202 THE COMPLETE FOXHUNTER 



to think that the edition I iiave, and which I bought 

 for sixpence at a bookstall twenty years ago, is a 

 good deal earlier than the work written by the "Im- 

 mortal Peter," as Jorrocks dubbed Beckford. This 

 date of the book is a matter of little consequence, and 

 now it rather looks as if the origin of the foxhound 

 would never be decided, the question being just as 

 difficult to answer as that concerning the actual first 

 pack of foxhounds. What we do know is that in 

 the early days of foxhunting hounds varied locally, 

 and, in all probability, for long enough there were 

 hounds of different types in such localities as were 

 remote from other hunting districts. But when fox- 

 hunting became an almost universal sport, and people 

 began to visit strange packs, interchanges of blood 

 naturally took place, and this gradually increasing 

 as the years wore on, masters of hounds and other 

 experts evolved a certain type, which came to be 

 recognised as the best sort of foxhound. And in 

 these days the type referred to exists almost every- 

 where, there being two districts only where what may 

 be called ordinary foxhounds are not used. The dis- 

 tricts referred to are certain parts of Wales and the 

 Lake country of Cumberland and Westmorland, where 

 hounds of a distinctly different type are still used. 

 Some of the Welsh hounds bear a high character for 

 nose and speed, and doubtless are better adapted to 

 rough, rocky, precipitous country than are the ordinary, 

 much heavier foxhounds. The Fell hounds in the 

 north are light framed, and very light in colour, but 

 their owners have a great opinion of them, and only 

 a year or two ago certain gentlemen in West Cumber- 

 land were anxious to run a match against hounds any 

 of the Midland packs could produce. Little notice 



