124 THOUGHTS ON HUNTING 



quelques provinces du royaume, en Gascogne et en Lan- 

 guedoc, par exemple, avec une sauce compose'e de vinaigre 

 et de sucre, qui est mauvaise, nialsaine en sot essentielle- 

 ment, mais qui est surtout abominable pour tons cetix 

 qui riy sont pas accozittcmes." You, without doubt, 

 therefore, will think yourself obliged to the authors 

 of the Encyclope'die for their kind and friendly 

 information. 



Having heard of a small pack of beagles to be dis- 

 posed of in Derbyshire, I sent my coachman (the 

 person whom I could at that time best spare) to fetch 

 them. It was a long journey, and, not having been 

 used to hounds, he had some trouble in getting them 

 along ; besides which, as ill-luck would have it, they 

 had not been out of the kennel for many weeks 

 before, and were so riotous, that they ran after 

 everything they saw : sheep, cur-dogs, and birds of 

 all sorts, as well as hares and deer, I found, had been 

 his amusement all the way along. However, he lost 

 but one hound ; and when I asked him what he 

 thought of them, he said, "they could not fail of 

 being good hounds, for they would hunt anything." 



In your answer to my last Letter, you ask, Of what 

 service it can be to a huntsman to be a good groom ? 

 and, Whether I think he will hunt hounds the better 

 for it ? I wonder you did not rather ask, Why he 

 should be clea?ily ? I should be more at a loss how 

 to answer you. My huntsman has always the care 

 of his own horses ; I never yet knew one who did 

 not think himself capable of it : it is for that reason 

 I wish him to be a good groom. 



