90 Modern Dogs. 



able parts) for the sake of destroying foxes, and 

 foxes were scarce and very hard to find, this power 

 of ' owning to the drag ' of a fox was most essential, 

 and I have not the slightest doubt that it was one of 

 the most valued and chief characteristics of the old 

 Welsh foxhound. Now things are changed, and 

 there are very few packs in Wales where the Welsh 

 hound has not been crossed with the English, and 

 consequently their ' cry ' has considerably diminished 

 (in fact, it must have been with one of the few 

 remaining pure, or nearly pure, Welsh packs that 

 Lord Willoughby, who had written to the Field 

 on the subject, can have noticed hounds speaking 

 to a drag), and I think that so far as ' speaking to a 

 drag,' or * throwing their tongue when being cast ' 

 (this must be wrong at any time), is concerned, the 

 loss is a step gained in the right direction ; but here 

 I must stop and claim, for the cross-bred Welsh 

 hound, hunting powers superior to the best bred 

 hounds in England. 



" With regard to their showing symptoms of 

 ' shyness,' I do not think it is a general trait in 

 their character, but they would be likely to appear 

 so, unless entered amongst large fields of horse- 

 men, but this would apply to all hounds equally. 

 Your correspondent does not state what other 

 ' disadvantages ' they may have, but goes on to say 



