The Marquis de Chamhray's Hounds 309 



England, Ireland and Scotland about four hundred and fifty- 

 organised packs of hounds ; two hundred packs are for the chase 

 of the fox, one hundred and ninety-eight packs for the chase of 

 the hare and the remaining number are devoted to the chase 

 of the stag, the wild red deer and the otter. Many of these 

 packs hunt four and five days a week throughout the entire 

 season. 



Among the followers of the chase in England, as in France 

 and Germany, are the nobility from the Royal family down. 

 In England they are the members of the House of Lords and 

 the House of Commons almost to a man; the officers of the 

 armj" from the commander-in-chief to the lowest subaltern; 

 the Judiciary, from the Chief Justice to the village pettifog- 

 ger; doctors of divinity and doctors of medicine. 



Not only is the chase followed by the aristocracy and 

 wealthy classes of England, but the spirit of the chase pervades 

 every mother's son and daughter of the Kingdom. If there 

 is any single characteristic that dominates all classes in Eng- 

 land, it is the spirit of the chase and sports afield. The former 

 is but a continuation of the latter when the school and college 

 days are over. 



Little England instead of being a backward, demoralised, 

 barbarous country, has led the world as an educator and 

 civiliser. She has accomplished more in these lines to the 

 present time than all the rest of the world combined. 



As for the chase making people think and act in a brutal 

 or unsportsmanlike manner, as some would incline us to think, 

 where, in the history of any other nation or people can be found 

 such consideration, such Christian-like conduct as has always 

 been shown by the English for their enemies in battle and to 

 their foes when vanquished. In these respects Great Britain 

 has ever been in the lead of the world. If the English have 

 one virtue that outshines all others, one national trait that dis- 

 tinguishes them above all others, it is their inherent love for 



