154 THOUGHTS ON HUNTING 



able to attend you when you was here before : I hope 

 you was not offended at it ; for, to show you how well 

 I am inclined to assist your hunt, you see, / have 

 brought my little dog!' 



I will now give you an instance of another gentle- 

 man's love of hunting : — We were returning from 

 hunting over a very fine country ; and, upon its being 

 remarked that we had a pleasant ride, he replied — 

 " The best part of the sport, in my opinion, is the 

 riding home to dinner afterwards." He is, without 

 doubt, of the same opinion with a fat old gentleman 

 that I one day overtook upon the road, who, after 

 having asked me, " How many foxes we usually 

 killed in one day ? " and " Why I did not hunt hare 

 rather than fox, as she was better to eat ? " concluded 

 with saying, " There is but one part of hunting I 

 likes — it makes one very hungry!' 



There are two things which I particularly recom- 

 mend to you ; — the one is, to make your hounds 

 steady ; the other, to make them all draw. Many 

 huntsmen are fond of having them at their horse's 

 heels ; but, believe me, they never get so well, or 

 so soon, together, as when they spread the cover : 

 besides, I have often known, when there have been 

 only a few finders, that they have found their fox, 

 gone down the wind, and been heard of no more 

 that day. 



Never take out an unsteady old hound : young 

 ones properly awed from riot, and that will stop 

 at a rate, may be put into the pack, a few at a 

 time ; but an old hound that is vicious should not 



