190 HORSES AND HOUNDS. 



Beckford, who is considered pretty good authority, says, ' that a 

 lair fox-hunter and a foolish one are synonymous terms,' " laying 

 a stress upon the foolish, at which the old gentleman winced a 

 bit ; " but," I added, " I am sorry you are not satisfied. For 

 myself, I can only say that stratagems are fair in fox-hunting 

 as well as in war; and, having had a pretty good dose of your 

 ploughed lands and woodlands, I considered myself quite justi- 

 fied in winding up the affair, just in the nick of time, before 

 reaching that small coppice before us, looking like a hundred 

 acres, at least." 



CHAPTER XXX 



Instead of a treatise on the art of catcliing foxes, I give an account of some 

 runs in Mr. Slowonan's country — His pack of hounds — Helping them to 

 a fox, not a vixen. 



Fox-hunting, although very exciting and exhilarating in the 

 field, is a dry subject to write upon ; and I therefore think it 

 may be more acceptable, instead of labouring to produce a trea- 

 tise, to give an account of different runs which have occurred to 

 myself, and how they have been brought to a favourable issue — 

 without the pretension of affirming that every one should do 

 likewise. I do not by any means presume to set myself up as a 

 paragon of perfection ; but this I may say, that I have had long 

 experience in everything relating to the noble science, and if 

 success is any proof of merit, I may lay some claim to it. 



In my last chapter I was guilty of what an old sportsman was 

 pleased to designate as murdering a fox, that is, taking an un- 

 fair advantage of him. It is quite true that I did take an unfair 

 advantage of him, by lifting the hounds off their noses to a 

 view ; but that great authority, Beckford, says, " That hounds 

 which will not bear lifting, are not worth keeping, and that it 

 is fair to take advantage of any circumstance, in certain cases, 

 which will bring you on better terms with your fox." Now, 

 had I been in my own country, which was short of game, the 

 probability is that I should have left the hounds entirely to 

 themselves ; but here the case was widely different. The country 

 I was then hunting was really overstocked with, foxes, except 

 the outskirts, to which I was often sent, as in this instance ; but 

 then we ran back into the heart of the country, where I knew 

 the chances were sadly against our catching the hunted fox. 



