334 MANAGEMENT OF HOUNDS. 



being headed he retraced his steps, making again for the 

 large covert, which he was destined never to reach ; for 

 waiting in a small brake we got up with him, and he 

 was pulled down within one field of the large wood, 

 myself, hounds, and fox jumping the last fence together, 

 over which we tumbled in company, a large stake having 

 run up between my horse's shoulder and ribs, which had 

 nearly proved fatal to him. By the application of plenty 

 of hot water, and by keeping the wound open with a 

 long candle, no mischief resulted but the loss of his 

 services in the field for a few weeks. The time occupied 

 in hunting this fox, running being out of the question, 

 was three hours and a half, through a woodland country, 

 with two disagreeable brooks to cross twice, and but for 

 his waiting for us two or three times we should scarcely 

 have overhauled him at last; a straight running fox of 

 the greyhound sort would have run us out of scent 

 altogether in about forty minutes. 



Every huntsman should take with him into the field a 

 list of his pack for that day's hunting. This list should 

 be entered also in a diary of each day's sport, with re- 

 marks about the hounds' work ; it will be good authority 

 to refer to at the end of the season, before the draft is 

 made, and show the hounds which have done the most 

 during the season, and have hunted the greatest number 

 of days. A book of this description was always kept by 

 me, in which these entries were made, and also remarks 

 about the weather, the coverts which were drawn, the 

 earths which were stopped, and the number of foxes 

 found. This I found of great service at the end of the 

 season, as it enabled me to see at once what was due to 

 each earth stopper, and who were entitled to any extra 

 reward. 



