75 



fails or falters on the line. That hound may carry on 

 many yards beyond where he last touched the scent, 

 and if the huntsman observed the point of hesitation 

 it will be of great assistance in making his subsequent 

 cast. 



A forward cast for a fox is recognised as nearly 

 always the correct method and with a large field of 

 horsemen it is really the only course to employ. Casting 

 forward does not mean the extension of a straight Une 

 to an indefinite length as some people seem to imagine. 



When hounds check it must mean a fox has turned 

 or been headed from the course he was pursuing as there 

 would be no reason for the check otherwise unless it 

 happened to be manured ground or had been foiled by 

 cattle. A good fox that has been obliged to turn aside 

 to avoid some obstruction it is reasonable to expect 

 will resume his (original course at a convenient oppor- 

 tunity, and it is the huntsman's judgment of the fugitive's 

 direction in regaining that route which spells the con- 

 tinuance of a gallop or its end. 



The problem which immediately presents itseK to a 

 huntsman on the occasion of a check is " what caused it." 

 A farm labourer or shepherd may have been in the 

 field when the fox passed and made him change direction, 

 but by the time hounds arrive the man has disappeared. 

 There are a hundred things which may or may not have 

 happened, and it is the brain quick enough to solve the 

 mystery tiiat usually succeeds. 



Unless there is a certain and absolutely sure oppor- 

 tunity of getting on better terms with a fox, more time is 

 lost in lifting than in letting them hunt it out. It is 

 easier to get hounds' heads up than to get them dowTi 

 again. Much depends on circumstances and no rules 

 can be laid down. 



