OTTER-HUNTING 



to be excellent." Such fare, I will warrant, could 

 scarcely find favour with sportsmen of the present day. 

 Occasionally otters will perform long journeys over- 

 land, either because food fails them, or they are on 

 errands of courtship, or for some other reason. When 

 this happens and hounds hit upon the trail, the hunt is 

 as exciting as it is novel. Mr. Collier's otter-hounds, 

 hunting in the New Forest some years ago, hit upon 

 the line of a travelling bitch otter and pursued her on 

 land for a distance of not less than twelve miles, killing 

 their quarry near Lyndhurst after a quite extraordinary 

 hunt. In June of the year 1902 the Culmstock otter- 

 hounds pursued an inland trail for several miles, hunt- 

 ing through various coverts and spinnies, through 

 which the otter had undoubtedly passed. 



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