HUNTING HORNS AND HUNTING CRIES 



CHAPTER XXIII 



TO the hunting man there is no music 

 on earth to compare with the sound of 

 a well-blown horn, and the cry of the 

 hounds as they break covert on a bright 

 November morning. To-day the huntsman 



usually carries a short, straight, copper horn, 

 ten inches or under, in length. In olden times, 

 however, hunting horns were much more cumber- 

 some affairs, and horn music played a conspicuous 

 part in the chase. In primeval days horns were 

 used for purposes of sport and war. They were 

 formed from the bones of animals, and in the case 

 of coast-dwelling tribes, shells of various kinds 

 were made to serve the same purpose. Animal 

 horns were likewise used, and the porters on 

 safari in Africa to-day often blow antelope horns. 

 The same thing occurs in the southern States of 

 America, where cow-horns are still used by the 

 local fox-hunters. As time went on these crude 

 instruments were improved upon, metal was 

 brought into use, and horns were provided which 

 afforded a wider field for the hunter's musical 

 abilities. Elephant's tusks, often richly engraved 

 and mounted in metal, were regularly used in 

 France, such horns being known as " oliphants." 

 They were in general use until the time of Louis 

 XV., when the circular brass horn was invented 



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