenderness of nose, and deep, sonorous music : the genuine 
 Beagle has, it is true, undergone some alterations in his form : he lias been 
 rendered lighter and more fleet, his head has been compressed, and his nose 
 
216 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Hound best calculated for Hare Hunting. 
 
 other, too lively, too light, and too fleet. The first, it 
 is true, have most excellent noses, and I make no doubt 
 will kill their game at last, if the day be long enough ; 
 but you know the days are short in winter, and it is bad 
 hunting in the dark. The others, on the contrary, fling 
 and dash, and are all alive ; but every cold blast affects 
 them ; and if your country is deep and wet, it is not im- 
 possible but some of them may be drowned. My hounds 
 were a cross of both these kinds, in which it was my en- 
 deavour to get as much bone and strength in as small a 
 compass as possible. It was a difficult undertaking. I 
 bred many years, and an infinity of hounds, before I 
 could get what I wanted : I, at last, had the pleasure to 
 see them very handsome ; small, yet very bony : they 
 ran remarkably well together ; ran fast enough ; had all 
 the alacrity you could desire ; and would hunt the coldest 
 scent. 
 
 " It may be necessary to unsay, now I am turned hare- 
 hunter again, many things I have been saying as a fox- 
 hunter ; as I hardly know any two things of the same 
 genus (if I may be allowed the expression) that differ so 
 entirely. What I said in a former letter, about the 
 huntsman and whipper-in, are among the number : as to 
 the huntsman, I think, he should not be young : I should 
 most certainly prefer one, as the French call it, cVun 
 certain age, as he is to be quiet and patient ; for patience, 
 
 rendered more pointed and sharp ; and he has thus exhibited (as indeed 
 must be the case) inferior organs of smell, and a harsh and less musical 
 voice : yet, under any circumstances, the beagle could never be calculated 
 for the pursuit of the fox ; it would therefore appear that the term /ox 
 engfe is not well applied to this little liound. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 217 
 
 Much Noise and Rattle inconsistent witli Hare Hunting. 
 
 he should be a very Grizzle ; and the more quiet he is, 
 the better. He should have infinite perseverance ; for 
 a hare should never be given up whilst it is possible to 
 hunt her : she is sure to stop, and therefore may always 
 be recovered. 
 
 *' The whipper-in also ha§ little to do with the one I 
 before described : yet he may be like the second whip- 
 per-in to a pack of fox hounds ; the stable boy who is 
 to follow the huntsman : but I would have him still more 
 confined, for he should not dare even to stop a hound, 
 or smack a whip, without the huntsman's order. Much 
 noise and rattle is directly contrary to the first principles 
 of hare-hunting, which is to be perfectly quiet, and to 
 let your hounds alone. I have seen few hounds so good 
 as town packs, that have no professed huntsman to follow 
 them. If they have no one to help them, they have at 
 the same time no one to spoil them ; which, I believe, 
 for this kind of hunting, is still more material. I should, 
 however, mention a fault I have observed, and which 
 such hounds must' of necessity sometimes be guilty of, 
 that is, running back the heel. Hounds are naturally 
 fond of scent ; if they cannot carry it forward, they will 
 turn, and hunt it back again : hounds that are left to 
 themselves make a ftiult of this, and it is, I think, the only 
 one they commonly have. Though it is certainly best 
 to let your hounds alone, and thei*eby to give as much 
 scope to their natural instinct as you can ; yet in this 
 particular instance you should check it mildly ; for as it 
 is almost an invariable rule in all hunting to make the 
 head good, you should encoin-age tlicm to try forward 
 first; which may ho done without taking them oif their 
 
 o 
 
218 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Harriets sliould lie kept to their own Game. 
 
 noses, or without the least prejudice to their hunting. 
 If trying forward should not succeed, they may then be 
 suffered to try back again, which you will find them all 
 ready enough to do ; for they are sensible how far they 
 brought the scent, and where they left it. 
 
 " Harriers, to be good, like all other hounds, must be 
 kept to their own game. If you run fox with them, you 
 spoil them. Hounds cannot be perfect unless used to 
 one scent, and one style of hunting. Harriers run fox 
 in so different a style from hare, that it is of great dis- 
 service to them when they return to hare again. It 
 makes them wild, and teaches them to skirt. The high 
 scent Vv^hich a fox leaves, the straightness of his running, 
 the eagerness of the pursuit, and the noise that generally 
 accompanies it, all contribute to spoil a harrier. 
 
 " I hope you agree with me, that it is a favdt in a pack 
 of harriers to go too fast ; for a hare is a little timorous 
 animal, that we cannot help feeling some compassion for, 
 at the very time when we are pursuing her destruction : 
 we sliould give scope to all her little tricks, nor kill her 
 foully and overmatched. Instinct instructs her to make 
 a good defence, when not unfairly treated ; and I will 
 venture to say, that, as far as her own safety is concerned, 
 she has more cunning than the fox, and makes many 
 shifts to save her life, far beyond all his r.rlifice. Without 
 doubt, you have often heard of hares, who, from the 
 miraculous escapes they have made, have been thought 
 ivitches ; but, I believe, you never heard of a fox that 
 had cunning enough to be thought a wizard. 
 
 " They who like to rise early have amusement in seeing 
 the hare trailed to her form ; it is of areat service to 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 219 
 
 Of Hare Finders and Chopping Hares. 
 
 hounds ; it also shows their goodness to the huntsman 
 more than any other hunting, as it discovers to him those 
 who have the most tender noses. But, I confess, I seldom 
 thought it worth while to leave my bed a moment sooner 
 on that account. I always thought hare-hunting should 
 be taken as a ride after breakfast, to get us an appetite 
 to our dinner. If you make a serious business of it, I 
 think you spoil it. Hare-finders, in this case, are neces- 
 sary : it is agreeable to know where to go immediately 
 for your diversion, and not beat about for hours perhaps 
 before you find. It is more material, I think, with re- 
 gard to the second hare than the first : for if you are 
 warmed with your gallop, the waiting long in the cold 
 afterwards is, I believe, as unwholesome as it is disagree- 
 able. Whoever does not mind this, had better let his 
 hounds find their own game ; they will certainly hunt it 
 with more spirit afterwards, and he will have a pleasure 
 himself in expectation, which no certainty can ever give. 
 Hare-finders make hounds idle ; they also make them 
 wild. Mine knew the men as well as I did myself; could 
 see them almost as far, and would run full cry to meet 
 them. Hare-finders are of one great use : they hinder 
 your hounds from chopping hares, which they otherwise 
 could not fail to do. I had in my pack one hound in 
 particular that was famous for it ; he would challenge on 
 a trail very late at noon, and had as good a knack at 
 chopping a hare afterwards ; he was one that liked to go 
 the shortest way to work, nor did he choose to take 
 more trouble than was necessary. Is it not wonderful 
 that the trail of a hare shoidd lie after so many hours, 
 when the scent of her dies away so soon ? 
 
 n 9 
 
220 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of the Pursuit 
 
 " Hares are said (I know not with what truth) to foresee 
 a change of weather, and to seat themselves accordingly. 
 This is however certain, that they are seldom found in 
 places much exposed to the wind. In inclosures, I think, 
 they more frequently are found near to a hedge than in 
 the middle of a field. They who make a profession of 
 hare finding (and a very advantageous one it is in some 
 countries) are directed by the wind where to look for 
 their game. With good eyes and nice observation, they 
 are enabled to find them in any weather. 
 
 " When the game is fovmd, you cannot be too quiet : 
 the hare is an animal so very timorous, that she is fre- 
 quently headed back, and your dogs are liable to overrun 
 the scent at every instant : it is best, therefore, to keep 
 a considerable way behind them, that they may have 
 room to turn as soon as they perceive they have lost the 
 scent ; and if treated in this manner, they will seldom 
 overrun it much. Your hounds, through the whole 
 chase, should be left almost entirely to themselves, nor 
 should they be hallooed too much : when the hare 
 doubles, they should hunt through those doubles ; nor 
 is a hare hunted fairly when hunted otherwise. They 
 should follow her every step she takes, as well over 
 greasy fallows as through large flocks of sheep ; nor 
 should they ever be cast but when nothing can be done 
 without it. 
 
 " I have already observed that a trail in the morning 
 is of great service to hounds, and that to be perfect they 
 should always find their own game ; for the method of 
 hare finding, though more convenient, will occasion some 
 vices in them, which it will be impossible to correct. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 221 
 
 of the Hare. 
 
 " Mr. Sonicrvile's authority strengthens my observa- 
 tion, that M'hen a hare is found, all should be quiet ; nor 
 should you ride near your hounds, till they are well 
 settled to the scent. 
 
 " Let all be hiish'd, 
 
 No clamour loud, no frantic joy l)e heard ; 
 Lest the wild liound run gadding o'er the plain 
 Untractable, nor licar ihy chiding voice." 
 
 " The natural eagerness of the hounds will, at such a 
 time as this, frequently carry even the best of them wide 
 of the scent, which too much encouragement, or pressing 
 too close upon them, may continue beyond all possibility 
 of recovery ; this should be always guarded against. 
 After a little while, you have less to fear : you may then 
 approach them nearer, and encourage them more ; 
 leaving, however, at all times sufficient room for them to 
 turn, should they overrun the scent. On high roads 
 and dry paths, be always doubtful of the scent, nor give 
 them much encouragement ; but when a hit is made on 
 either side, you may halloo as much as you please, nor 
 can you then encourage your hounds too much. A hare 
 generally describes a circle as she runs ; larger or less, 
 according to her strength, and the openness of the 
 country. In inclosures, and where there is much cover, 
 the circle is for the most part so small, that it is a constant 
 puzzle to the hounds. They have a Gordian knot, in 
 that case, ever to unloose ; and though it may afford 
 matter of speculation to the philosopher, it is always 
 contrary to the wishes of the sportsman. Such was the 
 country I hunted in for many years. 
 
 o3 
 
222 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Running the Foil and the Doubles of the Hare. 
 
 •' Huntsman ! her gait observe : if in wide rings 
 She wheel her raazy way, in the same round 
 Persisting still, she'll foil the beaten track. 
 But if she fly, and, with the fav'ring wind, 
 Urge her bold course, less intricate tliy task ; 
 Push on thy pack." — Somervile. 
 
 "Besides running the foil, they frequently make 
 doubles, which is going forward to tread the same steps 
 back again, on purpose to confuse their pursuers; and 
 in the same manner in which they make the first double 
 they generally continue, whether long or short. This 
 information, therefore, if properly attended to by the 
 huntsman, may also be of use to him in his casts. 
 
 " When they make their double on a high road, or 
 dry path, and then leave it with a spring, it is often the 
 occasion of a long fault : the spring which a hare makes 
 on these occasions is hardly to be credited, any more 
 than is her ingenuity in making it ; both are wojiderful ! 
 
 " ■ let cavillers deny 
 
 That brutes have reason ; sure 'lis something more : 
 
 'Tis Heav'n directs, and stratagems inspire, 
 
 Beyond the short extent of human thought." — Somervilk. 
 
 She frequently, after running a path a considerable way, 
 will make a double, and then stop till the hounds have 
 past her ; she will then steal away as secretly as she can, 
 and return the same way she came : this is the greatest 
 of all trials for hounds. It is so hot a foil, that in the 
 best packs there are not many hounds that can hunt it ; 
 you must follow those hounds that can, and try to hit 
 her off where she breaks her foil, which in all proba- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 223 
 
 Ofa Check and Fault 
 
 bility she will soon do, as she now flatters herself she is 
 secure. When the scent hes bad in cover, she will 
 sometimes hunt the hounds. 
 
 The covert's utmost bound 
 
 Slily she skirts ; behind them cautious creeps, 
 And in that very track, so lately stain'd 
 By all the steaming crowd, seems to pursue 
 The foe she flies." — Sojis-rvilf.. 
 
 Allien the hounds are at a check, make your huntsman 
 stand still, nor suffer him to move his horse one way or 
 the other : hounds lean naturally towards the scent, and 
 if he does not say a word to them, will soon recover it. 
 If you speak to a hound at such a time, calling him by 
 his name, which is too much the practice, he seldom 
 fails to look up in your face, as much as to say, what the 
 deuce do you want ? When he stoops to the scent 
 again, is it not probable he means to say, you fool you, 
 let me alone! 
 
 " When your hounds are at fault, let not a word be 
 said. In a good day, good hounds seldom give up the 
 scent at head ; if they do, there is generally an obvious 
 reason for it : this observation a huntsman should always 
 make : it will direct his cast. If he is a good one, he 
 will be attentive as he goes, not only to his hounds, nicely 
 observing which have the lead, and the degree of scent 
 they carry, but also to the various circumstances that 
 are continually happening from change of weather, and 
 difference of ground. He will also be mindful of the 
 distance which the hare keeps before the hounds, and 
 of her former doubles, and he will remark what point 
 
224 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Casting Harriers. 
 
 she makes to. All these observations will be of use, 
 should a long fault make his assistance necessary ; and 
 if the hare has headed back, he will carefully observe 
 whether she met any thing in her course to turn her, or 
 turned of her own accord. When he casts his hounds, 
 let him begin by making a small circle : if that will not 
 do, then let him try a larger : he afterwards may be at 
 liberty to persevere in any cast he may judge most likely. 
 As a hare generally revisits her old haunts, and returns 
 to the place where she was first found, if the scent is 
 quite gone, and the hounds can no longer hunt, that is 
 as likely a cast as any to recover her. Let him remember 
 this in all his casts, that the hounds are not to follow his 
 horse's heels ; nor are they to carry their heads high, 
 and noses in the air. At these times they must try for 
 the scent, or they will never find it ; and he is either to 
 make his cast slow or quick, as he perceives his hounds 
 try, and as the scent is either good or bad. 
 
 " Give particular directions to your huntsman to 
 prevent his hounds, as much as he can, from chopping 
 hares. Huntsmen like to get blood at any rate ; and 
 when hounds are used to it, it would surprise you to see 
 how attentive they are to find opportunities. A hare 
 must be very wild, or very nimble, to escape them. I 
 remember, in a furzy country, that my hounds chopped 
 three hares in one morning ; for it is the nature of those 
 animals either to leap up before the hounds come near 
 them, and steal away, as it is called ; or else to lie close, 
 till they put their very noses upon them. Hedges also 
 are very dangerous : if the huntsman beats the hedge 
 himself, which is the usual practice, the hounds are 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 225 
 
 Babblers should not be kept 
 
 always upon the watch, and a hare must have good 
 hick to escape them all. The best way to prevent it, is 
 to have the hedge well beaten at some distance before 
 the hounds. 
 
 " Hares seldom rim so well as when they do not know 
 where they are. They run well in a fog, and generally 
 take a good country. If they set oiFdown the wind, they 
 seldom return ; you then cannot push on your hounds 
 too much. When the game is sinking, you will perceive 
 your old hounds get forward ; they then will run at 
 head. 
 
 " Happy the man, who with unrivall'd speed 
 Can pass his fellows, and with pleasure view 
 The struggling pack ; how in the rapid course 
 Alternate they preside, and jostling push 
 To guide the dubious scent ; how giddy youth 
 Oft babbling errs, by wiser age improved ; 
 How, niggard of his strength, the wise old hound 
 Hangs in the rear, till some important point 
 Rouse all his diligence, or till the chase 
 Sinking he finds j then to tlie head he springs, 
 With thirst of glory fired, and wins the prize." 
 
 SoMEKVILE. 
 
 Keep no babblers ; for though the rest of the pack 
 soon find them out, and do not mind them, yet it is un- 
 pleasant to hear their noise ; nor are such fit companions 
 for the rest. 
 
 " Keep no hound that runs false : the loss of one hare 
 is more than such a dog is worth. 
 
 "It is too much the custom, first to ride over a dog, 
 and then cry 'ware horse/ Take care not to ride over 
 your hoimds : I have known many a good dog spoiled ])y 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Hsre Warrens 
 
 it. In open ground speak to them first ; you may after- 
 wards ride over them, if you please ; but in roads and 
 paths they frequently cannot get out of your way : it surely 
 then is your business either to stop your horse, or break 
 the way for them ; and the not doing it, give me leave 
 to say, is absurd and cruel ; nor can that man be called 
 a good sportsman who thus wantonly destroys his own 
 sport. 
 
 On the subject of Hare-warrens, Beckford observes : — 
 You wish to know how my warren-hares are caught i 
 " they are caught in traps, not unlike the common rat- 
 traps. I leave mine always at the muses, but they are 
 set only when hares are wanted : the hares, by thus con- 
 stantly going through them, have no mistrust, and are 
 easily caught. These traps should be made of old wood, 
 and even then it will be some time before they venture 
 through them. Other muses must be also left open, 
 lest a distaste should make them forsake the place. To 
 my warren I have about twenty of these traps ; though, 
 as the stock of hares is great, I seldom have occasion to 
 set more than five or six, and scarcely ever fail of catching 
 as many hares. The warren is paled in, but I found it 
 necessary to make the muses of brick ; that is, where 
 the traps are placed. Should you at any time wish to 
 make a hare-warren, it will be necessary for yovi to see 
 one first, and examine the traps, boxes, and stoppers, to 
 all which there are particularities not easy to be described. 
 Should you find the hares, towards the end of the sea- 
 son, shy of the traps, from having been often caught, it 
 will be necessary to drive them in with spaniels. Should 
 this be the case, von will find them very thick round the 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 227 
 
 and Warren Hares. 
 
 warren ; for the warren-hares will be unwilling to leave 
 it, and, when disturbed by dogs, will immediately go in. 
 
 " If you turn them out before greyhounds, you cannot 
 give them too much law ; if before hounds you cannot 
 give them too little ; for reasons which I will give you 
 presently. Though hares, as I told you before, never 
 run so well before hounds as when they do not know 
 where they ai-e, yet before greyhounds it is the reverse; 
 and your trap-hares, to run well, should always be turned 
 out within their knowledge : they are naturally timid, 
 and are easily disheartened when they have no point to 
 make to for safety. 
 
 " If you turn out any befoi'e your hounds (which, if 
 it is not your wish, I shall by no means recommend) do 
 not give them much time, but lay on your hounds as soon 
 as they are out of view : if you do not, they will very 
 likely stop, which is often fatal. Views are at all times 
 to be avoided, but particularly with trap-hares ; for, as 
 these know not where they are, the hounds have too 
 great an advantage over them. It is best to turn them 
 down the wind ; they hear the hounds better and seldom 
 turn again. Hounds for this business should not be too 
 fleet. These hares run straight, and make no doubles ; 
 they leave a strong scent, and have other objections in 
 common with animals turned out before hounds : they 
 may give you a gallop, but they will show but little 
 hunting. The hounds are to be hunted like a pack of 
 fox-hounds, as a trap-hare runs very much in the same 
 manner, and will even top the hedges. What I should 
 prefer to catching the hares in traps, would be a warren 
 in the midst of an open country, which might be stopped 
 
228 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Hare Hunting favourable to Pedestrians. 
 
 close on hunting days. This would supply the whole 
 country with hares, which, after one turn round the 
 warren, would most probably run straight an end. The 
 number of hares a warren will supply is hardly to be 
 conceived : I seldom turned out less in one year than 
 thirty brace of trap-hares, besides a great many more 
 killed in the environs, of M'hich no account was taken. 
 My M'arren is a wood of near thirty acres : one of half 
 the size would answer the purpose to the full as well. 
 Mine is cut out into many walks ; a smaller warren should 
 have only one, and t/mt round the outside of it. No 
 dog should ever be suffered to go into it ; and traps 
 should be constantly set for stoats and polecats. It is 
 said, parsley makes hares strong ; they certainly are vei'y 
 fond of eating it : it therefore cannot be amiss to sow 
 some within the warren, as it will be a means of keeping 
 your hares more at home." 
 
 Hare-hunting, however, will always be a favourite 
 diversion with the pedestrian sportsman ; as from the 
 manner of running which characterises the object of 
 pursuit, he is enabled to witness a considerable portion 
 of the chase : this circumstance is thus noticed by Somer- 
 vile : — 
 
 " Hark ! from yon covert, where those towering oaks 
 Above the humble copse aspiring rise, 
 What glorious triumphs burst in every gale 
 Upon our ravish'd ears ! the hunter's shout, 
 The clanging horns swell their sweet winding notes, 
 The pack wide-opening load the trembling air 
 With various melody ; from tree to tree 
 The propagated cry redoubling bounds, 
 And winged zephyrs waft the floating joy 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 229 
 
 Of Harriers. 
 
 Through all the rigions near : afflictive birch 
 No more the school boy dreads, his prison broke, 
 Scampering he flies, nor heeds his master's call ; 
 The weary traveller forgets his road. 
 And climbs th' adjacent hill ; the ploughman leaves 
 Th' unfinish'd furrow ; nor his bleating flocks 
 Are now the shepherd's joy ! men, boys, and girls, 
 Desert th' unpeopled village ; and wild crowds 
 Spread o'er the plain, by the sweet frenzy seiz'd." 
 
 It has been the fashion of late years to breed harriers 
 with the power and speed of fox hounds, or nearly so. 
 I was out with a pack of this sort, in the month of Janu- 
 ary, 1825, They were called the Kirkham (in Lan- 
 cashire) harriers, and belonged to Mr. King ; and were 
 large, powerful, and altogether handsome hounds : they 
 were more than a match for a hare : I saw them kill two 
 brace one morning, and that too in a very short time. 
 Much pains had no doubt been taken in breeding them ; 
 for, although they were very fleet, they retained much 
 of the Talbot, and displayed excellent olfactory organs. 
 There are still to be found in some of the hilly districts 
 of Lancashire (and in other parts of England, for aught 
 I know to the contrary) harriers which partake so much 
 of the southern hound as to render them well calculated 
 for the diversion. They are not too fleet, have excellent 
 noses and delightful nuisic ; and such hounds I should 
 choose for the purpose of hare-hunting, though I am 
 well aware, that excellent harriers may be produced by 
 crossing the hounds of this description with the beagle ; 
 while there are many impetuous sportsmen who prefer 
 harriers bred as fleet as possible. 
 
 How far the union of uncommon speed and nuisic are 
 compatible I am somewhat doubtful: a hound, I am 
 
230 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Speed and Music. 
 
 inclined to think, cannot run at the very top of his speed, 
 and send forth a considerable volume of music at the same 
 time. In the latter end of the month of February, 1825, 
 I was out with a pretty pack of harriers belonging to 
 R. Seed, Esq. in the neighbourhood of Liverpool: we 
 had quested for some hours, without finding, and had 
 every prospect of a blank day, when, about three o'clock, 
 a hare moved from a wheat field, in the township of 
 Maghull, and went away as if she meant to run. The 
 hounds got well settled to the scent immediately, and ran 
 breast high. The hare never doubled, the scent was as 
 good as possible, and such was the speed of the hounds 
 that it was not without the utmost difficulty the leading 
 sportsmen could keep with them. The pack ran un- 
 commonly well together, but were by no means so loud 
 and musical as usual ; and in running over some fine 
 grazizig ground, they became nearly mute : Pilot, one of 
 the pack, a dog with much of the southern blood in his 
 composition, who was remarkable for music, and whose 
 voice was generally heard above the rest, crossed a con- 
 siderable space without opening. In fact, I never saw 
 these harriers run with such speed, or make so little 
 noise over it. The hare ran six miles, and was killed 
 almost without the occurrence of a trifling check. From 
 this, as well as similar circumstances which I have wit- 
 nessed, I infer that a hound, when running at the very 
 extremity of his speed, cannot be very musical ; indeed, 
 if we reason upon the matter, we must come to the same 
 conclusion. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Stag Hunting. — Otter Hunting. 
 
 In regard to Stag Hunting, upon which I intend to 
 make a few observations, it has gradually given way to 
 the increasing cultivation of the country ; and as the 
 object of pvu'suit has nearly ceased to exist in a state of 
 unlimited freedom, this noble and princely diversion has, 
 of course, in a great degree subsided. Some few wild 
 deer are still to be met with in Ireland ; in the Highlands 
 of Scotland, particularly in the neighbourhood of Blair 
 Athol, these beautiful animals are still to be found roam- 
 ing at large ; in some parts of Devonshire, wild deer 
 may be occasionally seen : but the mode in which the 
 pursuit of the stag is at present conducted in this coun- 
 try, (with very little, if any, exception) is by taking a 
 semi-domesticated deer in a cart to an appointed spot, 
 and turning him out before the hounds. Reasonable 
 law is allowed him ; nor is this all ; for, if the hounds 
 approach too near their game, they are stopped, and the 
 stag allowed to get ahead again. Sometimes the animal 
 is sulky, and will not run ; but supposing the contrary, 
 and the stag goes away in gallant style, the hounds would 
 soon run up to him, if they were not stopped : the stag 
 is very soon blown, and if not allowed to get second wind, 
 the business of course must be over in a few minutes. 
 However, by repeatedly stopping the hounds, the chase 
 is sometimes lengtlicned to several hours, and is thus, no 
 
232 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 stag Hunting. 
 
 doubt, highly gratifying to the stag hunter ; but would 
 perhaps appear like an apology for hunting in the esti- 
 mation of a fox hunter. 
 
 His late Majesty, George III. was very partial to stag 
 hunting ; but it has been remarked that if he " had ever 
 seen a fox well found and handsomely killed," he would 
 have preferred the pursuit of the fox to that of the stag : 
 I have no doubt such would have been the case — it could 
 not have been otherwise. The stag-hunting of George 
 III. was gorgeous and imposing, and this monarch was 
 very affable in the field. The late king sat tolerably 
 well on horseback ; yet the hounds were frequently 
 stopped to enable him to come up ; when they were 
 again suffered to proceed : a fox hunter would have 
 thought little of such doings ; but he would nevertheless 
 have been highly gratified with the pleasing familiarity 
 of the king. His present Majesty, George IV. does not 
 attend the royal hounds, though they go out regularly 
 by his command, and are kept up in as much style (if 
 not more) than they were during the life of his father. 
 
 The Earl of Derby also has an establishment for 
 stag-hunting ; and his lordship pursues the stag during 
 the season in Surrey. The hounds for the purpose have 
 been bred from fox hounds, and are consequently very 
 fleet. There are a few other stag-hunting establish- 
 ments in England, which, however, do not require any 
 particular notice in this place. 
 
 The stag-hunting of former days was a very different 
 business. Prior to the inclosure of the various forests, 
 wild deer were plentiful, and the stag at this period, in 
 all probability, afforded excellent runs — in fact, stag- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY 2S3 
 
 Ancient Method of Stag Hunting. 
 
 hunting at that time might be regarded in the same hght 
 as fox-hunting is viewed at the present day, namely, as 
 superior to all other diversions of the field. 
 
 Of the stag-hunting of former tunes, some idea may 
 he formed from the following : 
 
 The huntsman rose at early morn to track the deer 
 to his lair, and then being sure of his game, returned 
 to the sportsmen ; who, we must suppose, dined at our 
 hour of breakfasting, and afterwards hied them to the 
 chase. 
 
 " I am the hunt, which rathe and earely rise, 
 
 (My botlell filde with wine in any wise) 
 
 Two draughts I drinke, to stay my steps withall, 
 
 For each foote one, because I would not fall. 
 
 Then take my hound, in liara me behind. 
 
 The stately hart in fryth or fell to find. 
 
 And whiles I seeke his slotte where he hath fedde, 
 
 The sweet byrdes sing, to cheare my drowsie head. 
 
 And when my hound doth straine upon good vent, 
 
 I must confesse, the same doth me content. 
 
 But when I hauc my couerts walkt about, 
 
 And harbred fast, the hart for comming out ; 
 
 Then I returne, to make a graue report, 
 
 Whereas I find th' assembly doth resort. 
 
 And lowe T crouch, before the lordlings all, 
 
 Out of my home, the fewmets let I fall, 
 
 And other signcs and tokens do I tell, 
 
 To make them hope, the hart may like them well. 
 
 Then they command, that 1 the wine should taste ; 
 
 So biddes mine art — and so my throat I baste. 
 
 The dinner done, I go straightwayes againe, 
 
 Vnto my markes, and shew my master plaine. 
 
 Then put my hound, vpon the view to drawe, 
 
 And rowse the hart out of his layre by lawe. 
 
 O gamsters all, a little by your leaue, 
 
 Can you such ioyes in trifling games conceaue ? 
 
234> HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 stag Hunting of Queen Elizabeth. 
 
 In 1575, when Queen Elizabeth was so magnificently 
 entertained by her favourite, Dudley, Earl of Leicester, 
 at Kenilworth Castle, hart-hunting was one of the amuse- 
 ments she partook of, and which a spectator thus de- 
 scribes : — 
 
 " The Hunting of the Hart at Fors. — Munday was 
 hot, and thearfore her highness kept in till a five a clok 
 in the eevening : what time it pleazz'd her to ride foorth 
 into the chace too hunt the hart of fors : which foound 
 anon, and after sore chased by the hot pursuit of the 
 hooundes, was fain of fine fors, at last to take soil. Thear 
 to beholld the swift fleeting of the deer afore with the 
 stately cariage of his head in hiz swimmyng, spred (for 
 the quantitee) lyke the sail of a ship : the hounds har- 
 loing after, az they had bin a number of skiphs too the 
 spoyle of a karvell : the ton no lesse eager in purchaz of 
 his pray, then was the other earnest in savegard of hiz 
 life : so az the earning of the hoounds in continuauns of 
 their crie, the swiftness of the deer, the running of the 
 footmen, the galloping of horsez, the blasting of hornz, 
 the hallooing and hewing of the huntsmen, with the ex- 
 cellent echoz between whilez from the woods and waters 
 in valleiz resounding; mooved pastime delectabl in so 
 hye a degree, az for ony parson to take pleazure by 
 moost sensez at onez, in mine opinion, thear can be none 
 ony wey comparable to this ; and speciall in this place, 
 that of nature is foormed so fytt for the purpose ; in feith. 
 Master Martin, if ye coold with a wish, I woold ye had 
 bin at it : wel, the hart was kild, a goodly deer, but so 
 ceast not the game yet. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 235 
 
 Chase of 3 Hart by Richard I. 
 
 " The Hart 2:>ardoned. — Wednsday, her majesty rode 
 intoo the chase, to hunting again of the hart of fors. The 
 deer, after his property, for refuge took the soyl ; but so 
 master'd by hote pursuit on al parts, that he was taken 
 quick in the pool : the Avatermen held him up hard by 
 the hed, while at her highness commaundment he lost 
 his earz for a raundsum, and so had pardon for lyfe." 
 
 In early times, when the king lost a stag, open pro- 
 clamations were made in all towns and villages, near 
 where the deer was supposed to remain, that no person 
 should kill, hunt, or chase him, that he might safely 
 retiu'n to the forest again ; and the foresters were or- 
 dered to harbour the said hart, and by degrees to bring 
 him back to the forest, and that deer was ever after 
 called, a hart royal proclaimed. Some years since an 
 old record remained in Nottingham Castle, stating, that 
 in 1194 Richard the First chased a hart from Sherwood 
 Forest to Barnsdale, in Yorkshire, and there lost him. 
 He made proclamation at Tunhill in Yorkshire, and 
 divers other places in the neighbourhood of Barnsdale, 
 that no person should chase, kill, or hunt the said deer, 
 that he might return to his lair in the forest of Sher- 
 wood. 
 
 Wliite-hart-silter, as it is called, was a heavy fine 
 laid on some lands, near the forest of Blackmore, Dor- 
 setshire : the proprietor, T. de la Lynde, a Dorsetshire 
 baron, in the time of Henry III. having destroyed a 
 white hart, which had afforded that prince much amuse- 
 ment, (probably had been proclaimed) : an acknoM'Iedg- 
 ment of which has been paid into the exchequer so late 
 as the reign of Elizabeth. 
 
236 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 An extraordinary Wager. 
 
 What follows, describes a stake, upon the capture 
 of a deer, that perhaps neither ancient nor modern his- 
 tory can parallel : — 
 
 *' The St. Clairs are of Norman extraction, being de- 
 scended from William de St. Clair, and Margaret, 
 daughter of Richard, Duke of Normandy. He was 
 called, for his fair deportment, the seemly St. Clair, and 
 settling in Scotland during the reign of Malcolm Cean- 
 more, obtained large grants of land in Mid-lothian. 
 These domains were increased, by the liberality of suc- 
 ceeding monavchs, to the descendants of the family, and 
 comprehended the baronies of Rosline, Pentland, Cows- 
 land, Cardaine, and several others. It is said a large 
 addition was obtained from Robert Bruce on this occa- 
 sion : — The king, in following the chase upon Pentland 
 Hills, had often started a ' white faunch deer,' which had 
 always escaped from his hounds ; and he asked the 
 nobles, who w^ere assembled around him, whether any 
 of them had dogs which they thought might be more 
 successful. No courtier would affirm that his hounds 
 were fleeter than those of the king, imtil Sir William 
 St. Clair, of Rosline, unceremoniously said, he would 
 wager his head that his two favourite dogs, ' Help and 
 Hold,' would kill the deer before she could cross the 
 March-burn. The king instantly caught at his unwary 
 offer, and betted the forest of Pentland Moor against 
 the life of Sir William St. Clair. All the hounds were 
 tied up, except a few ratches or slow hounds, to rouse 
 the deer; whilst Sir William St. Clair, posting himself 
 in the best situation for slipping his dogs, prayed de- 
 voutly to Christ, thr blessed Virgin, and St. Katharine. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 237 
 
 otter Hunting. 
 
 The deer was shortly after roused, and the hounds 
 sHpped; Sir WiUiam following himself on a gallant steed 
 to cheer his dogs. The hind, however, reached the 
 middle of the brook, upon which the hunter threw him- 
 self from his horse in despau'. At this critical moment, 
 however, Hold stopped her in the brook; and Help, 
 coming up, turned her back, and killed her on Sir Wil- 
 liam's side. The king descended from the hill, embraced 
 Sir William, and bestowed on him the lands of Kirkton, 
 Laganhouse, Earncraig, &c. in free forestrie. Sir Wil- 
 liam, in acknowledgment of St. Katharine's intercession, 
 built the chapel of St. Katharine in the Hopes, the 
 chapel yard of which is still to be seen. The hill from 
 which Robert Bruce beheld this memorable chase is 
 still called the King's Hill; and the place where Sir 
 William hunted is called the Knight's Field." 
 
 Otter hunting, like the pursuit of the stag, is, at 
 present, but little followed. Of all field amusements, 
 otter hunting is perhaps the least interesting. Fox 
 hounds, harriers, or indeed any kind of hounds, will 
 pursue the otter ; though the dog chiefly used for the 
 purpose has been produced by a cross between the 
 southern hound and the water spaniel. Those who 
 have never witnessed otter hunting, may form a tolerable 
 notion of the business by imaging to the mind a superior 
 duck hunt ; though Somervile has rendered it immortal 
 by the follov/ing beautiful lines : — 
 
 •' The subtle spoiler of the beaver kind, 
 Far off perhaps, where ancient alders shade 
 The deep still pool ; within some hollow trunk. 
 Contrives his wii-ker couch : whence he surveys 
 P. J 
 
238 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Somervile's Description of 
 
 His long purlieu, lord of the stream, and all 
 
 The finny shoals his own. But you, brave youths. 
 
 Dispute the felon's claim ; try every root. 
 
 And every reedy bank ; encourage all 
 
 The busy-spreading pack, that fearless plunge 
 
 Into the flood, and cross the rapid stream. 
 
 Bid rocks and caves, and each resounding shore, 
 
 Proclaim your bold defiance ; loudly raise 
 
 Each cheering voice, till distant hills repeat 
 
 The triumphs of the vale. On the soft sand 
 
 See there his seal impress'd ! and on that bank 
 
 Behold the glittering spoils, half-eaten fish, 
 
 Scales, fins, and bones, the leavings of his feast. 
 
 Ah! on that yielding sag-bed, see, once more, 
 
 His seal I view. O'er yon dark rushy marsh 
 
 The sly goose-footed prowler bends his course, 
 
 And seeks the distant shallows. Huntsman, bring 
 
 Thy eager pack, and trail him to his couch. 
 
 Hark ! the loud peal begins, the clamorous joy. 
 
 The gallant chiding, loads the trembling air. How greedily 
 
 They snufT the fishy steam, that to each blade 
 
 Rank-scenting clings. See ! how the morning dews 
 
 They sweep, that from their feet besprinkling drop 
 
 Dispers'd, and leave a track oblique behind. 
 
 Now on firm land they range; then in the flood 
 
 They plunge tumultuous ; or through reedy pools 
 
 Rustling they work their way ; no hole escapes 
 
 Their curious search. With quick sensation now 
 
 The fuming vapour stings ; flutter their hearts, 
 
 And joy redoubled bursts from every mouth 
 
 In louder symphonies. Yon hollow trunk, 
 
 That with its hoary head incurv'd salutes 
 
 The passing wave, must be the tyrant's fort, 
 
 And dread abode. How these impatient climb. 
 
 While others at the root incessant bay ! 
 
 They put him down. See, there he dives along! 
 
 Th' ascending bubbles mark his gloomy way. 
 
 Quick fix the nets, and cut off his retreat 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 239 
 
 the Pursuit of the Otter. 
 
 Into the sheltering deeps ! Ah ! there he vents ! 
 
 The pack plunge headlong, and protended spears 
 
 Menace destruction : while the troubled surge 
 
 Indignant foams, and all the scaly kind, 
 
 Affrighted, hide their heads. Wild tumult reigns, 
 
 And loud uproar. Ah ! there once more he vents ! 
 
 See, that bold hound has seiz'd him ; down they sink 
 
 Together lost : but soon shall he repent 
 
 His rash assault. See ! there escap'd, he flies 
 
 Half drown'd, and clambers up the slippery bank 
 
 With ouze and blood distain'd. Of all the brutes. 
 
 Whether by nature form'd, or by long use, 
 
 This artful diver best can bear the want 
 
 Of vital air. Unequal is the fight, 
 
 Beneath the whelming element. Yet there 
 
 He lives not long ; but respiration needs 
 
 At proper intervals. Again he vents; 
 
 Again the crowd attack. That spear has pierc'd 
 
 His neck; the crimson waves confess the wound. 
 
 Fix'd is the bearded lance, unwelcome guest, 
 
 Where'er he flies; with him it sinks beneath, 
 
 With him it mounts; sure guide to every foe. 
 
 Inly he groans ; nor can his tender wound 
 
 Bear the cold stream. Lo ! to yon sedgy bank 
 
 He creeps disconsolate ; his numerous foes 
 
 Surround him, hounds and men. Pierc'd thro' and thro', 
 
 On pointed spears they lift him high in air: 
 
 Wriggling he hangs and grins, and bites in vain : 
 
 Bid the loud horns, in gaily warbling strains. 
 
 Proclaim the felon's fate— he dies ! he dies ! '* 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 Of Scent. — Influence of the Atmosphere upon Scent. — 
 Is differetit in different Anhnals. 
 
 Scent is that exudation or effluvium, which is con- 
 stantly issuing fi'om the pores of all animal substances, 
 and consists of minute particles or corpuscles, which, 
 driven by the wind or otherwise, and coming in contact 
 with the olfactory nerves of the hound, enable him to 
 follow his game, or to continue the pursuit. Several 
 writers have given their opinion upon this subject, which 
 I shall place successively before the reader. An author, 
 (the Old Squire) whom I have already noticed observes : 
 
 " Above all other things, the scent has been ever my 
 admiration: the bulk, size, figure, and other accidents 
 or qualities of these parts or portions of matter that dis- 
 charge themselves from the bodies of these beasts of 
 game, are subjects much fitter for the experiments and 
 learned descants of a philosopher, than a simple hunts- 
 man. Whether they are to be considered as an extrane- 
 ous stock or treasure of odoriferous particles given them 
 by Divine Wisdom, for the very purpose of hunting? 
 whether they are proper identical parts of the animal's 
 body, that continually ferment and perspire from it? 
 whether these exhalations are from the breath of her 
 lungs, or through the skin of her whole body ? are 
 questions also that deserve the subtilty of a virtuoso. 
 But such observations as long experience has suggested 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 241 
 
 Smallncss of the Particles of Scent. 
 
 to me, I shall, in the plainest manner I am able, lay 
 before my readers. 
 
 ** That these particles are inconceivably small, is (I 
 think) manifest from their vast numbers. I have taken 
 hundreds of hares, after a chase of two, three, four, or 
 live hours, and could never perceive the least difference 
 in bulk or weight, from those I have seized or snapt in 
 their forms : nor could I ever learn from gentlemen who 
 have hunted basket hares, that theycould discover any 
 visible waste in their bodies, any farther than may be 
 supposed to be the effect of discharging their grosser 
 excrements. But, supposing an abatement of two or 
 three grains, or drams, after so long a fatigue ; yet how 
 minute and almost infinite must be the division of so 
 small a quantity of matter, when it affords a share to so 
 many couple of dogs, for eight, ten, or twelve miles suc- 
 cessively : deducting at the same time, the much greater 
 numbers of those particles, that are lost in the ground, 
 dissipated in the air, extinguished and obscured by the 
 foetid perspirations of the dogs, and other animals ; or 
 by the very fumes and exhalations of the earth itself. 
 That these particles are subject to such dissipation or 
 corruption, every sportsman knows ; for as none of them 
 will retain their odour after a certain proportionable 
 time, so it is daily evident that this time of their duration 
 is very obnoxious to the vicissitudes of the weather, that 
 the scent of the animal (as well as her more solid flesh) 
 will lose its sweetness sooner or later, according to the 
 disposition of the ambient air. I have frequently heard 
 the good housewives complain that, against rain or 
 thunder, their milk will turn, and their larders taint ; 
 
242 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Effect of the Atmosphere 
 
 and I have as often perceived that, a storm approaching, 
 the scent will in a moment change and vanish. Nor is 
 the suddenness of such alteration the least wonder, if 
 we take into consideration the smallness of the particles. 
 The same efficient cause may penetrate and corrupt 
 these minute corpuscles in the twinkling of an eye, which 
 requires an hour or a day to operate on bodies of greater 
 bulk and substance : as the same fire or aquafortis will 
 dissolve the filings of steel in an instant ; though a pound 
 lump of that same metal is so long able to resist their 
 violence. 
 
 " That these particles of scent are of an equal (exactly 
 equal) specific gravity with the particles of the air, is 
 demonstrated by the falling and rising of them in just 
 proportion to it. I have often smiled at hasty huntsmen, 
 to hear them rating and cursing their dogs (that yes- 
 terday were the best in England) for galloping and 
 staring with their noses in the air, as if their game was 
 flown ; for often does it happen that it is in vain for them 
 to seek after the scent in any other place, the increasing 
 weight of that fluid element having wafted it over their 
 heads. Though even at such a season, (after the first 
 mettle and fury of the cry is something abated) the more 
 steady beagles may make a shift to pick it out by the 
 particles left by the brush of her feet, (especially if there 
 be not a strong, drying, exhaling wind, to hurry these 
 away after the rest.) This often happens in a calm, 
 gentle, steady frost, when (as I conceive) the purity, 
 coldness, or perhaps the nitre, of the air, serves to fix 
 and preserve a few remaining particles, that they do not 
 easily corrupt. At another season, when the air is light. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 243 
 
 on Scent 
 
 or growing lighter, the scent must proportionably be 
 faUing or sinking ; and then every dog (though in the 
 heat of his courage he pushes forward, yet) is forced to 
 come back again and again, and cannot make any sure 
 advances, but with his nose on the ground. When cir- 
 cumstances are thus, (if there be not a storm or thunder 
 impending to corrupt the scent, as I said before) you 
 may expect the most curious and lasting sport ; puss 
 having then a fair opportunity to shew her wiles, and 
 every old or slow dog to come in for his share, to display 
 his experience, the subtilty of his judgment, and the 
 tenderness of his nostrils. The most terrible day for 
 the poor hare is when the air is in its mean gravity, or 
 cBquilihrio, tolerably moist, but inclining to grow drier, 
 and fanned with the gentle breezes of the zephyrs. The 
 moderate gravity buoys up the scent as high as the dog's 
 breast ; the vesicles of moisture serve as so many canals, 
 or vehicles, to carry the effluvia into the tubes of their 
 noses ; and the gentle fannings help in such wise to 
 spread and dissipate them, that every hound, even at 
 eight or ten paces distant, (especially on the windy side) 
 may have his proportion. 
 
 " I advise all gentlemen, who delight in hunting, to 
 provide themselves with a barometer, or weather glass. 
 I am sorry to say that this instrument (though a fine 
 invention) is still imperfectly understood by the philo- 
 sopher, as well as the farmer ; and the index generally 
 annexed to it of rain, fair, settled fair, ^c. are imperti- 
 nent and delusive. If the gravity of the air is the cause 
 of drought, the latter should be in proportionate degrees 
 with the former ; and yet we sec the sudden or extraor- 
 
244 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Variations of tlie Barometer. 
 
 dinary rising of the mercury, a sure prognostic of an 
 approaching change : we see it often continue to fall 
 after the rain is over ; and we may generally observe the 
 most settled fair, and the greatest rains, both happen 
 when it is in a moderate height. By the accounts I 
 have kept, the mercury is commonly at the highest 
 marks in dull cloudy weather ; yet does it often fall a 
 great deal faster before a few drops, or a dry mist, than 
 an impetuous rain ; and even continue to do so after a 
 hard rain is over. And what is more common than to 
 see it descend many days together, to the terror of the 
 husbandman, in hay or corn harvest ; when the conse- 
 quence, at last, is only a few drops weighty enough to 
 descend, though the air was in its utmost degree of 
 gravity, and the mercury at thirty-one inches ? The 
 vulgar solutions of these difficulties are insufficient and 
 puzzling, and vei'y inconsistent with avowed principles ; 
 and, in my humble opinion, there will never appear a 
 certain and satisfactory account of these perplexing 
 phenomena, till some sage naturalist shall give himself 
 the trouble of a more full and complete diary than has 
 yet been published ; where, together with the degrees 
 of the barometer, thermometer, and hygrometer, shall 
 be taken in (in distinct columns) the time of the year, 
 the length of the days, the age of the moon, the situation 
 of the wind, with its degrees of roughness ; the colours 
 of the clouds at sun rising and setting ; the manner of 
 flying, chattering, or flocking of birds, and divers other 
 concurring tokens and symptoms, which may be of great 
 use in conjunction with the said instruments, to settle 
 and confirm our prognostications. In the mean time it 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 245 
 
 Uncertainty of the Weather for Hunting. 
 
 must be confessed, that this ingenious machine is of 
 great use to the observant huntsman : and when he rises 
 in a morning, and finds the air moist and temperate, the 
 quicksilver in his glass moderately high, or gently convex, 
 he has a fair invitation to prepai'e for his exercise. I 
 know it is the custom with our juvenile sportsmen to fix 
 the tmie, two or three days beforehand, to meet a friend, 
 or to hunt in such or such a quarter ; but appointed 
 matches of this kind are my aversion and abhorrence ; 
 he that will enjoy the pleasure of the chase, must ask 
 leave of the heavens. Hunting is a trade that is not to 
 be forced ; nor can the best cry that ever was coupled 
 make any thing of it, unless the air be in tune. 
 
 " The earth also hath no small influence on this deli- 
 cious pastime ; for though it sometimes happens (accord- 
 ing to the observations above) that the scent is floating, 
 so that you may run down a hare through water and 
 mire (especially if you keep pretty close after her) without 
 the trouble of stooping : yet, at such a season, the first 
 fault is the loss of your game ; the perspirations of her 
 body being wafted over head by the gravity of the air, 
 and those of her feet being left on elements that absorb 
 or confound them. 
 
 " This last case very often happens at the going oil' 
 of a frost ; the mercury is then commonly falling, and by 
 consequence the scent sinking to the ground. The earth 
 is naturally on such occasion fermenting ; dissolving, 
 stinking, exhaling, and very porous ; so that it is impos- 
 sible but most of the particles must then be corrupted, 
 buried, or overcome by stronger vapours. 'Tis very 
 common to heir tlic vulgar say, .s/w carries dirt in her 
 
246 HUNTING DIRECTORY 
 
 Influence of the Frost 
 
 heels : but that is not all, it being very plain, by what 
 has been observed, that it is not only by the scent of the 
 foot she is so eagerly pursued. 
 
 " The mention of frost puts me in mind of a particular 
 observation of my own making, that may be useful or 
 diverting to my brethren of the chase. You all make it 
 a great part of your pleasure to hunt out the walk of a 
 hare to her seat, and doubtless you have often been sur- 
 prizingly disappointed on such occasions. You have 
 many times been able to hunt the same walk in one part 
 of the field, and not in another ; you have hunted the 
 same walk at ten or eleven, which gave not the least 
 scent at seven in the morning ; and which is most pro- 
 voking and perplexing of all, you have often been able 
 to hunt it only at the wrong end, or backwards ; after 
 many hours' wonder and expectation, cherishing your 
 dogs, and cursing your fortune : you are in truth never 
 so far from your game as when your hunt is warmest. 
 All these accidents are only the effect of the hoar-frost, 
 or very gross dew (for they never happen otherwise) and 
 from thence must the miracle be accounted for. 
 
 " I have already proved that a thaw tends to corrupt 
 the particles, and have as good reason to maintain that 
 frost fixes, covers, and preserves them. (Whether this 
 is done by intercepting their ascent, and precipitating 
 them to the ground by the gross particles of frozen dew, 
 or whether by sheathing them, and protecting them from 
 the penetrating air (as the good wives preserve their 
 potted meats and pickles) I leave to the learned ; but 
 the facts are certain, and confirmed by experience. We 
 have therefore only to take notice (by the way) that the 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 247 
 
 on Scent. 
 
 hoar frost is very often of short continuance, changeable 
 and uncertain, both as to its time and place of falling ; 
 and hence all those difficulties are easily resolved. Let 
 the huntsman, as soon as he is out of his bed, examme 
 but the glass windows, which commonly discover whether 
 any hoar frost has fallen, what time it came, and in what 
 condition of continuance or gomg off it is for the present. 
 If it appears to have fallen at two, three, or four in the 
 morning, (suppose in the month of October, and other 
 times of the year must be judged of in proportion) and 
 to be going off about day break, it may then be expected 
 that there will be a great difficulty or impossibility of 
 trailing to her seat, because her morning retreat being 
 on the top of the frozen dew, the scent is either dissolved 
 or corrupted with it, or dissipated and exhaled. 'Tis 
 true (after such a night) the dogs will find work in every 
 field, and often hunt in full cry ; but it will be generally 
 backward, and always in vain, her midnight ramblings 
 (which were covered by the frost) being now open, fresh, 
 and fragrant. If the said frost begins later in the morn- 
 ing, after puss is seated, there is nothing to be done till 
 that is gone off; and this is the reason that we often see 
 the whole pack picking out a walk at nine or ten, in the 
 same path where Siveet-lijjs herself could not touch at 
 seven. Again, if the frost began early enough, and con- 
 tinues steadily till you are gotten into the fields, you may 
 then make it good to her seat, as well as at other times 
 on naked ground ; though you must expect to run a 
 great risk of losing her at the going off of the frost, ac- 
 cording to the observations already laid down. 
 
 " It is also to be remembered, that there is no small 
 accidental difference in the very particles of scent; I 
 
248 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Difference of Scent in the same Animals. 
 
 mean, that they are stronger, sweeter, or more distin- 
 guishable at one time than at another ; and that this dif- 
 ference is found not only in diverse, but often in the same 
 individual creature, according to the changes of the air 
 or the soil, as well as of her own motions or conditions. 
 That there is a different scent in other animals of the 
 same species, is evident from draught hounds, which 
 were formerly made use of for tracing and pursuing 
 thieves and deer stealers, or rather from any common 
 cur or spaniel, which will hunt out their masters, or their 
 master's horse, distinctly from all others : and that it 
 is the same with the hare is no less visible with the 
 old beagles, which will not readily change for a fresh 
 one, vmless she starts in view, or unless a fault happens 
 that puts them in confusion, and inclines them in despair 
 to take up with the next they can come by. 
 
 " That the same hare will at divers times emit finer 
 or grosser particles, is equally manifest to every one who 
 shall observe the frequent changes in one single chase, 
 the alterations that ensue on any different motion, and 
 on her degrees of sinking. The coursing of a cur dog, 
 or the fright from an obvious passenger, is often the 
 occasion of an unexpected fault ; and after such an acci- 
 dent the dogs must be cherished, and be put upon it 
 again and again before they will take it and acknowledge 
 it for their own game. The reason is (as I conceive) the 
 change of the motion causes a change in the perspiring 
 particles ; and as the spirits of the dogs are all engaged 
 and attached to particles of such or such a figure, 'tis 
 with difficulty they come to be sensible of, or attentive 
 to, those of a different relish. You Mill pardon the ex- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 249 
 
 Motion the principal Cause of Scent. 
 
 pression, if I compai*e old Jowler, in this case, to a ma- 
 thematician, who is so intent on the long perplexing- 
 ambages of the problem before him, that he hears not 
 the clock or bell that summons him to a new employment. 
 
 ** The alterations in a yielding hare are less frequently 
 the occasion of faults, because they are more gradual ; 
 and, like the same rope, insensibly tapering and growing 
 smaller : but that alterations there are, every dog boy 
 knows by the old hounds, which still pursue with greater 
 eagerness, as she is nearer her end. 
 
 " I take motion to be the chief cause of shedding or 
 discharging these scenting particles ; because she is very 
 seldom perceived whilst quiet in her form, though the 
 dogs are ever so near, though they leap over her, or (as 
 I have often seen) even tread upon her. Indeed it some- 
 times happens that she is, as we say, winded where she 
 sits. But this may be the effect of that train of scent 
 she left behind her in going to her chair ; or more pro- 
 bably the consequence of her own curiosity, in moving 
 and rising up, as I have also seeUj to peep after and 
 watch the proceedings of her adversaries. However, 
 we must grant, that these particles of scent, though the 
 effect of motion, are not more gross and copious in pro- 
 portion to the increasing swiftness of the animal; no 
 more than in a watering pot, which the swifter it passes, 
 the less of the falling water it bestows on the subjacent 
 plants. 
 
 "It is very plain, the slower the hare moves, the 
 stronger and grosser, ccetarisjiarihusy are those particles 
 she leaves behind her ; which I take to be one reason 
 
250 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 (besides the cloathing and shielding of them from the 
 penetrating air by the descending frost or dew) that the 
 morning walk will give scent so much longer than the 
 flight in hunting. However, it is remarkable, that these 
 odorous particles gradually decay and end with her life, 
 because it requires the most curious noses to lead the 
 cry when she is near her last ; because she is so often 
 entirely lost at the last quat : and because, if you knock 
 her on the head before them, there is hardly one in the 
 pack that will stop or take any notice of her. 
 
 " The greatest art and curiosity is discovered in hunt- 
 ing the/o?7, especially if she immediately steal back be- 
 hind the dogs the same path she came : for it must re- 
 quire the utmost skill to distinguish well the new scent 
 from the old, when both are mixed, obscured, and con- 
 founded with the strong perspirations of so many dogs 
 and horses. Yet, this we have often seen performed by 
 ready and expert hunters. However, if the dogs be 
 not masters of their business, or if the air be not in due 
 balance, the difficulty will be the greater. 
 
 " The reader will observe that the remarks I have 
 made are generally on the hare; which, as I have said, 
 is of aU others most worthy of our speculation and en- 
 quiry.. By analogy, the hunting of the deer or fox will 
 be easily imderstood ; for, though the scent of these is 
 generally higher, more obvious to the noses of the dogs, 
 and in greater plenty whilst the particles last; yet, for 
 that very reason (floating in air) they are sooner dissi- 
 pated, and require a more vigorous, though less subtle, 
 huntsman, as well as swifter beagles." 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 251 
 
 Somcrvile's Notion ot Scent. 
 
 Somervile expresses his opinion on scent in the fol- 
 lowing beautiful hnes : — 
 
 " The blood that from the heart incessant rolls 
 In many a crimson tide, then here and there 
 In smaller rills disparted, as it flows 
 Propell'd, the serous particles evade 
 Through th' open pores, and with the ambient air 
 Entangling mis. As fuming vapours rise, 
 And hang upon the gently purling brook. 
 There by th' incumbent atmosphere compress'd. 
 The panting chase grows warmer as he flies. 
 And through the net-work of the skin perspires, 
 Leaves a long steaming trail behind, which by 
 The cooler air condens'd, remains, unless 
 By some rude storm dispers'd, or rarified 
 By the meridian sun's intenser heat. 
 To every shrub the warm effluvia cling, 
 Hang on the grass, impregnate earth and skies. 
 AVith nostrils opening wide, o'er hill, o'er dale, 
 The vigorous hounds pursue ; with every breath 
 Inhale the grateful steam : quick pleasures sting 
 Their tingling nerves, while they their thanks repay, 
 And in triumphant melody confess 
 The titillating joy. Thus on the air 
 Depend the hunter's hope. When ruddy streaks 
 At eve forebode a blustering stormy day, 
 Or lowering clouds blacken the mountain's brow, 
 When nipping fronts, and the keen biting blasts 
 Of the dry parching east, menace the trees 
 With tender blossoms teeming, kindly spare 
 Thy sleeping pack." 
 
 Beckford says, " I cannot agree with Mr. Somervile, 
 in thinking scent depends on the ah' only. It depends 
 also on the soil. Without doubt, the best scent is that 
 which is occasioned by the efHuvia, as he calls it, or par- 
 
252 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Beckford's Opinion 
 
 tides of scent, which are constantly perspiring from the 
 game as it runs, and are strongest and most favourable 
 to the hound when kept, by the gravity of the air, to the 
 height of his breast ; for then it neither is above his 
 reach, nor is it necessary he should stoop for it. At such 
 times, scent is said to lie breast-high. Experience tells 
 us, that difference of soil occasions difference of scent ; 
 and on the richness of soil and the moderate moisture of 
 it, does scent also depend, I think, as well as on the air. 
 At the time leaves begin to fall, and before they are 
 rotted, we know that the scent lies ill in cover. This 
 alone would be a sufficient proof that scent does not 
 depend on the air only. A difference of scent is also 
 occasioned by difference of motion : the faster the game 
 goes, the less scent it leaves. When game has been 
 ridden after, and hurried on by imprudent sportsmen, 
 or has been coursed by sheep dogs, the scent is less 
 favourable to hounds ; one reason of which may be, that 
 the particles of scent are then more dissipated. 
 
 " I believe it is very difficult to ascertain what scent 
 exactly is : I have known it alter very often in the same 
 day. I believe, however, it depends chiefly on two 
 things, — "the condition the ground is in, and the tem- 
 perature of the air," both of which, I apprehend, should 
 be moist, without being wet. When both are in this 
 condition, the scent is then perfect; and vice versa, when 
 the ground is hard, and the air dry, there seldom will 
 be any scent. It scarce ever lies with a north or an east 
 wind : a southerly wind without rain, and a westerly 
 wind that is not too rough, are the most favourable. 
 Storms in the air are great enemies to scent, and seldom 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 253 
 
 fail to take it entirely away. A fine sunshiny day is not 
 often a good hunting day ; hut what the French ca\\ jour 
 des dames, warm without sun, is generally a perfect one : 
 there are not many such in a whole season. In some 
 fogs I have known the scent lie high ; in others, not at 
 all ; depending, I believe, on the quarter the wind is 
 then in. I have known it lie very high in a mist, when 
 not too wet ; but if the wet hangs much on the boughs 
 and bushes, it falls on the scent and deadens it. When 
 the dogs roll, the scent, I have frequently observed, 
 seldom lies, for what reason I know not ; but, with per- 
 mission, if they smell strong when they first come out of 
 the kennel, the proverb is in their favour ; and that smell 
 is a prognostic of good luck. When the cobwebs hang 
 to the bushes, there is seldom much scent. During a 
 white frost the scent lies high ; as it also does when the 
 frost is quite gone : there is a time, just as it is going off, 
 when it never lies : it is a critical minute for hounds, in 
 which their game is frequently lost. In a great dew the 
 scent is the same. In heathy countries, where the game 
 brushes as it goes along, scent seldom fails. Where the 
 ground carries, the scent is bad, for a very evident reason, 
 which hare-hunters, who pursue their game over greasy 
 fallows and through dirty roads, have great cause to 
 complain of. A Avet night frequently produces good 
 chases, as then the game never like to run the covers or 
 the roads. It has often been remarked, that scent lies 
 best in the richest soils ; and countries which are favour- 
 able to horses are seldom so to hounds. I have also ob- 
 served, that in some particular places scent never lies." 
 
 Q b 
 
254 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 At first view, Somervile and Beckford would appear 
 at variance on the subject of scent; but, in fact, they are 
 both correct. Scent is entirely under the influence of 
 the atmosphere ; yet it is equally true that it varies, ac- 
 cording to the nature of the land, in the manner pointed 
 out by Beckford. On Friday, February 3rd, 182G, I 
 met the Cheshire hounds at Ravensmoor, near Nantwich, 
 and a fox was found in a neighbouring cover, called 
 Radnor Gorse. The hounds went away with uncommon 
 speed ; and sly renard having gone oft* in a line for 
 Ravensmoor, turned to the left to Beechhouse. The 
 fox took the direction of Bar Bridge, j^assing over a fine 
 grass country, where the scent was very good, and the 
 hounds continued the pursuit with so much speed, that 
 none but good workmen were able to keep in sight of 
 them. I never recollect seeing hounds carry a better 
 head or go faster. The fox ultimately turned to the left 
 towards the village of Bunbury, where the land was 
 higher and sandy, and where the scent immediately died 
 away. Yet, I am inclined to think that this circumstance 
 was owing as well to atmospheric influence as to the 
 alteration in the soil, as rain came on immediately after- 
 wards. On rich pasture land, the scent will be much 
 better than on poor pasture land— for the following 
 reason :— the herbage on the former being more luxuri- 
 iint, more plentiful, and possessing a more adhesive 
 quahty, the floating particles of scent arc thus more 
 numerously and longer detained, and consequently afford 
 a superior scent to the hounds. Nevertheless, the 
 degree of scent is, beyond all question, regulated entirely 
 by the atmosphere :— when the latter if favourable (as 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. ^55 
 
 Influence of the Wind on Scent. 
 
 with a soft southern wind, for instance) the hounds will 
 run breast high over good land, and on such occasions 
 the scent will be found much superior even on the worst 
 land. When the scent is most propitious to the sports- 
 man's hopes, it would seem to float for a considerable 
 time at that precise elevation as to enable the hound to 
 run with his utmost speed, (as Beckford has noticed) : 
 the particles of scent not only adhere to the herbage and 
 other obstacles with which they come in contact on the 
 immediate line of the chase, but float and fill up a con- 
 siderable space, as is clearly proved by many of the 
 hounds very frequently running breast high at an evident 
 distance to the windward of the line of the chase. On 
 the contrary, when the scent is bad (as with a cold, 
 harsh, easterly wind) it can be made out (if at all) only 
 by thorough line-hunting hounds ; while those dogs, 
 which, under other circumstances, ran so brilliantly, are 
 not able to recognise it. Experience convinces every 
 sportsman that, over fallows or beaten roads, scent never 
 lies well : the reason is evident : — there is no herbage or 
 other attractive objects to detain the floating particles, 
 and the consequence is, that if the hounds do not follow 
 on over such places immediately after the chase has 
 passed, they are not able to hunt — the scent has been 
 dissipated. Scent will continue, precisely according to 
 the air or atmosphere, for a longer or a shorter period. 
 Whenever the chase brushes against a number of ob- 
 stacles, as when running amongst heath, for instance, 
 the scent cannot be otherwise than excellent; (unless 
 the atmosphere be vei'y unfavourable indeed ;) nor can 
 a fox stand up long before the hounds under such cir- 
 cumstances : renard seems conscious of the advantage 
 
^56 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Erroneous Notions respecting the Scent of diSferent Animals. 
 
 of his enemies in such case, as he will avoid the heath as 
 much as possible, and perseveringly continue his course 
 along the roads or any beaten track he can meet with. 
 
 That the scent of the fox does not continue so long as 
 that of the hare, is a mistaken notion ; and has arisen 
 most likely from harriers being generally more tender 
 nosed than fox hounds, and are thence enabled to speak 
 to the scent after a considerable lapse of time — in pro- 
 portion of course to the quality of the olfactory organs. 
 
 Also, it may be further remarked, that, while it has 
 been the custom amongst sportsmen to consider the scent 
 of the fox stronger, but more evanescent, than that of 
 the hare, it has, at the same time, been the general 
 opinion, that the scent of the stag was the strongest of 
 the three, and the most agreeable to hounds. I have no 
 hesitation in supposing that the scent issuing from so 
 large an animal as the stag must be much greater in 
 volume (if I may be allowed the expression) than the 
 odorous exhalations from the two much smaller animals 
 already noticed ; yet, I think it will appear, when the 
 matter is duly investigated, that the general notions 
 respecting scent have been inconsiderately adopted, and 
 have arisen as much, or perhaps more, from the olfactory 
 organs of the hound as from the difference in the scent 
 of the animals which constitute the objects of chase. At 
 all events, I feel a perfect conviction (which indeed I 
 have already expressed) that the scent of the fox is not 
 more evanescent than that of the hare, if so much, and 
 that hounds which could recognise the scent of a hare 
 after the lapse of a considerable period, would also speak 
 to that of the fox in the same manner, or perhaps more 
 easily. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 Wolf Hunting in France, iiit/i a Description of the 
 Hounds and Equipage for that Purpose. — A Wolf 
 Chase. 
 
 It is generally admitted that the English are the best 
 sportsmen in the world ; yet it cannot be denied that the 
 foundation of their present superior knowledge of the 
 chase was imported from the Continent. The Saxons 
 taught the Britons to pursue the chase on scientific 
 principles ; the Normans afterwards introduced a much 
 improved system ; which has been gradually advanced 
 in this country till it has reached its present comparative 
 perfection. However, in order to enable the reader to 
 form an opinion of the manner in which the chase is at 
 present pursued by our Continental neighbours, I shall 
 here introduce a few pages from the late Colonel Thorn- 
 ton's Sporting Tour through France. 
 
 " Before we proceed on this subject, it may, perhaps, 
 be necessary to observe, that the hunting of the wolf 
 being entirely confined to the countries of the continent, 
 and particularly to France, many of the technical terms 
 employed in this interesting sport are of such a nature, 
 that it is impossible to render them into the English 
 language. The original expressions have, therefore, in 
 some cases, been retained in the following pages. 
 
 Terms emplo?/ed in Hunting the Wolf. — Wolves arc 
 divided, according to their age, into cub wolves, old 
 
258 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Terms employed in Wolf Hunting. 
 
 wolves, and Avolves ; their age may be discovered by 
 their feet, and their footsteps are called the track of the 
 wolf. 
 
 When the wolf goes a gentle pace without hurrying 
 himself, he is said to go with confidence. 
 
 When he goes in quest of food, it is said, he is seeking 
 food, he is going to feed on carrion, he seized the car- 
 rion, he glutted himself with carrion. 
 
 In the season of copulation, wolves are said to be at 
 heat. Some sportsmen have employed the term rut; 
 but that can only be applied to the stag, the deer, and 
 the wild boar. 
 
 When the wolf has covered the female, it is said, the 
 wolf has coupled, the wolf has covered or lined the she 
 wolf. 
 
 When they have produced whelps, they are called a 
 litter of young wolves. It commonly consists of five, six 
 and seven ; and never of less than three. 
 
 We say, the head, the teeth, the skin of the wolf. 
 
 The nipples of a she wolf are called teats. 
 
 The places where they have scratched up the earth 
 are called dechmissures, and we say the wolf has torn up 
 such a place. 
 
 The place where he lies is called his kennel. 
 
 We say the footsteps of a wolf; some have called them 
 the track. When we see the wolf of which we are in 
 chase, we cry — Velelau, Velclau, liarluu chicns, harlou, 
 veleci aller, i^eleci aller. 
 
 We say the howling of wolves : to howl for wolves is 
 to entice them to you, that you may shoot them in the 
 niafht. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 259 
 
 Manner of distinguishing a Male from a Female Wolf, &a 
 
 To place greyhounds in stations is to post them in a 
 situation between two thickets, when you expect the 
 wolf to leave one of them and to go into the other. 
 . Manner of clistingidshing a He Wolf from a She 
 Wolf by the Feet. — The he wolf has a larger and thicker 
 foot than the she wolf. When the wolf is young, his 
 foot expands as he walks ; when he grows old, his foot 
 is narrower, both before and behind ; his claws are thick, 
 long, and close ; his heel thick and broad, and the fore- 
 part of the foot thicker than the hmder part. When 
 the wolf goes with assurance ; that is, when he walks his 
 ordinary pace, he commonly puts the hind foot into the 
 step or track of the fore foot. It is easy to perceive 
 this in wet weather, or in snow ; but when he goes at a 
 trot, the hind foot keeps at the distance of three fingers 
 from the fore foot. The she wolf has a longer and nar- 
 rower foot than the male ; her heel is smaller and closer, 
 and her claws are not so strong. By taking notice of 
 these differences, the sportsman may know whether he 
 is in the track of a he or a she wolf. 
 
 The Time in ivhich Wolves are in Heat. — It is com- 
 monly in winter that these animals are in heat ; but 
 some she wolves are not in heat so early as others. The 
 old ones are more early, and the young ones later. In 
 general, they are not in heat for the first time till they 
 are nearly two years old, or between twenty-one and 
 twenty-two months ; because, as the mothers are in heat 
 again the same year they litter, the young ones being- 
 then only nine or ten months old, have not attained a 
 sufficient growth to be in heat ; so that they are not in 
 that state till the second heat which comes upon the 
 
260 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Littering of Wolves. 
 
 mother after their birth. The she wolf produces her 
 first fitter about the conchision of her second year : it is 
 always in the most inclement season of the year that 
 these beasts are in heat — the old ones till nearly the 
 month of February, and the young ones till towards the 
 end of that month. The she wolves are extremely coy 
 before they yield to the advances of the males ; and if 
 several of the latter happen to meet when they have 
 found a female, they fight for her with the utmost ob- 
 stinacy, and the strongest wins the prize. The jealousy 
 of these animals is extreme ; and is carried to such a 
 height, that, if by accident a he wolf, after lining a 
 female, is met alone with her by several males, they 
 will attack and tear him in pieces. 
 
 The Time when She Wolves Litter. — When the she 
 wolf is big, she commonly goes three months and a half, 
 or more — that is, upwards of a hundred days. They 
 litter earlier or later, according to the time they were in 
 heat. Their most numerous litters consist of six or 
 seven ; but never of less than three ; and there are 
 always more males than females. When the she wolf is 
 about to litter, she seeks some large ditch in an unfre- 
 quented place, or some hole at a distance from any road, 
 into which she retires. She even seeks to avoid the 
 presence of the male ; because, if he were present when 
 she brings forth her young, he would not fail to devour 
 them. If, however, the female happens soon afterwards 
 to die, the male, appearing to be actuated by paternal 
 affection, feeds the yoimg cubs, defends them against 
 every enemy, and when they have acquired a little 
 strength, he conducts them into large corn fields^ and 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 261 
 
 The Places where Wolves Litter. 
 
 Other situations not far from the forest or thickets. He 
 there places them in security, while he prowls in quest 
 of food. He carries to them all he can catch, such 
 as sheep or other animals ; but he first devours them 
 himself, and on his return to his cubs, he disgorges the 
 half-digested food, Mhich is swallowed by the cubs. 
 When his prey consists only of puppies, or fowls, he 
 carries it off alive : at first he gives these animals to his 
 cubs to play with, and then instructs them how to kill 
 them. When he and she wolves have young ones, they 
 are extremely alert in avoiding the snares that may be 
 laid for them ; and when they hear the report of a gun, 
 or the cry of dogs, they decamp as speedily as possible, 
 and carry away with them all their family. 
 
 Manner of discovering the Places where the She 
 Wolves have Littered. — In the month of August, or 
 September, the cubs having acquired a little strength, 
 begin to walk about, and to sport among the thickets. 
 They never remove far from the woods, because there 
 is then no corn in the plains. In looking for them, you 
 should go into the thickest part of the woods, and the 
 closest thickets ; and, in particular, take notice of all the 
 places near which there are marshes. The females 
 usually seek those situations, as well for the convenience 
 of retreat, as to allay the burning thirst caused by the 
 season, and the food on which they subsist. It is com- 
 monly in the morning and evening that the young wolves 
 go to the marshes. You may take young dogs to the 
 spot, but you ought to have one in particular that is well 
 trained to that kind of search : in beating the wood, he 
 will not fail to discover the wolf; he will even pursue 
 
262 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Training Dogs to Hunt the Wolf, 
 
 him, rouse him, and follow him to his haunt : M'hen there, 
 you should caress and encourage him, to induce him 
 afterwards to go and pursue him alone. The move- 
 ments of the old dog will animate the younger ; you 
 should, therefore, sometimes send him forward to excite 
 the others, and afterwards you may call him behind, to 
 see whether the young dogs are capable to go by them- 
 selves. They should be caressed a good deal the first 
 time they manifest timidity. You should go before them, 
 to teach them to pursue by themselves ; and as the young 
 wolves will not easily quit their situations, you must 
 make the dogs return to the charge, and follow the 
 scent ; and then, after having encouraged them, call 
 them off. 
 
 To train young dogs to hunt the wolf, the sportsman 
 must proceed in the following manner : — He should take 
 them to the wood every two days, towards the places 
 which he supposes to be frequented by the wolves. He 
 cannot fail to discover them, because the he or she wolf 
 always goes in the morning to the cubs, and then retires 
 into other thickets to deceive the hunters : it is then that 
 you have an excellent opportunity of employing blood 
 hounds to advantage. The thickets chosen by the 
 wolves for their retreat are easily known : near them are 
 always some fragments of their prey, by which they are 
 betrayed, as bones of horses, skeletons of dogs and other 
 animals. It is, besides, easy to remark whether the 
 grass about the spot is trodden, which is a sign that the 
 young wolves have come thither to lie down. 
 
 Eqidpage for Hunting the Wolf. — Having described 
 the M'olf, and the manner of discovering him in a general 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 263 
 
 and the Kind best adapted for the Purpose. 
 
 way, it is necessary to enter into the details of the chase ; 
 but it may not be amiss previously to say something of 
 the proper equipage for that purpose. 
 
 In this respect it is not necessary to go to any great 
 expence, as twenty-five or thirty hounds are sufficient. 
 They ought to be of a good size, to have a grey coat, 
 and to be marked with red about the eyes and on the 
 cheeks : by these marks you may discover their greater 
 or less degree of eagerness in the chase. You ought, 
 likewise, to have six or eight leashes of large, choice 
 greyhounds, and some good whelps. They encourage 
 each other, and attack the wolf with the greater vigour. 
 A good whipper-in is also highly necessary ; two attend- 
 ants for the blood hounds, two for the hounds, and one 
 to slip the greyhounds. 
 
 Your blood hounds for hunting the wolf cannot be too 
 good ; they ought to be bold, lively, and full of ardour. 
 When they possess all these qualities, you derive from 
 them a two-fold advantage ; for, besides that which you 
 enjoy in the chase, they hkewise serve to train other 
 dogs. A good sportsman ought to be prudent as to the 
 service he requires of his dogs, and he should be very 
 careful of them, for the chase of the wolf is more fatiouinf 
 to the blood hounds than any other kind, the wolf being 
 naturally crafty and mistrustfuL From the moment that 
 he perceives they are after him, he is constantly going ; 
 and when he finds himself pursued, he changes his abode, 
 and leads his pursuers a very fatiguing chase. It is, 
 therefore, advisable to spare the blood hounds, and to 
 make them serve alternately. A day of rest gives them 
 fresh ardour, and enables the sportsmen to liunt with 
 more satisfaction. 
 
264 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of Trying for the Wolf. 
 
 The Search for the Wolf. — The wolf is tried for in 
 various ways, according to the difference of the seasons. 
 If it be in winter, you should go to the wood some time 
 before sunrise, because that is about the time when the 
 wolves repair to it. In summer there is no occasion to 
 go so early, because those animals frequently stay among 
 the corn, and do not return to the wood till the day is 
 advanced ; therefore, without being in too great a hurry, 
 it will be sufficient to beat twice along the skirts of the 
 thicket towards the corn ; and, if you meet with nothing, 
 it will be advisable, on your return, to beat the contrary 
 side. 
 
 There is a considerable difference between trying for 
 the stag and the wolf. The former remains a long time 
 in the thickets ; sometimes he does not even leave them 
 to pass the night in the open fields : but the conduct of 
 the wolf is exactly the reverse. Hunger, it is said, 
 drives him out of the wood ; and as he subsists entirely 
 by carnage, he frequently approaches farms, villages, and 
 even towns, and seizes whatever falls in his way. If, by 
 accident, he remains a considerable time in a thicket 
 without quitting it, even during the night, it is only when 
 he has taken a deer, or some other animal that he is 
 occupied in devouring. 
 
 When the assistant huntsman shall have arrived with 
 his limier, or blood hound, at the place containing the 
 object of search, he must loosen the leash, and make his 
 dog advance before him more than half the length of it, 
 continually caressing him and saying — Va outre Ribaut 
 hau mon valet, hau lo lo lo lo, iieleci, veleci alle mon 
 petit. It is well frequently to repeat these w^ords, because 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. ^65 
 
 Hounds not eager in the Pursuit of the Wolf. 
 
 nothing more encourages and animates the dog in the 
 pursuit. You must take good care that the blood hound 
 may not take the scent of some wolf that has entered the 
 forest by some ravine or great road ; and when you 
 perceive that the dog is about to acknowledge the scent, 
 and that he puts his nose either to the branches or the 
 tufts of grass, you must encourage him; for dogs are 
 naturally not very eager after the wolf; and I have re- 
 marked, that they are not very eager in quest of him. 
 Besides, the scent of the wolf does not continue more 
 than two or three hours ; and to be enabled to unkennel 
 him, he should not have passed more than two hours ; 
 otherwise the blood hounds will scarcely be able to hunt 
 up to him, especially if it be on a beaten dry road. For 
 he leaves more scent behind him when he runs upon the 
 grass or among the bushes, because he touches whatever 
 he meets, as well with his body as his feet, and when the 
 scent is protected from the wind or sun ; and this cir- 
 cumstance assists the blood hounds in the pursuit. 
 
 When the huntsman perceives that his dog has got 
 upon the scent of a wolf, he should encourage him in 
 these terms : — Wliat! is he there boy? — haii Vamy apres 
 veleci y d'lt vrai, and he should frequently repeat them 
 in order to encourage the dog, which he must continue 
 to follow, either by the side of the way or hi the faux 
 fuyant. Too much attention cannot be used on this 
 occasion, because there is always reason to apprehend, 
 lest the scent should grow too weak, and lest the blood 
 hound should relinquish it at the first cross-way to which 
 the wolf may have betaken himself. It is to be observed, 
 that when the wolf passes a cross-way, he always stops 
 
 R 
 
2G6 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Habits of the Wolf, and 
 
 there for some time, either to clung or to make water 
 against some bush of broom or furze, or a tuft of grass. 
 He then immediately scratches up a spot on the surface 
 of the ground four feet in extent, tearing up the turf 
 backwards with his claws. He then continues his course, 
 and sometimes conceals himself at a considerable dis- 
 tance ; sometimes he likewise endeavours to give his 
 pursuers the slip, and instead of following the road takes 
 another, and turns toward the thickest part of the wood, 
 with a view to enter it. For this purpose he takes the 
 first double he comes to, or some favourable passage, 
 which hapi^ens principally when the earth is moist. It 
 is at such times that the sportsman should be careful to 
 train the hound to the scent, at about half the length of 
 the line, and to encourage his blood hound more and 
 more. If it be still early in the day, he may follow the 
 drag with little noise, and withdraw secretly to proceed 
 before. He should observe, that during this time, the 
 hound may surprize the wolf either by some JauxfuT/anf, 
 or by some glade, by which he may have penetrated 
 into the recesses of the wood ; for wolves have different 
 paces according as they are more or less hungry. When 
 driven by hunger, they are almost incessantly on the foot, 
 and proceed forward till they have found something to 
 eat : but when they have glutted themselves, they fre- 
 quently retire into the first thicket they come to, provided 
 they find favourable places for their kennel ; as hollies, 
 fern, and other shrubs. 
 
 If the sportsman be at the forest on a hunting day, 
 he will content himself with ascertaining whether the 
 wolf has entered the thicket. He will endeavour to dis- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. £67 
 
 Method of training a young Blood Hound to hunt him. 
 
 cover the little avenue oi' glade by which he may have 
 entered : he will caress his blood hound, and afterwards 
 break the branches at the entrance of the thicket. After 
 he has convinced himself that he has discovered the 
 track of the wolf, he will return to the company to make 
 his report ; but if he had no other intention than to 
 exercise his dog, or if it is a considerable time since he 
 dislodged the wolf, he may, as soon as he has reconnoi- 
 tred, return to the inclosure of broken boughs to dis- 
 cover the traces, then push on and dislodge the wolf, 
 and follow the drag to the haunt, caressing his blood 
 hound and continually using the above-mentioned terms. 
 If the blood hound be young, his ardour will abate on 
 approaching the haunt, because the scent of the wolf 
 naturally inspires dogs with terror, and there are very 
 few which dare venture to follow him by themselves. 
 It is, therefore, necessary to speak to him a good deal, 
 in order to animate and embolden him to pursue ; and 
 he should be much caressed on the track. With regard 
 to the haunt, I shall observe here, that wolves frequently 
 change them, according to the diiierence of the season ; 
 for instance, in summer they choose an open place among 
 the grass, on which the sun shines a little ; but in winter 
 they repair to the recesses of the woods or thickets, 
 among heath or fern. They seldom fix their abode 
 beneath very high trees, excepting they find there very 
 thick bushes, or abundance of fern or rushes. 
 
 In what Manner it may he discovered that the Blood 
 Hound has got Scent of a Wolf. — It is very difficult to 
 get sight of a wolf, on account of his great swiftness : 
 he even scarcely leaves behind him any traces, excepting 
 
 11 2 
 
268 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Mode of ascertaining whether the Dog is on the right Scent. 
 
 in winter, in a white frost ; or in summer, when there is 
 much dust. In all other circumstances you may be said 
 to proceed with no great certainty ; and if a person has 
 not had long experience in the chase, he frequently takes 
 many a step in vain. There are, however, certain signs, 
 by means of which you may discover the object of the 
 blood hound's movements, and consequently distinguish 
 whether it is a wolf or some other animal of which the 
 dog has got the scent. If it be a wolf, he will not fail to 
 go and smell at the branches and grass the wolf has 
 touched, and will immediately proceed in pursuit of him. 
 If the wolf makes a good impression on the ground, and 
 the dog has any scent, you will see him pursue briskly, 
 provided you take care to encourage him, from time to 
 time, on the drag. But if the wolf passed very early, 
 and you are not on the spot in good time, the blood 
 hound will lose the scent, particularly if the wolf pro- 
 ceeds in a right line, and is gone to a considerable 
 distance ; for a dog must have an excellent nose to dis- 
 cover a wolf that has passed longer than two hours and 
 a half, or three hours ; and he is liable to change if 
 there be any deer in the thicket, or if he have not been 
 exclusively trahied to wolf hunting. When the sports- 
 man perceives, by the manner of the dog, that it is the 
 track of a wolf which he has discovered, he must en- 
 deavour to find out whether the animal is alone or in 
 company. They generally go in pairs : it is only in 
 seasonable weather that he can discover their number 
 and quality, by examining their footsteps with attention, 
 conformably to what I have already said on that subject, 
 in treating of the difference between the foot of the he 
 and she wolf. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 269 
 
 Manner of placing Relays of Dogs. 
 
 Manner of making a Report of the Discovery of a 
 Wolf — It appears that it is not very easy to distinguish 
 the track of wolves from every other animal : a sports- 
 man should possess much experience, and be capable of 
 just observation, to be able to make an accurate report. 
 
 A report is commonly made in the following manner : 
 
 I believe I have discovered the track of one or two 
 wolves, or of a he and a she wolf, or of several, according 
 to the indications one has oljserved; they came from 
 such a thicket, or they went in quest of food towards 
 such a village ; they killed so many deer, which I found 
 in following them ; and they afterwards repaired to such 
 a thicket. I continued the search ; and as I imagine 
 that their direct road lies from such a thicket, in which 
 I have reason to suppose they are, to such other thicket, 
 there is a fine opportunity for driving them into the open 
 country, and an advantageous situation for placing grey- 
 hounds. 
 
 Manner of placing Greijlionnds, — The greyhounds 
 for the wolf are divided into three classes — the levriers 
 iVestric, levriers compagnons, likewise called the flank 
 greyhounds, and levriers de teste. There ought, in 
 general, to be two leashes of each kind, each leash being 
 composed of two or three greyhounds. The levriers 
 d'estric are first placed by the side of a thicket, near the 
 spot at which you imagine the wolf will break. These 
 two leashes should be about five or six hundred paces 
 distant from each other, more or less, according to the 
 situation of the place. Each leash should be supported 
 by a horseman, who should take care to conceal himself, 
 with the dogs, on the skirts of the wood down Mind, to 
 
 r3 
 
270 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Method of killing the Wolf. 
 
 push the wolf when the dogs are let loose, and to make 
 him take to the open country. At five or six hundred 
 paces from the former, and about half way between the 
 two thickets, must be posted the flank greyhomads : the 
 two relays of these are placed opposite to each other, 
 for the wolf to pass between them. Attention nmst be 
 paid to keep these still more concealed than the former, 
 lest the wolf should perceive them ; and the valets must 
 attend, to loose them as soon as the wolf is ready to 
 pass. The levriers de teste shovdd be placed near the 
 thicket which the wolf is expected to make for ; and, 
 when he is observed to approach, pursued by the other 
 dogs, the levriers de teste should then be brought forward, 
 and let loose upon the wolf. The latter being stronger, 
 and more furious than the others, soon bring the wolf to 
 bay : the valets should then halloo up the blood hovmds, 
 and hasten to the wolf as speedily as possible. As soon 
 as the dogs hold him to bay, the valets must take care 
 to provide themselves with short thick sticks, to thrust 
 down the wolf's throat the moment they are within reach ; 
 because that animal never quitting any thing that he 
 once seizes upon, the stick which is presented to him 
 protects the dogs from the wounds he might otherwise 
 inflict. The huntsmen must then employ their hunting- 
 knives, observing the precaution, when they approach 
 to stab the Avolf, to have one hand always at the point of 
 the knife, lest they should hurt the dogs ; as I have fre- 
 quently seen dogs, in the hurry, maimed, in consequence 
 of the neglect of it. When a favourable moment for stab- 
 bing (or houghing) the wolf presents itself, the knife must 
 be thrust through his body, near the shoulder. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 271 
 
 Of finding and hunting the Wolf. 
 
 Manner of Hunting the Wolf ivltk Hounds. — To 
 succeed in this mode of hunting, the greyhounds must, 
 above all things, be placed in the manner as before de- 
 scribed. You must then post on the side of the thicket 
 at which you wish to prevent the wolves from issuing, 
 ten or a dozen men, each provided with a rattle, to be 
 employed on the occasion. Care must be taken to 
 station them at the distance of sixty paces from each 
 other, more or less, according to the extent of the thicket. 
 When every thing is ready, the leader gives the order ; 
 and the dogs are immediately taken to the brisecs to be 
 let loose. The whipper-in holds the dogs to the brisees 
 in the thicket, to make them take the scent ; and then 
 conducts them along the track, towards the spot where 
 he supposes the wolves reside, continually encouraging 
 them by the cries of hala ila la tayau veleci aller. He 
 blows his horn from time to time, to animate them in the 
 pursuit. The noise of the dogs will perhaps make the 
 wolf quit his kennel long before they come up ; but 
 sometimes he waits till they are close to him before he 
 breaks. If the huntsman perceives him, he must then 
 call to his dogs in these terms — Velelau, velelaii, Jiarlou, 
 harlou, veleci aller. He will then sound his horn, to 
 make them follow the traces, and then cry — Harlou 
 chiens, harlou veleci aller. When the dogs have taken 
 to the traces, they will not fail to rouse the wolf, and 
 pursue him with eagerness : the huntsman will then 
 sound his horn, to animate them still more. 
 
 The wolf thus pursued will, perhaps, hang cover 
 before he breaks it, that he may obtain the advantage 
 of the wind in his flight ; but the men stationed to keep 
 
^'72 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Method of inducing Ihe Wolf to break Cover. 
 
 him in will make use of their rattles, the sound of which 
 will head him, and make him go off without having the 
 advantage of the wind. While the wolf is thus in sus- 
 pense concerning the way he shall take, he is briskly 
 pushed by the dogs, supported by the huntsman, who 
 will incessantly keep crying — Ha yfidt la chiens, yfuit 
 la ha ha. He will then .sound two blasts, and again 
 begin hallooing — Hou veleci aller, veleei aller. At length 
 the wolf finding himself pressed by the dogs, the cries 
 of the hunters, and the noise of those stationed to keep 
 him in, resolves to escape by the place where he hears 
 no noise, which is precisely the part next to the open 
 country. He stops a moment at the skirts of the wood, 
 to observe whether he can see any person, and he imme- 
 diately sets off to cross the plain. He is suffered to 
 advance about one hundred paces, when the levriers 
 d'estric, and afterwards the others, are let loose upon 
 him, on the plan already mentioned. Two horsemen, 
 at the same time, ride after him, to oblige him to con- 
 tinue his course, as it is of great consequence that he 
 should be kept in it : but for this he would escape, as 
 the attempt to run down a wolf is scarcely ever made. 
 To command success in the latter case, you ought to be 
 perfectly sure of your relays — that the dogs were trained 
 exclusively to the chase of the wolf — that there were 
 neither deer nor boars in the forest. This kind of chase 
 would, besides, be long and fatiguing, because the wolf 
 is rarely blown : he runs a long time, never ahead, almost 
 constantly viewing him for six or seven hours together. 
 The greyhounds placed in ambush greatly abridge this 
 chase, and likewise render it more amusing and certain 
 to the spectators. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 273 
 
 Forms observed at the Death of the Wolf. 
 
 As soon as a wolf is taken, he should be given up to 
 the hounds which come up almost immediately ; because, 
 otherwise, the greyhounds would attack the hounds. It 
 is therefore advisable that they should be taken off im- 
 mediately and coupled, to return and go in quest of 
 another, for it is easy to take several wolves ui one day. 
 When this is intended to be done, each should resume 
 his former position : as for those who are stationed to 
 prevent the animal's escape, they must not, on any 
 account, quit their post, till they receive orders to that 
 effect. 
 
 When the wolf is expiring his death is announced by 
 three loud blasts of the horn. The huntsmen alight, 
 and caress the dogs, to excite them to worry him. It is 
 the duty of the whipper-in to cut off the animal's right 
 foot, which he presents to the commander of the com- 
 pany. 
 
 Manner of Chasing the She Wolf and the Young 
 Cubs. — Nearly the same things are observed in the chase 
 of the female as of the male — the same method of pur- 
 suit, and the same cries are employed ; but the young 
 wolves are chased with less precaution, and are attacked 
 even in their caverns by the dogs. As soon as the dogs 
 have discovered them they are seized with fear, and run 
 from one side to the other, without ever quitting the 
 thicket. The whipper-in must follow and encourage the 
 dogs by three notes of his horn, and must speak briskly 
 to them in these terms — Harlou, harlouy hou velcci: 
 this gives the dogs fresh spirits, courage, and strength, 
 and they rush upon the young wolves with renewed 
 ardour. When they have overtaken them, the hunts- 
 
£74 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 The Blooding of 
 
 man despatches them with his hunting knife, always 
 observing the precaution mentioned above, lest the dogs 
 should sustain any injury. 
 
 If there are in the pack any young dogs which have 
 not before been in the chase, they might be made to 
 begin with chasing the young wolves, in company with 
 old steady hound dogs : they would soon learn, and be 
 able to hunt. In their beginnings they ought to be ani- 
 mated and encouraged by frequent caresses with the 
 hand ; and when the young wolves are taken, they should 
 be made to approach, and to ruffle on them, and pull 
 them. 
 
 When the chase is over, a retreat is sounded, all the 
 dogs are collected, and the wolves that have been taken 
 are carried away. 
 
 The Blooding of the Wolf.— The blooding of the 
 wolf differs very much from that of stag, deer, and other 
 beasts, which are given to the dogs on the spot. The 
 scent of the wolf is extremely strong, and the dogs 
 would not taste the flesh if care were not taken to dis- 
 guise it. I have frequently remarked, that dogs which 
 manifested abundance of ardour in pursuit, durst not 
 venture to approach the animal to trample on him when 
 killed. Nothing but great precaution, and repeated 
 caresses, can overcome their aversion to the flesh of the 
 wolf. The following is the manner in which it is pre- 
 pared : — 
 
 The wolf must first be skinned, and the entrails taken 
 out ; the head is then cut off, but the skin and ears are 
 left upon it ; the quarters are then cut ofl', and are baked 
 with the body in a very hot oven. While the whole is 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 275 
 
 Hounds to Wolf. 
 
 rousting, small pieces of bread are put into one or more 
 tubs, into which are thrown the quarters of the wolf, cut 
 into pieces, as soon as they come out of the oven. Upon 
 this is then poured a large pot full of boiling water, 
 into which, while heating, have been put three or four 
 pounds of grease ; and the whole is well stirred and 
 mixed. When the whole is soaked, empty it out of the 
 tubs upon a piece of sacking made for the purpose, and 
 stir it again, that the mixture, which is still warm, may 
 be in a state fit to be eaten by the dogs. When every 
 thing is ready for the blooding of the pack, the whij)per- 
 in receives the switches from the hands of the first valet. 
 He presents two to the commander of the company, who 
 gives one to the master to whom he belongs. The 
 switches being distributed, the kennel is opened, and 
 the huntsmen sound the tune customary on other occa- 
 sions of this kind. At the same time, the skin and head 
 of the wolf are held before the dogs, that they may be- 
 come accustomed to that animal. After eating the mash, 
 the roasted body of the wolf, to which the head has been 
 affixed, is presented to them, at the distance of thirty 
 paces. The best way of making them eat it, is to shew 
 it them at the point of a fork, and to animate them with 
 words, and the sound of the horn, and they will not fail 
 to fall upon it with eagerness. 
 
 The foregoing is the French manner of preparing the 
 animal for winter — the method employed in summer is 
 somewhat different : — The quarters are roasted and cut 
 in pieces, as before ; but, instead of water boiled with 
 grease, two or three pails full of milk, into which have 
 been put a quantity of very small pieces of bread, or rye 
 
276 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 French Hounds inferior to the Enghsh Hounds. 
 
 flour, are poured over them : the whole is mixed toge- 
 ther, and this mess is given the dogs in the same manner 
 as the other. They eat it wilhngly, and it is extremely 
 refreshing for them. The body is afterwards given them 
 in the manner before described. 
 
 Thus much for the French mode of treatment : their 
 hounds will not bear any comparison with those of the 
 English breed. The former are deficient in animation, 
 and possess a very small share of mettle ; while, on the 
 contrary, such is the blood of the well-bred English 
 hound, that he would instantly break up any wolf on 
 seizing it." 
 
 The introduction of the fowling-piece in wolf hunting 
 does not, however, well harmonize with the ideas of an 
 English sportsman; though it is very freely used in 
 France, as will appear from the following description of 
 a run with a wolf: — Colonel Thornton, after observing 
 that they threw off at four o'clock, (whether morning or 
 evening is not stated) thus proceeds : — 
 
 *' We soon roused a wolf, of which we had a view for 
 five or six miles ; however, there was no probability of 
 killing but by shooting him, and this was not easily done, 
 as the cover was extremely thick in underwood and 
 heath, the avenues having been entirely neglected since 
 the revolution. 
 
 I heard several shots in different parts, and some of 
 them so near together, that I did not suppose them to 
 be at the same animal : however, the cry returned, and 
 I faintly saw something rush near me. The, hunters 
 then came up, and informed me that they had shot at a 
 wolf; and one of the party said, in an exulting tone, he 
 was confident that he had mortally wounded him. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 277 
 
 Description of a Wolf Chase. 
 
 I had twenty-one balls in my seven-barrelled gun, and 
 trusted, if I could get a shot the least clear of cover, I 
 should wound the game. We then took our respective 
 stations in the allees, all agreeing (as is necessary) to 
 shoot forwards. In about half an hour I heard the cry 
 no more, and therefore dashed on at a good rate for two 
 miles, when I heard the hounds but very faintly. Having 
 placed myself in what I thought a likely pass, I heard a 
 rustling, and soon discovered an animal listening, about 
 sixty yards distant. Agitated as I was at this moment, 
 I could not decide whether I should fire. I was certain 
 of hitting with some of the balls ; but, as the cry con- 
 tinued to advance, I resolved to wait, and in a little time 
 mij gentleman passed the avenue: he seemed jaded, and 
 was evidently hit in the hinder part. I then fired ; but 
 whether successfully or not I could not tell. Running 
 up to the boughs where he had appeared, I found them 
 cut ; and, on carefully examining the range of the balls, 
 I conceived that I had certainly wovmded him — in con- 
 sequence of which, I remounted my horse, and tallyhoed 
 so as to make the forest ring. In about ten minutes a 
 couple and a half of my hounds appeared, nearly toge- 
 ther. Caustic and Consul, grand-son and grand-daughter 
 of Merkin, of true Conqueror blood, seemed the most 
 vermin. They flew counter down the avenue, but I 
 hallooed them back ; and, at this instant, three couple 
 and a half out of my four came in, and were immediately 
 followed by Vixen, who appeared full as vicious. I caped 
 them, and they went off' at a rattling pace after the wolf; 
 but still they were almost mute. 
 
 Having galloped on to the next avenue, I was joined 
 by some straggling gentlemen, and at length by the 
 
278 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Description of 
 
 huntsman, whom I informed of what had transphed. 
 He was in rapture with my hounds, and exclaimed — 
 " Par Dieu, Monsieur le Colonel, ce sont des veritahles 
 cMens, Us sont superbes. lis hieront non pas seulement 
 tons le loups mats aussi le Diable" If I hallooed like a 
 madman, he certainly was not behind me in blowing ; 
 for I really thought he would have hurst either himself 
 or his Jiorn. The rest of the sportsmen, being furnished 
 with horns, blew in confidence ; and the noise they made 
 has never since been out of my ears ! 
 
 Another shot proclaimed that the game was again 
 seen, when he turned shorter, and the hounds got nearer; 
 and, on my representing to the gentlemen that our 
 hounds would soon outrate him, they politely agreed to 
 fire no more. The wolf was now frequently seen, and 
 at every time the horns gave notice. He crossed an 
 avenue tolerably clear, when Vixen, who had joined us, 
 saw him; and, although just before jaded, the little 
 devil got the scent and gave tongue. When she seemed 
 to be near, and teazing him, my hounds came up within 
 two hundred yards of his Jack, all in a sheet ; and even 
 some of the French hounds, which had given up the chase, 
 now came in: one of them, between a Newfoundland 
 dog and a deep-mouthed Norman hound, worked very 
 hard. The huntsman said — " Monsieur le Colonel, ce 
 chien Norman est un gaillard, il aime les loup)s. II sera 
 hientot mort." But, I replied, "I fear he will wound my 
 hounds severely, there are so few : if, indeed, the pack 
 were here, I should not fear him." " N'atjez pas peur, 
 Mons. le Colonel," rejoined the huntsman, "je serai 
 proche etje lui flan^rcrai un coup de man carabine.'' 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY 279 
 
 a Wolf Chase. 
 
 At this moment the wolf turned to us, when the ter- 
 rier, having a decided advantage from the thickness of 
 the cover, continued catching at his haunches. I hal- 
 looed, the huntsman blew away, and the game was now 
 at the point of death, surrounded by his enemies. His 
 tongue hung out, and he was evidently wounded in more 
 places than one, as he could scarcely draw his near hind 
 leg after him. After he had been tormented for some 
 time by Vixen, he came to a sort of opening in the ride ; 
 l)ut, in crossing some deep ruts, he fell in, and could not 
 recover himself. The Norman hound and three others 
 rushed in, and threw him on his back. He snatched, 
 but they seized him by the throat and back, whilst Vixen 
 had good hold of his haunch. I thrust the end of my 
 whip in his mouth, and the huntsman coolly tied his nose, 
 and drew his cotiteau de cJiasse, which I told him was 
 unnecessary — the hounds being at him, he must soon 
 expire. 
 
 Having blown our horns, and hallooed till we were 
 almost dead with drought, we tied our horses to some 
 trees, and sat down whilst the wolf was dying. The 
 huntsman said it was a " gros loiip de quartier annee :" 
 and I observed he had a famous set of grinders and good 
 dog teeth. He had received, from the first fire of M. 
 de Beaumont, a small pistol ball through the upper part 
 of his back, and one buck shot had grazed his neck. 
 My balls, being rifled very neatly, were easily known : 
 two of them had entered the fleshy part of the thigh, 
 and a third, which crossed the kidneys, seemed to have 
 given the mortal wound — as without that, the huntsman 
 said, he would have stood much longer. His l)rush had 
 
oSO HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Dogs wounticd by the Wolf. 
 
 suffered from some balls, which almost every gentleman 
 present asserted to have been his own. 
 
 Having opened our canteens and taken some refresh- 
 ment, I ordered the carcase of the wolf to be thrown to 
 the hounds ; and the greater part of it was soon de- 
 voured ; but the French hounds would not touch it. 
 On examining the dogs, we found that one of Consul's 
 ears was almost bit off; Caustic was sadly cut on the 
 side of her face ; and the rest a little injured. Vixen 
 had escaped with only a bloody nose : that was, indeed, 
 a severe wound for a terrier ; but she did not seem to 
 mind it ; and indeed they all suffered much less than I 
 expected. 
 
 Thus terminated, about ten o'clock, what I had been 
 so anxious to see — a wolf hunt ; and I had now ascer- 
 tained what might be done by fox hounds." 
 
 However highly our Continental neighbours may esti- 
 mate a wolf hunt, it would seem, in the estimation of an 
 English sportsman, very inferior indeed to a run with a 
 fox. Colonel Thornton observes, that they never think 
 of running down a wolf, nor indeed does the English 
 sportsman of the present day ever wish to run down a 
 fox ; but, on the contrary, to run well tip to him. Fox 
 hunting woidd lose its essence and spirit were the fox to 
 be merely run down ; but from the language used by 
 Colonel Thornton respecting the wolf, running him down 
 would seem to be regarded as next to an impossibility ; 
 and it would appear from his superior speed, that run- 
 ning up to him would be no easy matter, even with the 
 fleetest hounds in the world. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Boar Hunting. — Manner of Training or Entering 
 Young Hounds in France. 
 
 On the chase of the wild boar, the same writer which 
 I quoted in the last chapter, makes the following obser- 
 vations : — 
 
 "The equipage destined for the chase of the wild 
 boar is denominated vautrait. In great hunting estab- 
 lishments it forms a separate department, in which par- 
 ticular officers and attendants are employed. Large 
 equipages for this sport are usually attended by a pack 
 of fifteen or twenty couple of hounds. The huntsmen 
 and whippers-in ought to be extremely expert. This 
 chase is very fatiguing : the huntsmen are obliged to 
 shout incessantly, to make the dogs follow, as they are 
 frequently discouraged, especially if they are pursuing an 
 old boar. It requires mettlesome and vigorous horses ; 
 and the riders must not be afraid of the branches in the 
 thick recesses of the forest, into which they are obliged 
 to penetrate. 
 
 It is extremely difficult to procure hounds well trained 
 for hunting the boar, and this instruction requires great 
 patience and attention ; not that a young hound will not 
 at first pursue the animal, but his scent sometimes dis- 
 gusts, and the country, covered with thickets and moras- 
 ses, discourages him. A boar is not so easily hunted 
 down as a stag; and, let the establishment be ever so 
 
 s 
 
282 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 excellent, the chase seldom lasts less than four or five 
 hours. SometuTies the animal is checked by firing a 
 gun— or he is pursued by mastiffs and greyhounds. 
 Chases have been known to continue two whole days, 
 and at last tlie hunters could not have taken the boar 
 but by shooting him, on the third day. 
 
 When the boar finds himself driven to the last ex- 
 tremity, he does not run forward, but frequently turns, 
 keeping for a considerable time near the same spot, and 
 seeking to make the dogs start some other game. When 
 he is done up, he foams much, advances only by leaps 
 and bounds, throws himself into some marsh, or sets his 
 back against a thicket, facing the dogs, and defending 
 himself with incredible fury. It is then that the whip- 
 pers-in must give effectual support to their dogs, and 
 endeavour to dislodge the animal ; but, if he keeps at 
 bay, it is proper to prevent the dogs from approaching 
 too near. The whippers-in enter the thicket with pre- 
 caution—one of them alights, approaches the boar, and 
 plunges his hunting knife into the small of his back. 
 The man who inflicts the wound must be very alert, and 
 instantly run ofl^ a contrary way ; for the boar always 
 turns towards the side on which he feels himself wounded. 
 If, however, he should prove so furious as to endanger 
 the sportsmen and the dogs, the best way is to kill him 
 with a gun or pistol : this is a privilege or honour re- 
 served for the leader of the company, and is resorted to 
 only at the last extremity. The whippers-in then sound 
 the death of the animal, and encourage the dogs to 
 trample on him. Having cut off the testicles, which 
 would cause the flesh to contract a very disagreeable 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 283 
 
 Of Shooting Boars. 
 
 smell, and the fore foot, which is given to the huntsman, 
 who presents it to the leader of the company, the ])oar 
 is carried off. Before they return, the dogs are in- 
 spected, and those that have received wounds are 
 dressed, as the huntsman ought to he provided with 
 needles, thread, and every thing necessary for that piu'- 
 pose. 
 
 Dogs do not eat the flesh of the boar with as much 
 avidity as that of the stag ; nor must it ever be presented 
 to them raw. All that is in general given them is the 
 shoulders and the intestines cut in pieces, and boiled in 
 water. 
 
 In some parts, small bells are fostened to the necks of 
 hounds that hunt the boar and the wolf. If it is not in- 
 tended to hunt down the boar, but only to shoot him, 
 an equipage becomes perfectly useless ; one or two blood 
 hounds, and a few good hounds are, in this case, quite 
 sufficient. Nay, you need then only employ the mastiffs 
 with which the gamekeepers traverse the forests where 
 the boars couch, and drive them towards the spot where 
 the hunters are posted. 
 
 In Germany, and occasionally in France, very fine 
 sport is obtained by limiting of boars, and likewise of 
 stags, with toils. An enclosure is formed with toils and 
 pitchforks, round the thickets into which the boars have 
 been driven. A huntsman sets his blood hound upon 
 the scent, and follows him till he has reared the game. 
 Five or six hounds are then slipped: this number is suf- 
 ficient to hunt a large boar ; but if there are several, the 
 whole pack is taken.- 
 
284 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Huntsmen must assist the Dogs in killing the Boar. 
 
 In the first case, it is proper to accompany the hounds 
 with a few clogs, produced hy crossing the breed of the 
 mastiff with the hound : these animals, which are ex- 
 tremely ardent, will closely press the boar and drive him 
 round the enclosure. The dogs are powerfully sup- 
 ported with the voice and the horn, and are followed 
 close to prevent the boar from making head against them. 
 After the chase has continuedsome time, the large mas- 
 tiffs and greyhounds are then slipped, and these rush 
 upon the boar with fury. The huntsmen advance ; one 
 pierces the animal with his hunting knife in the small of 
 the back ; the others, armed with sticks, are ready to 
 receive him, in case he should make towards the person 
 who wounded him, and strike him upon the snout, 
 keeping him off with the end of the stick, till they have 
 despatched him. When the proposed number of boars 
 are taken, the dogs are called off." 
 
 It would, at first view of the case, appear hardly cre- 
 dible, that a boar should stand so long before hounds ; 
 but this animal, in a state of unlimited freedom, is, beyond 
 all question, a very different creature from the heavy, 
 sluggish, domesticated boar, which frequently appears 
 scarce able to support his own unwieldy bulk. From a 
 private letter of the late Colonel Thornton, to a friend, I 
 copy the following observations respecting the wild boar, 
 and also of the pursuit of it:— " I sent you a paper M^iich 
 contained something about a noble wild boar, which I 
 ordered to be hunted ; and, when killed, in Chambord, 
 to send it here at my expence ; and thus to try to let 
 such sportsmen here (London) as never saw one, be able 
 to judge for themselves. Accordingly, it being arrived, 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 285 
 
 Chase of the Boar. 
 
 every person that heard of it came to see it. It was 
 hung up at a venison dealer's in Old Bond Street. The 
 concourse of people was so great, that the man could not 
 get out of, or others enter, his shop. It is to day (January 
 15, 1819) being cut up into forty pieces, to be disposed 
 of to various friends; and I have given the skin, head, 
 ike. all unmutilated, to Bullock ; to shew them, with the 
 account of the different balls he received ere he would 
 resign to hounds or men. He is by no means the largest 
 boar I have killed ; but he is a terrible looking fellow, 
 more danoerous than one much older, for then their 
 tushes grow thicker, become curved, and the animal is 
 more inactive. He wounded many of the hounds, but 
 only killed, I believe, three. A couple of vermin terriers 
 plagued him the most, as he could not get his tushes to 
 bear on them. The last final shaft was a lingo, which, 
 I see, broke three of his ribs and passed through him. 
 The number of balls he received I shall examine and 
 relate. I understand, he stood a run of full forty miles. 
 But I am sure I ran one at least one hundred and forty, 
 and then he was not done up, though constantly view^ed 
 from half past eleven till past ten the next day, relays 
 of hounds being uncoupled close at him at every three 
 or four hours. What other animal can shew such game 
 and bottom ? 
 
 We dine to-day a party on his loin or saddle, which 
 was where he received his death wound. The wound, 
 as I have already observed, was inflicted by a lingo, 
 which is a piece of iron or lead, formed something like 
 a weaver's shuttle, of the weight of two or three balls, 
 and made to fit the calibre of the gun. It is a sort of 
 
286 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 French Method of 
 
 bolt, which, if it strike into flesh, it goes deeper : if it 
 touches a bone, it then turns itself broadways ; and thus, 
 though a ball would only have broke one rib, it broke 
 three, close up to the back. The number of balls that 
 he received shall be the subject of my next letter." — 
 This boar, it seems, was three years old, was run by 
 fleet fox hounds, and during the progress of the chase, 
 crossed four rivers. 
 
 The following is the plan adopted by the French of 
 training or entering young hounds, from Colonel Thorn- 
 ton : — 
 
 ''In the country, puppies, after their separation from 
 the mother, which generally takes place when they are 
 two months old, are fed with bread, milk, and soup ; 
 they are never suffered to eat carrion, nor to run about 
 among the warrens; they are not shut up, but being- 
 kept in the covu't yard, they become familiar with the 
 other domestic animals, which they are afterwards not 
 tempted to pursue, and are habituated to the inclemency 
 of the air by their frequent courses in the fields. At 
 the age of ten months, or a year at farthest, they are 
 taken to the kennel for the pvu-pose of training : it is 
 here thought to be of advantage to keep them together 
 in the same kennel. The whipper-in, to whom their 
 education is committed, takes care not to suffer them to 
 stir a step, or take their meals, without orders. He 
 therefore begins by habituating them to the different 
 tones and expressions used in the chase, to make them 
 obedient to these. For this purpose he puts a trough 
 with bread, about ten yards from the door of the kennel, 
 which he half opens, and putting in, through the open- 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 287 
 
 Training Hounds. 
 
 ing, a switch, which he holds in his hand, he moves it 
 in such a manner, that those dogs which attempt to force 
 their way through, receive a smart stroke on the nose. 
 In a short time, with the aid of gentleness and patience, 
 and of the switch, which he still keeps moving, he is 
 enabled to open the door quite w ide, and placing him- 
 self in the middle, he prevents the dogs from going out. 
 When he has brought them so far, that not one of them 
 stirs when he half opens the door and cries back/ he 
 then turns round and permits them to go out to eat, 
 saying, come along, come along / This lesson being 
 repeated morning and evening, for several days, the 
 young pack become perfectly acquainted with the first 
 expressions ; on which, the next step is to make them 
 lie still on the benches in the kennel, crying back, while 
 he brings the tray into the place. When he sees that 
 they are perfect in this new lesson, he increases the diffi- 
 culty, by repeating the terms, tallij-ho, back, and come 
 along, before they eat. By degrees, he deters them 
 from stirring from the benches by the mere motion of 
 his hand, his handkerchief, or a whip, though he feigns 
 to turn round, and even when turning half round, he 
 employs one of these means of obedience contrary to 
 that motion. 
 
 When the dogs are found to be less wild, and know 
 the persons who have the care of them, they may then 
 be coupled, and taken out morning and evening, or three 
 times a day, if despatch be necessary, to a place where 
 there is no danger of losing them — such as a field in- 
 closed with hedges. They are accompanied by four 
 men — one before, one behind, and two others on each 
 
288 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 French Method of 
 
 side. The first clay they are taken straight forward ; 
 and the man who is at their head frequently calls them 
 to him with lio, ho^ ho ! The second day the lesson is 
 varied, turning off sometimes to the right and to the left ; 
 still, however, using the same terms. The third day 
 they describe a semicircle, sometimes on one side, some- 
 times on the other, accompanying the above-mentioned 
 terms with the exclamations, ha au retoiir, ha au retour. 
 They are next made to describe a complete circle ; after 
 which, they are stopped now and then with the cry of 
 hack, and not suffered to proceed till they are called with 
 come along. 
 
 When the dogs are perfect in these lessons, they are 
 made to turn about in this manner: — They are first 
 stopped ; on which, the man behind places himself before 
 him who is at the head : those at the two sides never 
 quit their places. The man at the head then walks 
 through the dogs, saying, ha au retour, and snapping 
 his fingers : the other strikes the ground with a switch 
 or whip, to prevent them from proceeding, and points to 
 the other man who calls them, at the same time saying, 
 ttirn about. By this method they are soon accustomed 
 to comprehend the term which is of such essential im- 
 portance in the chase. To these lessons the hounds are 
 confined till they are perfect masters of them, and per- 
 form them with facility and intelligence They are then 
 taught to practise the return to their place. For this 
 manoeuvre, the person at the head stops the hounds, 
 checking them with the term toide bellement, (softly) pro- 
 nounced in a milder tone than back, which being intended 
 to enforce speedy obedience, ought to be articulated 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 289 
 
 Training Hounds. 
 
 sharply. When they have stopped, he who is behind, 
 and at first very near to the dogs, calls them with Ao, 
 ho^ ho J As soon as they begin to turn their heads, he 
 instantly cries an retour^ au retour, (turn, turn,) and 
 immediately begins to walk fonvard again, after having 
 turned half round : this lesson is repeated till the dogs 
 make no fault. The term ho, ho, is then omitted, and 
 the hounds are taught to turn, the man keeping at a 
 greater distance, but yet so as to be heard by them. 
 When the dogs perfectly comprehend all the above in- 
 structions, they are made to repeat, in one lesson, all 
 the manoeuvres they have learned in several. After this, 
 they are taught to stop, though the man at their head 
 continues to walk on : in this lesson he stops the dogs, 
 crying back, and facing them ; he then retires backward, 
 keeping them on the spot by the word bad'. If a dog 
 advances, he calls him by his name, and cries back ; one 
 of the men on the flanks, in like manner, repeats his 
 name, and if he does not obey, he applies the whip, 
 crying back, and adding ventre a la meute (get back to 
 the pack.) When they are all attentive, the leader turns 
 round and calls them, saying, come along, come along — 
 ho, ho, ho ! When they have reached him, he immedi- 
 ately faces them, cries back, and snaps his fingers to 
 animate them. He then turns again, calling them with 
 come along, Jind softly. After they have practised this 
 lesson several days, and learned to execute it properly, 
 it is thus varied : — The man at the head, still walking 
 forward, and without turning, checks the hounds with 
 softly, softly, and back, and continues his way. The 
 two men on the flanks are obliged to pay great attention 
 
290 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 French MothoU of 
 
 at this moment, to keep the dogs in exact order, caUing 
 them by name, and chastising such as are in fault. 
 When they are all quiet, the man at the head calls them 
 to him, and faces them when they have reached him. 
 
 A docility still more complete is obtained, if the man 
 at the head walks forward without giving any orders, 
 and the man in the rear checks and stops the dogs with 
 the words softly, and hack ; though the first continues 
 advancing, and must not halt, except at the command of 
 the second, for the purpose of turning half round, calling 
 the hounds to him, and facing. 
 
 The hounds being stopped in this manner by the 
 whipper-in in the rear, and setting oiF again at the com- 
 mand of him at the head, to join him, the former checks 
 them a second time by the same terms, and stops them 
 in full career, notwithstanding the continued progression 
 of the latter. 
 
 All this being perfectly well comprehended and exe- 
 cuted, the pack is exercised in returns, commanded alter- 
 nately by the men at the head and in the rear. For this 
 purpose, the latter suffers the hounds and the other 
 three conductors to proceed forward, to the distance of 
 fifty or sixty yards, and then calls to them to return. 
 The first who, at the moment of recal, turns about and 
 stands still, while the pack executes the movement 
 directed, waits till they are within ten yards of him who 
 commanded it, and then cries bacl\ As soon as they 
 have stopped, he calls to them to return ; and when they 
 are within ten yards of him, the other renews the same 
 command. While this manoeuvre is repeated several 
 times alternately, by those in the front and rear, the men 
 on the flanks are stationary. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 291 
 
 Training Hounds. 
 
 When they are masters of these alternate returns, 
 their execution is rendered moi-e difficult, by obliging 
 them to halt as instantaneously as if they had been or- 
 dered by the voice, by the mere motion of the arm, or 
 the handkerchief of one of the men on the flanks, or of 
 the leader, when they are at a considerable distance from 
 him. These movements, it is true, are not new to them, 
 since they are taught them in the first lessons they 
 receive in the kennel ; and they are required to obey 
 them as promptly as verbal commands. 
 
 The dogs having become familiar with their guides, 
 and perfectly comprehending their gestures and orders, 
 they are then accustomed to go out without being- 
 coupled, taking care to unloose first those that are the 
 most tractable and docile. They are at first walked in 
 places where they cannot be lost, nor diverted by any 
 object from the attention that is required of them ; they 
 are then taken to all kinds of situations, to accustom 
 them to execute their different lessons, and to be kept in 
 the same state of docility amidst the variety of objects 
 that will present themselves. This ensures their perfect 
 obedience, which is one of the principal delights of the 
 chase ; and can never be obtained in enclosed places, 
 which are justly considered pernicious, even to old packs. 
 
 When the hounds are supposed to be sufficiently in- 
 structed in all the intonations of the voice, they are then 
 exercised with the sound of the horn, preserving the 
 same gradation in these new lessons. They are first 
 stopped with the voice ; the man at their head removes 
 to some distance, and calls them to him by a recheat ; 
 they are in like manner commanded to return ; and when 
 
'292 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 French Method of 
 
 they have learned this perfectly, they are stopped from 
 time to time, by the cry of back, tally-ho, as in the 
 chase: a flourish is then sounded, and they are made to 
 set off again with come along, softly, or a recheat. 
 
 The dogs being as perfect in all these lessons as is re- 
 quired, they are uncoupled, and exercised on horseback, 
 at a foot pace and short trot, with the same number of 
 men, and in the same situations, in all they have been 
 daily taught on foot. Above all things, care is taken 
 not to give them ardour, to check them at every object 
 capable of taking off their attention, and even to ahght, 
 to correct, immediately, such as begin to chatter. 
 
 When the dogs are complete masters of all that has 
 before been taught them, both on horseback and on foot, 
 a still more difficult task succeeds — that is, to walk them 
 out in the plains, in the midst of hares, without mani- 
 festing any ardour. For this purpose, they are coupled 
 in troops of six or eight at most, and led by valets on 
 foot, who take them to the plain best stocked with hares, 
 through which the men proceed, at the distance of one 
 hundred yards from each other. The young hounds 
 are all eager to pursue the first hare that is started ; each 
 valet takes notice of those dogs who prick their ears 
 most, falls upon them with his whip, crying, ha hey, les 
 vilains, ha hey, derriere, and continues his way. At 
 each new fault he repeats the same correction, till the 
 dogs draw back, instead of advancing, when they per- 
 ceive a hare. This lesson being repeated two days suc- 
 cessively, the dogs are then taken out, simply coupled. 
 The person who is at their head keeps attentively on the 
 look out for all the hares that may be started : as soon 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 293 
 
 Training Hounds. 
 
 as he perceives one, lie checks the clogs, crying, toute 
 hellement , fi-de-ca , derriere, ha hey. He removes from 
 before them, that they may have a view of the whole 
 plain ; and if any of them but raises an ear, he is not 
 spared. By this method the dogs are habituated, even 
 uncoupled, to pass through the plains in the midst of 
 hares, without taking any notice of them. 
 
 These excursions having succeeded as well as could 
 be wished, they are repeated with men on horseback: 
 if the hounds should so far forget themselves as to run 
 away and return to the kennel, they are immediately led 
 back to the plain, and walked along coupled, by men on 
 foot, who correct them severely when they shew the 
 least signs of ardour ; and especially those which, by 
 their example, hurry along the others in their indocility. 
 
 The young pack being sufficiently advanced, they are 
 taken out in troops to hunt, that they may become ac- 
 quainted with the country, and be habituated to re- 
 turn to their kennel. The valets who take them out 
 are particularly attentive to keep them behind them 
 during the whole chase, to silence them whenever they 
 begin to open, and to maintain the most rigid obedience ; 
 they can come up time enough to be in at the death — 
 this will make them acquainted with the animal which 
 they are destined to hunt. 
 
 After two or three chases of this kind, the young- 
 hounds are divided into two equal companies, which are 
 subdivided into two and two among the lower troops, 
 (hardes basses) to be uncoupled with them. Each of 
 these companies is hunted only twice, to prevent their 
 getting so much exercise as to beat the old hounds. In 
 
294 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 French Method of Training Hounds. 
 
 proportion as they become more steady, the hounds are 
 removed from troop to troop, (cVharde en harde) to the 
 old pack ; at the same time, attention is paid that half 
 of the latter always consists of old dogs. The troops 
 remain in this state at least three months ; and the young 
 hounds are not removed into the pack till they have no 
 longer any occasion for persons to conduct them. 
 
 When the new hounds are not numerous, they may be 
 trained in this manner without deranging the old pack : 
 when it is numerous, and the sportsman is desirous of 
 keeping up an excellent equipage, a small number of the 
 fleetest and staunchest hounds are selected to train the 
 young dogs ; and, when these are sufficiently docile and 
 steady, they are joined to the pack — so that no derange- 
 ment or suspension of pleasure takes place. 
 
 Spring-hunting is considered the best for completing 
 the training of young hounds. To render them indif- 
 ferent to every other species of game but that which 
 they are destined to hunt, they are taken out coupled, 
 and in troops, (several couple of hounds tied together is 
 called a troop) to places where there is abundance of 
 game. They are suffered to see those kinds which they 
 are not intended to hunt, and if any of them appear 
 eager, and begin to chatter, they are corrected by the 
 person that accompanies them, who leads them, repeat- 
 ing — toute hellement,Ji ha hey, derriere, and continues his 
 way. This lesson is practised every day, till the hounds 
 are so steady as not to follow the scent of any animal 
 but that which they are to hunt : they soon look upon 
 all others with indifference." 
 
CHAPTER XIIL 
 
 The Methods of 'pursuing the Chase in England and 
 in France compared. — Anecdotes of an extraordinary 
 Pedestrian Fox Hunter. — Observations on the Mis- 
 chievous Propensities of the Fox ; and upon the 
 Injury sustained by his Dejrredations. 
 
 If we compare the manner in which the Chase is con- 
 ducted on the Continent, particularly in France, with 
 the mode of pursuit adopted in England ; or, at least, if 
 we look at the matter with English feeling, we shall be 
 apt to despise the former, although attended with much 
 pomp and parade. At the same time, it is but fair to 
 observe, that a Frenchman, accustomed from infancy to 
 be fond of shew, would naturally enough prefer his boar, 
 his wolf, or his stag hunt, to our enthusiastic and mad- 
 dening pvu'suit of the fox : the latter, I am inclined to 
 think, would not be well suited to the nerves of a French- 
 man, who, unaccustomed to such horses as the English 
 hunter, as also to our method of crossing a country, 
 would regard a five-barred gate, or indeed any rasper, 
 as an insurmountable obstacle. Beckford, in one of his 
 amusing and instructive letters, observes, that a French- 
 man was on a visit to the late Lord C , "who 
 
 Ijeing a great sportsman, thought that he could not oblige 
 his friend more than by offering him to partake of an 
 amusement, which he himself was so fond of :— he there- 
 fore mounted him on one of his best horses, and shewed 
 
S96 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Frenchmen not partial to Fox Hunting. 
 
 him a fox chase. The Frenchman, after having been 
 well shaken, dirted, tired, run away with, and thrown 
 down, was asked, on his return, * Comment il avoit 
 trouve la chasse ? ' — ' Morbleu, Milord (said he, shrug- 
 ging up his shoulders) votre chasse est une chasse dia- 
 bolique!'" — In another place, Beckford remarks, "I 
 hunted two winters at Turin ; but their hunting is no 
 more like ours, than is the hot meal you there stand up 
 to eat, to the English breakfast you sit down to here. 
 Were I to describe their manner of hunting, their in- 
 finity of dogs, their number of huntsmen, their relays 
 of horses, their great saddles, great bits, and jack boots, 
 it would be no more to our present purpose than the 
 description of a wild boar chase in Germany, or the 
 hunting of jackals in Bengal. C'est une chasse magni- 
 Jique, et voila tout. — However, to give you an idea of 
 their huntsmen, I must tell you that one day the stag 
 (which is very unusual) broke cover, and left the forest ; 
 a circumstance which gave as much pleasure to me as 
 displeasure to the rest — it put every thing into confusion. 
 I followed one of the huntsmen, thinking he knew the 
 country best ; but it was not long before we were sepa- 
 rated : the first ditch we came to stopped him. I, eager 
 to go on, hallooed out to him, * Allons, jjiquettr, sautez 
 done.'' — * Non, pardi, (replied he, very coolly) cest un 
 double fosse — -je ne saute i^as des double fosses.' '* 
 
 From the nature of the country, having few, if any, 
 fences, what a Frenchman would regard as excellent 
 runs may, no doubt, be obtained ; indeed, Colonel 
 Thornton remarks, in one part of his Sporting Tour, 
 that the finest bursts he ever enjoyed took place in 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 297 
 
 Comparison of French and English Hunting. 
 
 France ; however, although the Colonel speaks of them 
 — not exactly in raptui'es perhaps — -but in terms of un- 
 qualified approbation, yet they are not exactly the sort 
 of bursts to suit the taste of the generality of English 
 sportsmen : — a burst of three or ten miles over a cham- 
 paign country, without the interruption, perhaps, of a 
 single leap, is not the kind of sport from which a true 
 English fox hunter derives his greatest pleasure — he is 
 pleased with the intervention of a few raspers and other 
 difficulties; to surmount which renders the run much 
 more interesting, and maybe said to constitute his greatest 
 delight. Different countries have different customs, and 
 different tastes ; and I can very easily conceive, that a 
 good run in England with a fox would be as unpleasant, 
 u'ksome, and even alarming to a Frenchman, as the 
 hunting in France would be insipid and tedious to an 
 English sportsman. The number of Englishmen, how- 
 ever, who have visited France, and many of whom have 
 taken up a temporary residence in that country, has, in 
 all probability, somewhat improved the French system 
 of sporting. This seems tolerably evident from the 
 number of English hounds and English horses which 
 the nobility and gentry of France have procured within 
 the few last years. 
 
 That the French have much improved in what relates 
 to the chase, is evident from a number of circumstances 
 which will impress the mind on a slight retrospective 
 glance — some of the grosser absurdities have been alto- 
 gether abandoned : — some years back, for instance, the 
 hounds of the king of France were fed with wheaten 
 bread of the finest and best quality! — Tlie kennel win- 
 
 1 
 
298 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Hunting, an universal passion. 
 
 dows, however, in France, are entitled to notice. Instead 
 of glass, thin canvas is vised, which, it seems, will admit 
 a free circulation of air, and, at the same time, effectually 
 keep out the flies, which, in summer, are great torments 
 to dogs. 
 
 Hunting may be regarded as an universal passion ; 
 but pursued with more ardour in England than in any 
 other country ; and it must be admitted that English 
 sportsmen stand unrivalled either as to their know- 
 ledge of the chase, or the manner in which they pursue 
 it. Nor is hunting in this country confined exactly to 
 the higher orders, or such as can afford to keep horses 
 for the purpose ; as the hounds are miiformly attended 
 by pedestrian sportsmen. It is true, the pursuit of the 
 fox is not well calculated to afford diversion to the latter 
 class ; yet extraordinary instances of this kind occasion- 
 ally present themselvesj and cannot fail to excite atten- 
 tion. In the present year (1826) I repeatedly met the 
 fox hounds of Hugo Meynell, Esq. of Hoarecross Hall, 
 Staffordshire ; and I uniformly found them attended by 
 a pedestrian sportsman, of rather singular, but charac- 
 teristic, appearance : he was a yovmg man, about five 
 feet eight inches high, with a countenance not remark- 
 able for animation ; yet there was something about him 
 more than usually interesting. He appeared in a scarlet 
 jacket, buttoned close, and in other respects equipped 
 for running. The first time I had occasion particularly 
 to notice this young man, was one morning, when Mr. 
 Meynell's hounds found in a cover called Ravensdale, 
 eight miles from the town of Derby. It had been a 
 sharp frost during the night ; and when the fox went 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 299 
 
 An extraordinary I'edestriau Sportsman. 
 
 away, the ground was hard, and in many places, very 
 slippery : in consequence, I got a fall at the commence- 
 ment of the run ; and before I was again mounted, such 
 was the speed of the hounds, that I was distanced, if not 
 thrown out. However, I followed as fast as possible by 
 the marks of the horses' feet which had gone before me ; 
 #ind after riding a mile or two, I came up with the red 
 coated pedestrian already noticed ; but we did not long 
 keep company : — I fell in with him several times ; and 
 when I at length reached the hounds, owing to the fox 
 having gone to ground, I perceived that the pedestrian 
 sportsman had arrived before me ! 
 
 I saw him whenever I met Mr. Meynell's hounds, and 
 a little inquiry furnished me with the following particu- 
 lars respecting him : — His name is Thomas White, he 
 was born at Andover, and is now about two and twenty 
 years of age. From infancy, he was much attached to 
 the sports of the field, and followed the hounds on foot as 
 soon as he was able to run. He has been known to run 
 sixty miles a day in the pursuit of the chase, taking into 
 calculation the distance of the fixture and the return 
 home. Last winter (1825), a fine dog fox was found (by 
 Mr. Meynell's hounds) at Pot Luck cover, near Willing- 
 ton : renard passed through Willington ; and, making 
 away in the direction of Sir Henry Every 's, passed the 
 ice house — thence to Ettwall — thence to Sutton on the 
 Hill and Dalbury Lees — round the covers at Radborne 
 — over the meadows to the left, crossing the Uttoxeter 
 turnpike road to Burneston. The fox then turned 
 towards Egginton, passed Sir H. Every 's dog kennel, 
 making away again for Pot Luck cover, and was killed 
 
 t2 
 
SOO HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 All extraordinary 
 
 at the very place where he was found, after an excellent 
 run of two hours and thirty-five mmutes. During the 
 run. White was frequently with the hounds, and was up 
 at the death. 
 
 On another occasion the same hounds found at Aries- 
 ton covers, and went away at a rattling rate for Swinfen 
 Moor — thence to Osmaston — turned to the right for 
 Swarkston, where he was lost, afl^ording, however, a very 
 sharp run of twenty-five minutes, over a heavy country. 
 Tried the covers at Arleston again — no find. Tried a 
 small ozier bed at no great distance — found. Renard 
 broke cover in gallant style, passing through Mr. Glover's 
 farm yard, skirting the canal, and made away for Arles- 
 ton Gorse — passed through the cover for Swarkston 
 cover — crossed a large drain below the gorse, and, pas- 
 sing Chellaston, proceeded to within a mile of Weston; 
 when renard, finding himself pressed, made a sharp turn 
 for Chellaston, making away for Swarkston cover ; but, 
 being headed back by some men at work in a field, he 
 crossed the Derby road — thence to Elvaston, and turn- 
 ing to the left, lay down in a meadow. This caused a 
 check for some minutes, when renard was at length 
 viewed off by the whole field : — he went in a direct line 
 for th6 ozier bed where he had been found — passed 
 through it — crossed Denman's Lane — reached Derby 
 race course, passing close to the stand — he proceeded 
 along the banks of the canal, and entered some small 
 gardens between the canal and the river Derwent, where 
 some boatmen hit him with a stone, by which he was 
 disabled, and the hounds killed him in the gardens. 
 One hour and thirty minutes. White was frequently 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 301 
 
 Pedestrian Sportsman. 
 
 conspicuous during the run — was up at the death, and 
 was presented with a pad ! — This occurred in March, 
 1825. 
 
 In the following December, Mr. Meynell's fox hounds 
 found at Arleston covers ; when renard passed through 
 Pot Lucks ; leaning to the right, he passed through the 
 village of Willington — crossed the Derby road, Eggin- 
 ton Common, through Egginton, crossed the river Dove 
 close to Sir Henry's ozier beds — thence to RoUeston, 
 keeping up the meadows, turned to the left towards 
 Burton on Trent, through Rolleston, and got to ground 
 in a rabbit warren. While digging at one hole the fox 
 bolted at another, going off in the direction of Horninglow 
 — back towards Rolleston, which he did not seem inclined 
 to leave, and where, after some dodging, he was lost. 
 This business lasted nearly seven hours, from first to 
 last ; the first two hours of which was very good : it 
 finished at five o'clock. White was almost constantly 
 with the hounds, and witnessed the conclusion. 
 
 Many similar occurrences might be eiunuerated, 
 wherein White displayed his invincible ardour for the 
 chase, and his uncommon abilities as a pedestrian : one 
 of them, however, merits particular notice: — Early in 
 the present year (1826) Mr. Meynell's hounds met at 
 Stoves Gorse in Necdwood Forest, Staffordshire, a 
 distance of nine or ten miles from White's residence ; 
 but he appeared at the appointed place in due time. 
 After several covers were unsuccessfully tried, a fox was 
 found in a turnip field ; and the hounds, after running 
 one mile and a half, came to a check : however, he was 
 hit off' again from some willows, and the hounds went 
 
 T 8 
 
302 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 An extraordinary Pedestrian Sportsman. 
 
 away breast high, passing through the village of Han- 
 bury, thence proceeding in the direction for Tutbury 
 Castle : when near this place, renard turned to the left ; 
 and, after describing a large circle, passed again through 
 Hanbury, and a second time approached Tutbury 
 Castle. — Some dodging took place in the covers here, 
 when at length, renard again faced the open country ; 
 but finding he could not hve before his pursuers, he 
 went to ground in the bottom of a hedge. After digging 
 thirty-five minutes, two foxes were discovered. The 
 run fox was killed ; the second was turned out ; and 
 was lost after a run of thirty-eight minutes. White was 
 very conspicuous during both runs, and at the conclusion 
 of the business, walked home, a distance of fourteen 
 miles ! 
 
 In May last, White ran from Derby to Burton, eleven 
 miles, by the side of the Birmingham mail. In Febru- 
 ary, IS25, he ran from Derby to Nottingham, sixteen 
 miles, by the side of the mail. 
 
 In June, 1825, he ran round the course at Buxton, 
 one mile, in four minutes and fifty seconds, after having 
 walked eighteen miles. 
 
 The gentleman, to whom I am indebted for the fore- 
 going particulars, remarked that " Tom White was a 
 truly interesting young fellow, of most eccentric habits ; 
 good hearted, thoughtless, amiable, and unfortunate." 
 White occasionally attended Sir Henry Every's harriers, 
 and, on such occasions, appeared in a green jacket. Fox 
 Hunting, however, was his favourite sport, and he always 
 honoured it in scarlet. W^hite enlisted into the tenth 
 hussars either in the month of June or July, 1826. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 30^ 
 
 Unjust Accusations against the Fox. 
 
 The MiscJiievous Propensities of the Fox. — A great 
 outcry is frequently raised against the fox by surly, ill- 
 tempered farmers, and silly, chattering, old women, and 
 many depredations are laid to the charge of renard of 
 which he is most perfectly innocent. — In order to silence 
 the discontent and clamour of these growlers, it was the 
 custom, in some hunts, to pay for damages which were 
 laid to the fox's charge. Lord Anson (if my informa- 
 tion be correct) was, a few years ago, very liberal in this 
 respect, and, I make no doubt, sustained many imposi- 
 tions in consequence ; and those masters of fox hounds 
 who pursue the same system (if there are any) may rest 
 assured that they will constantly be subjected to the 
 most unjust demands. That foxes will sometimes make 
 free with geese and poultry, is a matter which admits of 
 no sort of doubt ; but whenever depredations of this sort 
 are committed, it is entirely owing to the insecure situa- 
 tions in which the birds are suffered to remain during 
 the night ; since, if they are properly attended to, they 
 will be placed beyond the reach of the fox. At the 
 same time, it may very justly be remarked, that a fox 
 will not approach a human habitation for the purpose of 
 plunder, unless constrained by hunger : as, although he 
 is by no means deficient in courage, will fight to the last 
 gasp, and die without complaining — yet there is scarcely 
 a shyer animal in nature. The fox will feed upon great 
 variety — he will eat worms, when greater dainties are 
 not to be had ; he will eagerly seek and devour field 
 mice and rats, nor can any terrier in existence be a more 
 expert rat catcher than a fox. He is fond of fish, which 
 he contrives to catch, particularly eels ; and what is 
 
304 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Trifling Injury sustained by 
 
 much worse, he will destroy partridges and pheasants ; 
 he will take these birds not only upon the nest, but will 
 hunt for them, draw and set, something after the manner 
 of a pointer ; with this difference, however, that he sets 
 only a sufficient length of time to ascertain as nearly as 
 possible (by means of his olfactory organs) the situation 
 of his intended victim, in order to spring upon and secure 
 it. He sacrifices leverets too when they fall in his way ; 
 but it very rarely happens that he meddles with lambs. 
 The rabbit is his obvious and perhaps most favourite 
 food; since, where rabbits are in tolerable plenty, the fox 
 rarely gives himself any further trouble : on this account, 
 therefore, it should always be contrived, if possible, to 
 have every hunt sufficiently stocked with rabbits. 
 
 From very considerable inquiry, I can very safely 
 assert, that the injury sustained by farmers in the fox- 
 hunting districts, from the depredations of foxes, does 
 not amount to one pound sterling, annually, each — most 
 likely not to five shillings. But it must be remarked 
 that complaints arise only from those who are not fond 
 of the chase, as a fox-hunting farmer will never suffer a 
 fox to be killed unfairly. Not many months ago, I hap- 
 pened to be walking with Mr. White of the Crown Inn, 
 Nantwich, over a farm in his occupation, not far from 
 the town last mentioned. He remarked that a very fine 
 fox had generally kennelled in some part of it for two 
 years. Upon one occasion renard made free with an old 
 favourite goose, when Mr. White's husbandman ear- 
 nestly inquired if he might not be allowed to destroy 
 him? — Not for all the geese in Christendom was the 
 reply. This was as it should be. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY 305 
 
 the Farmer from Foxes. 
 
 Foxes are more mischievous perhaps in the mountain- 
 ous districts than in any other parts : — in the north of 
 England, for instance, and the mountainous parts of 
 Scotland, where they are probably in some degree cir- 
 cumscribed in their food, and where their destruction by 
 the shepherds is of little consequence to the chase, since 
 it is not possible to follow foxes with hounds in such 
 places. It is true, some years ago, Mr. Forbes kept a 
 pack of fox hounds in the Highlands of Scotland, in the 
 neighbourhood of Inverness, and there may be fox 
 hounds still kept in some parts of that rugged country, 
 for aught I know to the contrary ; but, of all places, the 
 Highlands of Scotland appear to me the least hkely to 
 afford diversion. On the 13th of August, 1824, I hap- 
 pened to be shooting in the Highlands of Caithness, in 
 company with Mr. John Gun, whose father, John Sin- 
 clair Gun, Esq. occupies a very considerable extent of 
 these Highlands, upon wliich he feeds many himdreds 
 of cattle and sheep — his farm yard is also well stocked 
 with poultry. Finding that foxes frequently appeared 
 amongst the hills, I inquired as to the damage which was 
 sustained from their depredations — it was very trifling 
 indeed. It must be recollected that in these parts there 
 are plenty of grouse, as well as ptarmigan and the 
 Alpine hare, upon the tops of the grey hills, wliich, with 
 a number of other birds and small animals, no doubt, 
 form the food of the foxes. 
 
 The same remarks will, in a great degree, apply to 
 the mountains of the north of England, in some parts of 
 which foxes are very numerous : it is true, neither the 
 ptarmigan nor the Alpine hare is foimd upon them; but 
 
306 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 
 
 Of the Foxes found 
 
 there are a number of small animals, grouse, and various 
 other birds, in the immediate neighbourhood of these 
 rocky fastnesses, which, no doubt, constitute the princi- 
 pal sources of supply. From inquiries which I have 
 repeatedly made, during various grouse shooting excur- 
 sions, I feel no hesitation in asserting that the instances 
 are very rare indeed where lambs fall sacrifices to ren- 
 ard's voracity — it is only, in fact, when a lamb is first 
 dropped, that a fox will, even under the pressing calls 
 of hunger, attack it. With the geese, (and many are 
 frequently seen in the vallies immediately beneath the 
 hills) the foxes are much more apt to make free ; but as 
 they prowl for prey only during the night, it is entirely 
 the fault of the owners if their flocks suffer. However, 
 in these parts, a price is set upon renard's head, and 
 foxes are unsparingly destroyed as often as opportuni- 
 ties are presented. Their extirpation, however, would 
 appear almost impossible, or at least a work of much 
 more than ordinary difficulty, from the nature of the 
 holds in which they hide themselves, and in which they 
 bring forth their young. In Westmoreland, not far 
 from Kirkby Stephen, on the rocky summit of an im- 
 mense hill, situated close to the main road, foxes have 
 fovmd a secure asylum for ages. By means of narrow 
 ledges of stone, which will afford no footing for a human 
 being, these animals contrive to enter holes or dens in 
 the very face of an abrupt rock, whence it is not possible 
 to dislodge them, vinless some extraordinary means were 
 employed for the purpose. The shepherds sometimes 
 surprise a fox at a distance from his retreat, and he falls 
 a victim to his own carelessness, or his own confidence. 
 
HUNTING DIRECTORY. 307 
 
 in the Mountains. 
 
 In some parts of these mountainous regions, foxes are 
 very plentiful. In the latter end of the year 1823, or 
 the early part of 1824, the hounds of R. Bradshaw, 
 Esq. of Halton, near Lancaster, ran a fox from the 
 neighboui'hood of the last mentioned place for many 
 miles in the direction of Kendall. It so happened at 
 the commencement of the run, that the fox passed 
 within a few yards of me, and I scarcely ever recollect 
 observing so fine an animal of the kind. The hounds 
 went away close at his brush, and followed him with 
 great speed ; but he ultimately reached the inaccessible 
 fortress of Farlton Knots, almost in sight of the hounds, 
 after a run of more than twenty miles. Farlton Knots 
 is the rocky crest of one of the large mountains, which 
 form a range between Burton and Kendall, as it were, 
 in Westmoreland, and affords the most perfect security 
 for foxes. The music of the pack had attracted the 
 attention of several shepherds, who approached, and 
 one of them informed me that no less than four foxes 
 had stolen away when they heard the hounds. I ex- 
 pressed a degree of doubtful surprise at what he had 
 stated ; when, by way, I suppose, of completely removing 
 my scepticism, he further remarked, that he had no 
 doubt there were twenty more still remaining in various 
 fastnesses of the rock ! Half the number, it must be 
 allowed, would constitute sufficient plenty. 
 
 THE END. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Page 
 Adder, for the bite of the . . . . .86 
 
 Ancient objects of pursuit, the stag, the wolf, and the boar, were the 12 
 Anecdote of Will. Dean 
 
 -s of the famous Dick Knight 
 
 — s of an extraordinary pedestrian fox hunter 
 
 Babblers should not be kept 
 Bag foxes, of 
 
 Barometer, vaiiations of the 
 Beagle, the . . . 
 
 '■ ■! the lap-dog . . 
 
 — — — the genuine . 
 Bite of a dog, remedy for the 
 
 of the adder, remedy for 
 
 Bleeding 
 
 Blood, to stop an effusion of . 
 
 — — — difference of opinion respecting 
 
 ■ the subject of, considered 
 
 Blood hound, old English 
 
 Bluecap, an extraordinary fox hound 
 
 Boar, hunting the wild 
 
 Breeding in an in 
 
 Burns, remedy for 
 
 Canker in the lips 
 
 Casting round sheep . 
 
 Chase, methods of pursuing the, in France an 
 
 Check, coming to a . 
 
 Circumstance, extraordinary, of a young fox hou 
 
 Cold hunting, of . . , 
 
 Cold ..... 
 
 Convulsions . . 
 
 Cough ..... 
 
 Country, change of, injurious to hounds 
 
 Cubs, breeding of . . , 
 
 of diseased, or mangy 
 
 D 
 
 Darlington, Lord, as a huntsman 
 
 Dean, Will, anecdote of 
 
 Discipline, kennel . . 
 
 Diseases of hounds and methods of cure 
 
 Distemper, the .... 
 
 appearances of, on dissection 
 
 the cow pock will not prevent the 
 
 Dog's age . . . , 
 
 England compared 
 nd bitch 
 
 169 
 148 
 298 
 
 225 
 
 199 
 
 244 
 
 39 
 
 ibid 
 
 215 
 
 79 
 
 86 
 
 73 
 
 76 
 
 175 
 
 181 
 
 55 
 
 53 
 
 281 
 
 51 
 
 89 
 
 75 
 
 165 
 
 295 
 
 194 
 
 166 
 
 194 
 
 74 
 
 71 
 
 74 
 
 197 
 
 199 
 
 201 
 
 155 
 
 169 
 
 122 
 
 54,57 
 
 58 
 
 61 
 
 68 
 
 55 
 
INDEX. 
 
 309 
 
 Draper, Squire, a celebrated fox-hunter, and his daughter Di 
 Dumb madness ••.... 
 
 Page 
 
 20, 21 
 
 104 
 
 Edward I. the first Engh'sh fox hunter , 
 
 English hounds superior to those of France 
 
 16 
 276 
 
 Feeding, of 
 Feeder, of the . 
 Feet, sore 
 
 Films in the eye . . 
 
 Fleas, to destroy . . 
 
 Foil, hunting the . . 
 
 Formica . . . 
 
 Foxes, likely places to try for them 
 
 running the roads 
 
 bag, of • • . 
 
 purchasing, condemned 
 
 of digging 
 
 Fox hound, the 
 
 speed of the . . 
 
 of the olfactory organs of the 
 
 Fox hounds, of . . 
 
 Sir Tatton Sykes's 
 
 impropriety of entering young, at hare 
 
 the Badsworth 
 
 the Duke of Rutland's 
 
 ———^ the Cheshire (Sir H. Mainwaring's) 
 
 extraordinary speed of 
 
 obedience indispensable in 
 
 — — the manner in which they should draw 
 
 of casting . . ; 
 
 coming to a fault 
 
 being left to themselves . 
 
 Fox hunting, old method of . . 
 
 • superior to all other diversions 
 
 Fox, recovering a hunted, wlien scent fails 
 
 tired . . . . 
 
 running the foil , ; . 
 
 trying back for a 
 
 - metiiod of drawing a 
 
 Gaoler, the fox hound 
 Glider, the fox hound 
 
 G 
 
 H 
 
 Hair, to bring, upon a scalded part 
 Halloos, of ... . 
 
 Hare hunting 
 
 the hounds best calculated for 
 
 Hare, the doubles, &c. of the 
 
 every, has her particular play 
 
 the, should be fairly hunted 
 
 . 119 
 
 118 
 
 79 
 
 75 
 
 79 
 
 250 
 
 74 
 
 157 
 
 160 
 
 199 
 
 202 
 
 203 
 
 40 
 
 44 
 
 . 191 
 
 24 
 
 25 
 
 145 
 
 ibid 
 
 ibid 
 
 . ibid 
 
 33 
 
 142 
 
 156 
 
 158 
 
 192 
 
 . 196 
 
 17, 184 
 
 . 206 
 
 161 
 
 162, 193 
 
 163 
 
 167 
 
 204 
 
 42 
 ibid 
 
 79 
 193, 195 
 207, 209 
 216 
 210 
 211 
 214 
 
310 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Hare finders 
 
 . ■ of the pursuit of the . . 
 
 Hares, of chopping 
 
 Harriers should be well matched in speed 
 
 — — — should be kept to their own game 
 
 of casting . . , 
 
 various kinds of 
 
 Heel, of running back the 
 Hound, form of the 
 Hounds, of various 
 
 - diseases of, and methods of cure 
 - quarrelsome . . . 
 
 . - breeding of . . . 
 
 -I young, treatment of 
 
 ■ young, should be fed twice a day 
 
 — — — of chastising 
 
 casting themselves 
 
 ^. individual character of the . 
 
 French method of training 
 
 Hunting, the progress of 
 
 - improved in this country by the Saxons and Normans 
 
 of our ancestors • . . . . 
 
 terms of Norman origin ... 
 
 summer i . .... 
 
 spring, censured 
 
 Huntsman, the duty of a 
 
 what constitutes a perfect 
 
 should draw up wind . , 
 
 Huntsmen, modern, notices of several 
 
 slow, improper for fox hounds 
 
 Hydrophobia 
 
 Page 
 
 219 
 
 220 
 
 219 
 
 213 
 
 218 
 
 224 
 
 229 
 
 217 
 
 50 
 
 39,43 
 
 . 54 
 
 53 
 
 45 
 
 52 
 
 55 
 
 130 
 
 164 
 
 212 
 
 286 
 
 9, 16 
 
 10 
 
 11, 1'2 
 
 12 
 
 141 
 
 197 
 
 21, 147 
 
 168 
 
 187 
 
 150 
 
 152 
 
 90 
 
 Impressions, importance of first 
 Inflammation 
 
 140 
 78 
 
 K 
 
 Kennel, of the - - _ 
 
 two recommended 
 
 . interior of the 
 
 — — appendages to the 
 
 ■ stoves of essential service in the 
 
 '—— the Quorndon 
 
 ' the Duke of Rutland's 
 
 > ' discipline 
 
 Kibble, the ... 
 
 Knight, Dick, anecdotes of 
 
 26 
 27 
 28 
 30 
 
 ibid 
 51 
 32 
 
 122 
 39 
 
 149 
 
 Lameness in the shoulder 
 
 Lice, to destroy 
 
 Lounger, a celebrated fox hound 
 
 Madcap, a famous fox hound 
 Madness, dumb 
 
 M 
 
 112 
 79 
 
 54,43 
 
 54, 45 
 104 
 
INDEX. 311 
 
 Page 
 
 Mange, the common _ - - - - 83 
 
 the red - - .... 84 
 
 Meeting, the ancient and modern hour of - - - 23 
 
 an early hoar of, favourable to sport - - - 174 
 
 Megrim ..._--- 72 
 Merkin, an extraordinary fox hound bitch - - • 53 
 Moody, the famous whipper-in - - - • 192 
 Meynell, Hugo, Esq. of Quorndon, a celebrated fox hunter - 22 
 his opinions respecting fox hunting - 1 75 
 
 N 
 
 Names of hounds -- - - - - 113 
 
 Oatmeal, preferable to barley flour for hounds - - - 119 
 
 bread dust, a substitute for . _ _ 120 
 
 Observations on the mischievous propensities of the fox - - 305 
 
 Opinion cf an old sportsman _ _ . . 209 
 
 Otter hunting -._---. 257 
 
 P 
 
 Fack, number of the - - - - 215 
 
 Pedestrians, hare hunting favourable to - - - - 229 
 
 Poison, remedy for hounds that have taken - - .. 80 
 
 ■ antidote for vegetable - - -^ - - 81 
 
 Physicing hounds - - - - - 125 
 
 R 
 
 Riding to hounds - - -- - -188 
 
 S 
 Scalds, remedy for ----- - 89 
 
 Scent, of -------240 
 
 - smallness of the particles of - - - - 241 
 
 effect of the atmosphere on . . - - 242 
 
 influence of the frost on - - - - 246 
 
 difference of, in the same animals - - - - 248 
 
 — — motion the principal cause of. , •.. 249 
 
 Somervile's opinion of. 251 
 
 Beckford's opinion of. ibid 
 
 ——— rich land favourable to 254 
 
 Influence of the wind on 255 
 
 — ^ erroneous notion respecting the, of different animals 256 
 
 Shoulder, lameness in the 112 
 
 Sickness, remedy for 82 
 
 Smell, the sense of, in dogs 41 
 
 — — to recover the sense of. 80 
 
 Sore feet 79 
 
 Speed and music, of. 250 
 
 Sportsmen, of the old Norman 15, 14, 15, 16 
 
 Sprains 75 
 
 Stag, chase of a, by Richard 1 255 
 
 Stag hound, the 39 
 
 Stag hounds, the Earl of Derby's 44, 232 
 
 Stag hunting * 231 
 
31^ INDEX. 
 
 Page 
 
 Stag Hunting, ancient method of. 233 
 
 of Queen Elizabeth 234 
 
 St. Clair, William de, extraordinary chase by 236 
 
 Stomach, foul ^^ 
 
 Style of fox hounds running ^°^ 
 
 Swellings '^ 
 
 T 
 
 Talbot, the ^^* 
 
 Terriers, of the sort best suited for foxhunting ^05 
 
 Thorns, for extracting '^ 
 
 W 
 
 Wager, an extraordinary 2j6 
 
 Wanton, an extraordinary fox hound bitch 3^ 
 
 Warren hares. 
 Warrens, of hare. 
 
 227 
 226 
 
 Weather, uncertainty of the, for hunting 245 
 
 Whelps, the treatment of. ^' 
 
 the naming of. •. ^^ 
 
 Whipper-in, duty of the ^JP 
 
 White-hart-silver ^^^ 
 
 Wolf-hunting in France 257 
 
 . terms employed in '"'^ 
 
 dogs best adapted for 265 
 
 Wolf, manner of dislinguiihing the male from the female 259 
 
 of training dogs to hunt the 262, 267 
 
 trying for the • • 264 
 
 hounds not eager in the pursuit of. -t)5 
 
 habits of the V" ^^^ 
 
 mode of ascertaining whether the hound is on the right scent 
 
 of the If 
 
 of the discovery of a 269 
 
 method of killing the 270 
 
 method of hunting and finding the 271,273 
 
 method of inducing the, to break cover 272 
 
 foims observed at the death of the 275 
 
 manner of placing greyhounds for the 269 
 
 the blooding of hounds to ••• 274 
 
 dogs wounded by the 280 
 
 . chase, description of a 2/G 
 
 Wolves, when they are in heat 259 
 
 . the littering of. 260 
 
 places where they litter 261 
 
 Worming puppies ^" 
 
 Worms ^^ 
 
 Wounds, and to stop an effusion of blood '" 
 
 contused ' ' 
 
 Y 
 
 Yellows, the '" 
 
 Young hounds, management of. ^ _ 
 
 Z of entering ^28, 133,137 
 
 of blooding ^^^ 
 
Webster Family li'omry of Veterinary Medicine 
 Cornmlniis School of Veterinary Medicine at 
 Tufts University 
 200 Westboro Road 
 S\lortri Grafton. yA 01536