84 Hounds 



It is often said that foxes have deteriorated. 

 Artificial feeding and artificial rearing, the killing 

 off of old foxes at the end of every season and 

 leaving nothing but youngsters to hunt and 

 breed from has undoubtedly had a deleterious 

 effect upon the vulpine race in many parts 

 of England (indeed almost the hills only ex- 

 cepted). When one hears old-time sportsmen 

 arguing, " You never have the long runs we 

 had," " Your foxes cannot stand up before 

 hounds as long as they could in our day," 

 and so on, we must remember that a fox only 

 travels as fast as he is compelled to by hounds, 

 which, on their part, travel as fast as their own 

 powers and scent allow them, together with the 

 ingenuity of their huntsmen, who may often come to 

 the rescue when they are at fault. So on a good 

 scenting day in the present century hounds will 

 travel much faster than they would in the last 

 century on an equally good scenting day. It is an 

 old adage, " It is the pace that kills," hence 

 the fox is rolled over very much sooner to- 

 day than his contemporary would have been a 

 hundred years ago. This is a natural sequence 

 upon increased pace in hounds and horses rather 

 than the deterioration of the fox. Turn again 

 to W. Pick's Calendar (p. 8) and we find the 

 following entry showing how long runs lasted 



