Fo.v Hunting in the Sunny South 37 



and hunts his own hounds, as in the palmy daj's "befo' the 

 wah," when plantation life was at its zenith, and southern 

 chivalry was in flower. 



Although those good old plantation days are greatly mod- 

 ified or have disappeared altogether, and although a victorious 

 army freed the slaves, devastated the land, and ruined the 

 people financially, there was one thing that could not be 

 destroyed, one custom more powerful than a president's 

 proclamation, one thing an invading army could not demohsh, 

 or poverty put to flight; i. e., the hunting instinct of the 

 Southern people. That at least remains. It had been bred 

 into the bones ; it runs in the blood ; like the spots of a leopard, 

 it cannot be changed. 



As a southern hound fancier once told the writer, "Every 

 poor man could keep at least one hound, and every d — poor 

 man could keep two" — and most southern sportsmen after the 

 war trained in the latter class. 



It is not uncommon for a politician to stump the country, 

 going from town to town with his pack of hounds, making 

 speeches in the evening and closing with an inrit-atipn for 

 all to meet with his hounds the next morning for a day's hunt- 

 ing. The following evening they are at the next village to 

 repeat the speech and invitation. 



The following interesting letter from Colonel Roger 

 Williams of Lexington, Ky., dated June 25th, 1905, says: — 

 "Richard Redd, a noted fox hunter, was elected assessor of 

 Fayette County, for many years in succession. He always 

 canvassed with his pack of hounds stopping over night with his 

 constituents and hunting in the neighbourhood. 



"For several nights before election his hounds ran drags 

 through the country. In some instances the drag was laid in 

 the front yard and even onto the porches of the voters as a 

 reminder. 



"The present State treasurer of Kentucky," adds Col. 



