THE LIFE OF A SPORTSMAN 



ever, transcribe a few lines, which I wrote some time back for 

 my amusement, on the subject of breeding hounds, and other 

 matters important to all owners of them : 



' The breeding a pack of foxhounds to a pitch bordering 

 on perfection, is a task of no ordinary difficulty ; the best 

 proof of which is to be found in the comparatively few sports- 

 men who have eminently succeeded in it, and w^hose blood is 

 in high esteem to this day. Not only is every good quality to 

 be regarded and, if possible, obtained, but every fault or im- 

 perfection is to be avoided ; and although the good qualities of 

 foxhounds are very soon reckoned, their faults, in shape and 

 performance, present a larger catalogue. Independently of 

 good shape, which combines strength with beauty, the highest 

 virtue in a foxhound is not merely the exquisiteness of his 

 nose, but in his being true to the line his game has gone, and 

 a stout runner to the end of the chase. But he must not 

 only thus signalise himself in chase, he must also be a patient 

 hunter with a cold scent, and also with the pack at fault. In 

 short, to be a hard and stout runner and a good hunter, and 

 steady on the line, which " a good hunter " implies, constitute 

 a perfect hound, when combined with good form. Nose and 

 stoutness, then, nuist be principal objects in the breeder. 



' The prevailing faults of hounds, too often innate, can 

 only be cured by education. The greatest of all are, skirting, 

 or not being true on the line, and throwing the tongue im- 

 properly ; first, without a scent ; secondly, not throwing it at 

 all, or running mute ; and thirdly, on a wrong scent, which is 

 called running riot ; but the fault of skirting, the greatest of 

 all, is generally innate, and too often incurable. Thus has 

 the breeder of the foxhound to guard against propensities as 

 well as faults; and it has been justly observed that, of late 

 years, the system of hunting is so much improved — so much 

 attention paid to the condition of hounds, and their style of 

 working, that a master of hounds feels it as a reflection on 

 his judgment if one hound in his pack is detected in a fault. 



' The selection of dog and bitch to breed from is a nice 

 point for a master of hounds or his huntsman to decide upon ; 

 but if he aim at excellence, he must keep his eye on perfec- 

 tion. In no animal — not even in the horse — is perfect 

 symmetry so desirable — I may say necessary — as in the fox- 

 hound, inasmuch as without it there is no dependence on his 



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