THE BLACK-TAILED AND VIRGINIA DEER. 329 



The best dogs, and those most prized for the general 

 purposes of hunting in that country, are those that are 

 rather small, keen of nose, and have a rich musical voice. 



Large hounds would be of little use in many parts of 

 that densely wooded region, as they cannot well force their 

 way through the matted shrubbery and heavy fern brakes 

 without much severe labor; whereas small ones can easily 

 pass under the entwining branches, or scramble through 

 the tangled mass. They are not so liable either to get 

 footsore or leg-weary as the others; hence one can hunt 

 with the same pack day after day by dividing it into de- 

 tachments. 



When a grand hunt is organized in a neighborhood, the 

 farmers who are on friendly terms with each other unite 

 into one company, each bringing his own dogs with him ; 

 and in this manner an excellent working pack is soon as- 

 sembled — though in looks, voice, and breeding its members 

 might not bear the criticisms of judges of canine excel- 

 lence. If the hunt is to last for a week or two, the hounds 

 are divided into groups, and those that run one day are 

 left in camp the next; and when rested in this manner 

 they are able to work uninterruptedly for three or four 

 w r ceks at a time, and to run from five to twenty deer in a 

 day. Those persons who relish the cry of the hounds as 

 much as the haunch of venison, keep seven or eight couples 

 of good dogs and run them together, and their "sweet 

 voice" causes the forests to ring with melodious strains 

 from morning till night. There are few more pleasing 

 sounds than the cry of a clear -voiced pack amidst the 

 woods and mountains of the country, as every note is 

 echoed and re-echoed in stentorian tones over an area sev- 

 eral miles square; and this gives one an idea that thou- 

 sands of dogs are giving tongue at the same time. An- 

 other advantage that a slow-going pack has over a swift 

 one is, that the deer are not driven at such a pace as to 

 injure their flesh, and that the hunter has a better chance 

 of killing them as they move past his stand. 



One of the greatest annoyances attending deer-hunting 



