HUNTERS 



others only 8 or 9 stone, but the average 

 may be set down at 1 1 stone 7 lbs. A method 

 not uncommonly employed by those in search 

 of a hunter, is that of advertising in some paper, 

 such as the Fields taking care to set forth in 

 the advertisement the exact nature of one's 

 requirements. It seems almost needless to 

 remark that in selecting a lady's hunter, par- 

 ticular care has to be exercised as to the 

 temperament of the animal, its freedom from 

 vice, and whether used to carrying a lady, all 

 of which features most be strictly inquired into. 

 Whether buying from a private source, or from a 

 dealer, it is quite a reasonable request to be 

 allowed the animal on trial for a week or ten 

 days, by which means the intending purchaser will 

 have ample opportunity for observation of the 

 animal's general behaviour, and also be able to 

 satisfy himself as to its capabilities in other re- 

 spects. The temperament of a hunter, like that 

 of man and other animals, is very variable, and 

 what may appeal to one man as being suitable for 

 his purpose, would, to another, be most objection- 

 able. Well-seasoned hunters are those which 

 have been ridden regularly to hounds for several 



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