io6 FOX-HUNTING FROM SHIRE TO SHIRE 



Lincolnshire ploughs. 



said Tom Isaac on one occasion in his parlour at 

 Blankney, when we went to see the kennel, " but you 

 want luck with you, hounds that you can trust, and 

 _-_ help from your staff . Hav- 



ing a keen master, who 

 rides along and watches 

 every turn of the game, 

 does seem to make things 

 go! The first season I came 

 to Blankney we were short 

 of foxes, and I attribute 

 the other two good seasons 

 to that, for we had to 

 stick to our hunted fox 

 so long as there was a bit 

 of evidence to go by. Sir Robert would often say, 

 ' It's getting very slow, Tom, better chuck it and 

 find a fresh fox ! ' but we had to go on puzzling 

 it out. I think every fox has a different scent, 

 and an old hound knows directly he changes the 

 line. I've seen them look up at me in a run as 

 much as to say, ' Governor, this is something 

 different, am I to go on ? ' ' All right, old Truth- 

 ful, forrard on ' I would say, ' we've got a brace up 

 before us ! ' 



" I was very lucky having a good working pack, 

 that I could trust to do me a turn," said Isaac as 

 he caressed a favourite looking out for biscuit. " I 

 watch my old hounds in a run, fifth or sixth season 

 hunters which have been killing foxes regularly, 

 they wont turn to hare like a young one might. 

 You get to know which you can trust by studying 

 their characters in kennel. I remember one day 

 when we were running, the master said to me ' Look 

 here, Tom, you've been hunting hare for the last 

 twenty minutes, never been on a fox since we left 



