ON THE FEEDING OF HOUNDS 21 



the trouble of casting their eye over them before they begin ; and yet to 

 distinguish with any nicety the order that a pack of hounds are in, and the 

 different degrees of it, is surely no easy task ; and, to be done well, requires 

 no small degree of circumspection. You had better not expect your hunts- 

 man to be very exact : where precision is required, he will most probably 

 fail. 



When I am present myself, I make several drafts. When my hunts- 

 man feeds them, he calls them all over by their names, letting in each hound 

 as he is called : it has its use ; it uses them to their names, and teaches 

 them to be obedient. Were it not for this, I should disapprove of it 

 entirely ; since it certainly requires more coolness and deliberation to distin- 

 guish with precision which are best entitled to precedence, than this method 

 of feeding will admit of ; and unless flesh be in great plenty, those that are 

 called in last may not have a taste of it. To prevent this inconvenience, 

 such as are low in flesh had better be all drafted off into a separate kennel ; 1 

 by this means, the hounds that require flesh will all have a share of it. If 

 any be much poorer than the rest, they should be fed again : such hounds 

 cannot be fed too often. If any in the pack be too fat, they should be 

 drafted off, and not suffered to fill themselves. The others should eat what 

 they will of the meat. The days my hounds have greens, or sulphur, they 

 generally are let in all together ; and such as require flesh, have it given to 

 them afterwards. Having a good kennel-huntsman, it is not often that I 

 take this trouble ; yet I seldom go into my kennel, but I indulge myself in 

 the pleasure of seeing food given to such hounds as appear to me to be in 

 want of it. I have been told, that in one kennel, in particular, the hounds 

 are under such excellent management, that they constantly are fed with 

 the door of the feeding-yard open ; and the rough nature of the fox-hound 

 is changed into so much politeness, that he waits at the door till he is 

 invited in ; and, what perhaps is not less extraordinary, he comes out again, 

 whether he has satisfied his hunger or not, the moment he is desired the 

 effect of discipline. However, as this is not absolutely necessary, and hounds 

 may be good without it ; and as I well know that your other amusements 

 will not permit you to attend to so much manoeuvring I would by no 

 means wish you to give such power to your huntsman. The business would 

 be injudiciously done, and most probably would not answer your expecta- 

 tions. The hound would be tormented mal-d-propos ; an animal so little 

 deserving of it from our hands, that I should be sorry to disturb his hours of 

 repose by unnecessary severity. You will perceive that it is a nice affair ; 



1 By thus separating from the rest such as are poor, you will proceed to the feeding of 

 your hounds with more accuracy and less trouble ; and though they be at first drafted off in 

 the manner above described, it is still meant that they should be let in to feed, one by one, 

 as they answer to their names ; or else, as it will frequently happen, they may be better fed 

 than taught. 



