Otter Hunting 21 



hounds ; in Devonshire, at any rate, the 

 pack is generally composed of draft stag or 

 fox-hounds, with a few couple of pure otter- 

 hounds to leaven the pack. Mr. J. C. 

 Carrick, of Carlisle, had an entire pack 

 of pure otter-hounds, which used to 

 provide most excellent sport. The stag 

 and fox-hounds when duly entered to otter 

 answer the purpose in our mild Western 

 Counties, where the climate is not so cold 

 and biting and boisterous ; but personally, I 

 question whether they would stand the racket 

 and trying ordeal in the Northern Counties. 

 However, I may be entirely wrong, so that 

 on this point my private opinion is of little 

 worth. In days gone by, otter hunting was 

 conducted much on the same lines as it is at 

 the present time ; that is, as far as the main 

 principles of the actual hunting is concerned ; 

 but nowadays the otter is not so much 

 interfered with by the huntsman and his 



