THE BOOK OF THE OTTER 



fixtures as late as ten a.m. Although from a 

 social or " love and lunch " point of view, late 

 meets are no doubt convenient, the same can 

 hardly be said as regards hunting. Some Masters 

 of Otterhounds are averse to early meets because 

 they say that the drag is then often so strong that 

 hounds are very apt to pass over their otter. By 

 getting to the water later the drag has lost some of 

 its strength, and hounds are then brought to their 

 noses, and travel slower, thus being less inclined 

 to pass their otter in its holt. Really the time of 

 meeting should depend upon the character of the 

 water you intend to hunt. On a river flowing 

 through marsh or water meadows, where the long 

 grass and rushes are always more or less damp and 

 the ground beneath them shaded from the sun, 

 scent will lie for hours, and there is no necessity 

 to make a very early start. In the North, however, 

 where the streams are swift and rocky, and have 

 their sources far up the hill-sides, there is often 

 little shade, except beside some covert, or in some 



ghyll or ravine to which the sun's rays seldom 



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