6 MANAGEMENT OF HOUNDS. 



Over the centre a f the lodging roomi? should be a 

 sleeping apartment for the feeder, which being raised 

 above the level of the other roof, w^ill break the monotony 

 of its appearance. At the rear of the kennels should be 

 the boiling house, feeding court, straw house, &c., for 

 bitches. In front of the kennels, and extending round 

 to the back door of the feeding house, should be a good 

 large green-yard, enclosed by a wall or palings. The 

 former 1 prefer, although, perhaps, most expensive, for 

 several reasons : hounds being able to see through the 

 latter, will be excited by passing objects, and young 

 hounds (for whose service the green-yard is more par- 

 ticularly intended) are inclined to become noisy, by 

 barking and running round the palings when any strange 

 dog passes by. Having used palings at first in my own 

 yard, I was obliged to remove them, from the following 

 circumstance : — One day, whilst the young hounds were 

 out at their usual game of romps, running round the 

 palings, a mad dog chanced to pass by. One of them 

 was bitten, and I lost seven couples, and but for the 

 greatest watchfulness, I should have lost the whole pack. 

 Upon this subject I shall make further remarks in a 

 future letter. 



In the boiling house you will require two cast iron 

 boilers, one for the meal, the other for flesh. If a spring 

 of good water can be made available, by being conducted 

 first into the boiling house and then through the kennels, 

 by earthenware pipes, it will save much time and labour 

 to the feeder ; if not, a well should be sunk near the 

 boiling house. By having large wooden spouts under 

 the eaves of the roof of the kennels, and tanks or water 

 butts to receive the rain water, enough may be saved to 



