388 THE LIFE OF A SPORTSMAN 



" There are a few difficult points in hunting hounds, to 

 which it may not be amiss to call your attention. In 

 drawing covers, for example, you should observe the parts 

 most likely to hold a fox ; in fact, you should study your 

 country, as well as the science of hunting it. Foxes do 

 not generally prefer the most thick and dense part of a 

 wood for their kennel ; on the contrary, they often lie 

 near to the outside, and facing the morning or evening 

 sun, under the rays of which they much like to bask. 

 The art of distinguishing a fresh from a beaten fox, as 

 well as having a good eye to a heavy vixen, are requisites 

 in huntsmen, and to be acquired only by experience. 

 The being able to distinguish what is called a moving 

 scent that is, the scent of a disturbed fox from a drag, 

 is also to be acquired by the same means that said thing, 

 called 'experience.' 



" I like to see a huntsman alive and stirring, as well as 

 his hounds, when he enters a cover to draw for his fox. 

 Homer compares hounds cheered by their huntsman, to 

 troops encouraged by a general. There certainly is 

 something very cheering to the field in the ' cheering 

 halloo ' of a huntsman, and it is useful as well. Should a 

 hound get wide of the pack, or hang behind in the cover ; 

 or should any of the field be at a loss, which often happens 

 in woodlands, ' the pipe ' of the huntsman is an unerring 

 guide to all. How necessary is it, then at all events, 

 how desirable that, like Ajax, he should be ftoljv dyados, 

 renowned for strength of voice, and, we may add, for the 

 melodiousness of it. He should likewise blow a horn 

 well ; and if he varies the blast, to make himself more 

 intelligible to his hounds, he will find his account in it. 

 I wonder why this is not more practised than it is. In- 

 dependently of the common recheat, why not have the 

 ' view-horn,' as well as the ' view-halloo ? ' Too much 

 horn, however, is to be condemned, having a tendency to 

 make hounds disregard it ; still a huntsman would be 

 sadly at a loss without it, not only in getting hounds 

 away from cover and in chase, but in bringing them over 

 to him, when drawing large covers. 



"As regards the use of the voice, the following hints 

 may be useful to you : Never halloo unless you have a 

 good reason for doing so. A constant and indiscriminate 

 use of the voice is blamable in a huntsman, inasmuch as 

 his hounds, by constantly hearing it, will pay but little 



