THE MASTER OF HOUNDS 6i 



hunting man can aspire. First of all a master of the 

 Quorn, or of one of the neighbouring packs, must have 

 a well-earned reputation as a sportsman. He should 

 have hunted in the Shires, and have thoroughly proved 

 his knowledge of hunting. He should, too, be a first- 

 flight man, and as a matter of fact all the recent 

 masters of the Quorn (there have been six masters 

 since 1884) have been really good men to hounds, and 

 one or two of them absolutely first rate. He must be 

 masterful and yet full of tact, quick at resource, and 

 quick to make up his mind, otherwise he will never be 

 able to keep the big fields in hand, and give his hunts- 

 man the chance of fair play. Bad language is out of 

 fashion, and this is all for the best ; but sarcasm was 

 always a deadlier weapon than an oath in the hands 

 of a clever man ; and when direct remonstrance fails 

 sarcasm is often a most efficient substitute for hard 

 swearing. 



In the provinces, especially in the smaller hunts, it 

 is not an absolute essential that the master should be 

 a fine rider to hounds, who is in the habit of taking his 

 own line. It is, of course, better that any master 

 should be always well up ; but when the field is small 

 it is as a rule fairly well behaved, and therefore 

 it is not of so much consequence if the master is not 

 actually on the spot when hounds check. But in the 

 Shires the case is very diff'erent, and it is practically 

 necessary that the master should be there or there- 

 abouts at all critical moments. No man can make a 

 certainty of being always close up with hounds, and it 

 often happens that a master has accompanied the pack 

 into covert — if a wood is being drawn — and if hounds 

 get quickly away he may lose a certain amount of 

 start. If, however, he is in the habit of riding right 



