The Bloodhound. u 



attack a prisoner when they run up upon him. 

 When once the man is brought to bay, they are 

 a great deal too wary to venture close enough to 

 their chase to run the risk of a blow ; in fact, they 

 merely act as guides to the men who follow closely 

 on horseback. 



Some six years or so ago, at Warwick, in 1886, an 

 attempt was made to hold trials of bloodhounds in 

 connection with the dog show held there. These 

 were, however, a failure, excepting so far as they 

 afforded an inducement to owners of the variety to 

 give a little time and trouble to working their 

 favourites, which hitherto had only been kept for 

 fancy purposes. A little later, similar meetings were 

 held at Dublin, in the grounds of the Alexandra 

 Palace, London, and elsewhere, but in no case could 

 they be called very successful. 



I had the good fortune to be present at two 

 particularly interesting gatherings, that took place 

 during the wintry weather of January, 1889, and, 

 maybe, the following particulars, written at the time, 

 give a better idea of the modern capabilities of blood- 

 hounds than could be written now. It must be 

 noted that the hounds mentioned were of the so- 

 called prize strains, were " show dogs " in the 

 modern acceptation of the term, and, excepting 

 perhaps in ferocity, they would no doubt compare 



