200 HUNTING THE HARE 



hunters forsake a type of hound which has been so 

 long used in that locaHty. 



All the hounds mentioned up to the present are 

 entirely free from any admixture of foxhound blood ; 

 in fact, they were used for huntmg hares before fox- 

 hunting as a regular and distinct sport was practised, 

 and conseciuently before the modern foxhound was 

 developed. We now come to the harriers which 

 have foxhound blood in their veins to a greater or 

 less extent ; and here it may be remarked that con- 

 troversy has often waxed hot and strong among hare- 

 hunters as to whether a foxhound cross is desirable or 

 not in hounds destined for the chase of the hare. 

 Some men will have none of it, and grow^ quite angry 

 with those who are of an opposite way of thinking ; 

 but without entering into the heated feelings of the 

 champions on either side, let us calmly consider the 

 pros and cons of the matter. 



We may begin by admitting that where a man has 

 a pack of hounds of an old and well-defined breed 

 such as those we have described, which do their work 

 to the satisfaction of all connected with them, it 

 would seem a pity to introduce any outside cross 

 that would interfere with the recognised character- 

 istics of the breed ; but where this is not the case, and 

 the hound is of a more nondescript type, the question 



