LETTER XI. 119 



contradiction to the recommendation of my friends, to 

 put those " wretched old animals out of their mise7'y'' 

 Having spent the best of their days in my service, and 

 done their utmost to afford me pleasure, I always con- 

 sidered it at least my duty to afford them that protection 

 and refuge in their old age which they so vrell deserved ; 

 and, notwithstanding the taunts often received from 

 other friendly masters of hounds, nothing ever induced 

 me to alter that fixed principle — at my hand, or by my 

 orders, their lives w^ere never required. Upon hunting 

 days, during the season, these old hounds were always 

 shut up, to prevent their following the pack ; but in the 

 cub-hunting they could always do as they liked, and 

 they generally honoured us with their company upon 

 those occasions. 



An old hound I had, called Pilgrim, shewed most ex- 

 traordinary sagacity one day, which may be considered 

 rather too romantic to be true, but I vouch for the fact. 

 He was out with us in the early part of the season, when 

 we brought a fox to our home coverts, and ran him to 

 ground there in a large rabbit pipe. As we tried on for 

 another fox, the earth was stopped up, but not finding 

 again, I returned home and fed the hounds. Old Pilgrim 

 was with us then, and the terriers, which, after feeding, 

 were, as usual, let run about. This was about 2 o'clock 

 in the day. At 4 o'clock I went down to see the hounds 

 again, and, not finding either the terriers or old Pilgrim 

 in their usual sleeping apartment, I made enquiries 

 where they were. No one could tell ; but the feeder 

 had seen them, about an hour previously, in the yard 

 together. We searched and looked everywhere for them, 

 but in vain. It being a fine afternoon, and having no- 



