Cubbing Again ! 



non-existent on grass land owing to the strengthening 

 sun; there is a further risk that an old fox may lead 

 hounds to some far-off district where the oats and 

 wheat are not yet cut, and the only results of the morn- 

 ing's work would be damage claims and general un- 

 pleasantness; and altogether, the chance of hounds 

 catching that fox is too slim to warrant continued effort. 



His other alternative, that of stopping hounds, is not 

 a lovable business. Stopping old hounds may not 

 interfere with their future behaviour, but whipping-off 

 untrained, un-entered puppies is quite a different matter. 

 They are not pursuing vermin or running riot. They 

 are hunting that which they are supposed to hunt, and 

 preventing their doing so not only puzzles them, but 

 will do them no good. They cannot be blamed for 

 changing foxes when the specimen they are pursuing at 

 the moment was literally driven into their teeth. They 

 have behaved excellently in covert; are obviously con- 

 vinced that they are still chasing the same cub, and 

 now when they are running like demons, it seems an 

 injustice to whip them off. 



No matter what course the huntsman decides upon, 

 his morning's work will not be as good as it could have 

 been. To go on seems futile; and by the time hounds 

 are stopped and jogged back to covert, scenting condi- 

 tions may have altered completely. Whichever decision 

 he makes, one thing is highly probable, his temper will 

 not be improved and, should he meet the culprit who 

 yodelled " Tally-ho ! " the conversation would not be 

 about the weather. 



Had the culprit been less hasty he would not have 



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