Introduction i.y 



Foxhound. Most hare hunters like a hound about 

 20 inches in height, though opinions differ, some 

 packs being composed of 21 to 22 inch hounds, others 

 smaller. Twenty inches may be taken as the average. 



Otter-hounds are certainly strongly endowed with 

 the Harrier or Foxhound element, blended with a 

 jacket specially suitable for riverside work, pools, etc., 

 which represent the homes of their quarry. 



The Southern hound carriage of stern is typically 

 portrayed in all the foregoing, likewise in the Blood- 

 hound, and in a modified form in Dachshunds, 

 Bassets and Beagles, although the first named must, 

 doubtfully, be classified as a hound. The shortening 

 of the Hmbs in these hounds is peculiar, and cannot 

 be held as anything but a retrograde movement from 

 the original type, although custom has sanctioned 

 the short crooked fore limbs as orthodox, which are 

 said to render the Dachshund specially valuable for 

 working in a fox earth or badger burrow. 



In length of body, carriage of stern, length and con- 

 formation of fore and hind limbs, shape of skull and 

 face and carriage of ears, all the hounds last named 

 exhibit a remarkable conformity of type. The 

 Dachshunds and Bassets exist in both the smooth 

 and broken-coated varieties, although the smooth 

 coat has always taken precedence amongst fanciers 

 of these hounds. 



The Bloodhound in general conformation is allied 



