26 FOX-HUNTING RECOLLECTIONS 



huntsman and fling themselves at a gallop in a 

 semicircle until they recovered the line ? Lord 

 Henry devoted a lifetime and his great talents 

 to the breeding of hounds, but he well knew that 

 his labour was in vain unless they were carefully 

 and judiciously handled in the field. Every 

 detail of information was recorded daily in his 

 private kennel book, and on reference to its 

 contents many passages are to be found showing 

 the remarkably acute observation with which 

 he watched the performance of his pack — for 

 instance : 



'' Comus, 1844. A model little dog ; a very 

 hard runner. 



'' Tomboy, 1845. Got the name of the 

 Schoolmaster of the pack, and was probably 

 the best and most sagacious dog that ever ran in 

 the Midland counties. These two dogs ran in the 

 bitch pack. There was little to choose between 

 them — in nose, brilliancy, or stoutness ; each dog 

 was equally quick in dropping clear into the dry 

 ditches and working a dying fox out of them. 

 But Comus could be led wrong by wild men or 

 a flashing pack of hounds ; while neither man, nor 

 hound, nor fox could make a fool of Tomboy. 

 However wild men or hounds might be, he would 

 quickly leave them and turn back to his fox. 

 Nothing could put him out of temper, and in his 

 last season he could still race with puppies at night. 

 '' Contest, 1848. A model dog, a most brilliant 



