80 UNASKED ADVICE. 



been heard of as for a master to purchase cubs originally 

 stolen out of his own country. They are turned down, 

 but how often they are never heard of again, or only 

 found once in cub hunting. Where every fair play is 

 allowed to them, the latter misfortune is a very common 

 one. They live in clover through the summer in a snug 

 gorse, and are well fed with no trouble of their own. 

 Consequently they stay there as long as the residence is 

 made pleasant to them. But when they have been once 

 disturbed and horrified by the death of a relative 

 especially if the unpardonable error of breaking him up 

 in or close to the covert has been committed it begins 

 to occur to them that the locality is an objectionable one, 

 and that there are many reasons against remaining there, 

 while hardly any exist in favour of a continued residence 

 in a spot which has been proved to be dangerous. It is 

 not their home, they were not bred there, and what 

 pleasant associations are connected with it have been 

 done away with. They know the covert as a place where 

 hounds come, and it has no attraction to counterbalance 

 this ugly fact. Consequently they move, and lie out, 

 exposed to the several dangers of guns, sheep dogs, 

 rabbit traps, and greyhounds. So, whether they survive 

 or not, it is probable that they are not found at any rate, 

 when they are wanted by the hounds. If the best 

 happens that can be expected, and they are at their posts 

 when required, what can turned-down foxes be reasonably 

 expected to do ? They have never had any occasion to 

 roam far from home, so they know no country, and 

 probably run rings over what limited area of ground they 

 are acquainted with, showing almost less sport than a 

 good bagman, who would probably go on down wind as 

 long as he could pretty straight, until his fate was 



