HOUND MANAGEMENT 195 



detracted from. It is, I believe, undoubted that 

 scarcity of hares has something to do with the practice 

 of some masters in hunting fox when they come across 

 them, and of others — and this is a fairly common 

 practice — in hunting deer occasionally after Christmas. 



Upon a question so much debated, it seems to me 

 only fair to give the opinions of one or two other 

 authorities. I believe the perusal of their experiences 

 may be found of value to all those interested in harriers, 

 beagles, and hare-hunting. Mr. J. A. Doyle, Master of 

 the Crickhowell Harriers, Brecknockshire, writes me as 

 follows : " My experience is that good harriers will hunt 

 a fox as keenly as any foxhounds. It is a real treat 

 to them to get a scent on which they can confidently 

 drive forward. But for the next few days on a hare 

 they wiU be flashy, and over-run the line, forgetting 

 that they must be always in readiness for their hare 

 turning." "Tantara" (a Master of Harriers), whose 

 excellent little book on hare-hunting I have before 

 referred to — its contents are so good that it is a pity 

 it is not three or four times as long again — makes the 

 following observations : "A pack of harriers, when 

 properly managed, does immense good to foxhounds 

 by driving outlying foxes from the hedgerows and 

 out-lying spinnies into those coverts that are usually 

 drawn by foxhounds. 



" It has been often said that running a fox with 

 harriers upsets them. It may be the case when con- 

 stantly practised, but it certainly is not so if it happens 

 only a few times in the season. I have run a fox in 

 the morning with a pack of harriers, and hunted hare 

 in the afternoon, and I certainly saw no difference in 

 their manner of hunting on the day in question. 



" It can easily be seen by the hounds themselves 

 when they are on the line of a fox by the extra drive, 



