146 



THE DIARY OF A HUNTSMAN 



There is an old saying, " Give a dog a bad name 

 and hang him," which maxim is too often applied 

 to gamekeepers ; for there are some who are really 

 friends to fox-hunting, and who have more pride in 

 showing foxes with their pheasants, that is, in the 

 same covers, than any others can have in showing 

 pheasants without them. Innumerable instances 

 can be proved that foxes and pheasants can be 



had in abundance in the same covers, particularly 

 where there are rabbits. The writer has seen five 

 foxes cross a ride in a cover, and nearly as many 

 hundred pheasants. Indeed, let any person go to 

 Savernake Wood, belonging to the Marquis of 

 Ailesbury,^ or to Ashdown Park, which swarms 



^ This magnificent 

 4,000 acres.— Ed. 



demesne extends to upwards of 



