THE ART ITSELF 201 



must press hounds on without lifting them, never 

 taking them off their noses, and yet never suffer- 

 ing them to dwell more than a moment in one 

 spot. He must, as it were, feel his way forward, 

 never losing a second and yet never hurrying. 

 Hounds that are allowed to potter about in one 

 place get into a slow habit of hunting, and are 

 almost useless, unless they see the error of their 

 ways. When there is a very good scent, a pack of 

 beagles or harriers will run and drive in the very 

 best style, but it is the principal virtue and 

 predominant characteristic of the well-bred fox- 

 hound, to get forward with and make the most 

 of an indifferent scent. The beagle would pro- 

 bably beat the foxhound at puzzling out a cold 

 line, and if that is what you want to see, I 

 advise you to get a pack of the former to hunt 

 your foxes. You would not kill many, but you 

 would get plenty of hunting, and you would 

 seldom require to draw more than one covert 

 in the day. The art of pressing hounds on and 

 getting them forward without letting them lift 

 their noses from the ground, can only be learned 

 by those who are born with the hunting instinct, 

 but even then it will be no use to them unless 



