2oS BRITISH DOGS 



the pleasantest moments of my life have been thus spent ; and once, 

 having shot two wolves that had been led out to me by a Basset 

 ajambes torses, I fairly lifted up the little beggar to my breast and 

 hugged him, and I called him a pet and a dear, and all that sort of 

 bosh, and I thought that in all my life I had never seen a pluckier 

 and cleverer little fellow. 



In short, there is no doubt that, for purposes of shooting, 

 Bassets, of whatever breed, are pre-eminently excellent. They run 

 very true, and are more easily taught the tricks of game than 

 full-sized hounds. This I have found out by experience. The 

 average large hound, once in full swing on a scent, runs on like a 

 donkey. But Bassets seem to reason, and when they come to an 

 imbroglio of tracks, purposely left by the quarry to puzzle them, 

 they are rarely taken in, but, slowly and patiently setting to work, 

 they unravel the maze, and eventually pick up again the wily 

 customer's scent. Hence, for the man who can only keep one or 

 two hounds to be used with the gun, there is no breed likely to suit 

 him better than Bassets, for they are sure not to lose the scent, 

 whatever takes place, and their low size enables them to pick it up 

 when it is so cold that a larger hound would, perhaps, not even 

 notice it. 



They have also a good deal of pluck, to which they add a sort 

 of reasoning discretion. To illustrate my meaning, I will give an 

 instance to the point viz. very few hounds of any kind take readily 

 to hunting wolves, and when they do take to it, they hunt in a pack, 

 each hound countenancing the other. Now, some well-bred Bassets 

 will hunt a wolf singly. I have stated already that I have had 

 myself the pleasure of killing two wolves that were, individually, 

 hunted by one Basset. This, therefore, shows extraordinary pluck 

 on the part of the little hound ; for be it known that, as a rule, any 

 hound or dog who comes for the first time on the scent of a wolf 

 forthwith bolts home, or hides behind his master for protection. 

 On the other hand, Bassets are cautious. When they by chance 

 come near a wolf, or a wild boar, or a stag, or any other wild animal 

 on whom they could make but little impression, but who is, on the 

 other hand, likely to do them an irretrievable injury, they never run 

 the risk, but bay at him from a distance. As long as he chooses to 

 stop they will not leave him ; they will resume hunting him as soon 

 as he will start, but they will only run at him when the decisive shot 

 has been fired. 



Some Bassets are used for vermin-killing (badger, fox, etc.) ; 

 others are employed for pheasant-shooting, woodcock-shooting, and 

 partridge-shooting, besides their legitimate employment in hunting 

 ground game. When used for birds, they are frequently called 

 to, to keep them within range, and, generally, a bell or a small 

 brass greloi is fastened to their collar, that the shooter may know 



