"From shore to shore they swim, "while clamour loud 

 And wild uproar torments the troubled Jlood." 



Somervile. 



XXI 



A DAY WITH THE ESSEX OTTERHOUNDS 



THE MEET — THE TERRIERS — HOUND MUSIC — A GREAT DAY's 

 SPORT — LOA-E-M^UilNG — HOW ENGLISH SPORTSMEN ARE AC- 

 COUNTED FOR — T^VLLY-HO-OTTER — THE OBLIGING MILLERS. 



THE meet of the Essex hounds, pre\aously referred to, was 

 at Bishop's Hall ]Mill, Chelmsford, Essex, England. In 

 company with I.indley Bott, first whipper-in, the writer went 

 out, on the morning of July 4th, 1903, to witness and partici- 

 pate in his first otter hunt. 



A good number of brethren and disciples of the faith had 

 already assembled; they were mostly young people, say from 

 sixteen to thirty years of age, with occasionally an older sinner, 

 say from forty to fifty, which latter age included the tenderfoot 

 from America. Speaking of the tenderfoot reminds him of a 

 laughable incident that happened during this i)articular hunt. 

 A follower asked the writer how he was enjoying himself. 

 "First class," he replied, "although a tenderfoot at the game, 

 I am enjoying it immensely." "Really," replied the native, 

 looking down at the^vTiter's shoes, "are your feet hurting you?" 

 "Well, not exactly," and to let the native down easily as pos- 

 sible, — "but they are getting a bit weary." 



Let us hark back to the meet. The masculine contingent 

 were mostly dressed in flannel knickers with shirt and jacket 



