252 HARE-HUNTING 



the hares are weak, and you can thus get the 

 pack well blooded before your regular season 

 commences. Everything, however, must depend 

 on the wishes of the people over whose land you 

 hunt, and if they do not object you can have 

 your first morning at the end of September. 

 There is no reason you should not begin a 

 month earlier if the landowners and occupiers are 

 willing, but when once you commence you must 

 go on hunting at least one day a week. 



In some countries and with some packs it is the 

 rule to begin the regular season on the first of 

 October, but we do not commence until Novem- 

 ber. Whatever date you fix on for making a 

 start, you ought to have at least a fortnight or 

 three weeks' rehearsal to get your hounds under 

 proper command. I am not referring to the man 

 who hunts only on his own land and for his own 

 amusement — he can please himself ; but the man 

 who has to depend on others for the hare he finds 

 and the ground he runs over, is to a certain 

 extent a public servant. He should fix the date 

 for opening the season, the days he intends 

 hunting, and the hour for meeting, which should 

 be that most convenient to the majority of his 



