The Whippers-in. "5 



a little bit of riot, he can never hope to be popular 

 with hounds. If he be popular Avith the Master 

 it is as much as he can expect. He may not even 

 carry biscuits in his pockets with which to treat a 

 favourite hound : indeed, for him there should be 

 no favourite hound. 



Altogether it will be seen that this important 

 official of a hunt has the hardest work of any in the 

 field, and perhaps the least credit. For the most 

 part he is alone and at a distance from the rest of 

 the Field, his nearest neighbour the kennel whipper- 

 in on the opposite bank of the stream, with whom 

 he must work in unison. Not for him the solace 

 of a lady member's companionship and gossip, since 

 no follower should be ahead of the Master on a drag 

 or when drawing : and even when the quarry is put 

 down, the forward whip's place is higher up or 

 lower down the stream, where as '' look-out above " 

 or ^' look-out below " he may gaze the Otter as he 

 vents or lands and " Tally " him up or down for 

 the information of Master, hounds, and Field. 



His compensation will be that he sees more of 

 hound work and often more of the actual sport than 

 anyone else out, and if he use his opportunities 

 aright his opinion as to the merits of individual 

 hounds, the probable haunts of the quarry, and 

 the quality of the chase will be of extreme value 

 to the Master and the hunt generally. No man 



I 2 



