204 HOESES AND HOUNDS. 



wisest plan to hold the hounds round in every direction, to 

 make sure that the fox has not gone on ; and this ought to be 

 done immediately, before miich time is lost at the earth. Ter- 

 riers are not .always to be depended upon, unless they have been 

 kept steady to a fox scent. I remember a curious scene at 

 bolting a fox, some few years since, with the Duke of Beaufort's 

 foxhounds. We found him in Stanton Park, and after a turn or 

 two round the covert, he broke away over the open, and ran to 

 a drain within one field of Haywood. It so happened, upon this 

 occasion, that I was one of the first with the hounds, when they 

 threw up, at the fence, where the drain emptied itself into the 

 ditch, and beyond this point, the hounds having made their own 

 cast quickly right and left, I saw there was not a particle of 

 scent. Although out of order, I did take the liberty (the hunts- 

 man not having yet made his appearance) of holding them then 

 a little round, to make sure of all the ground, which being done, 

 I returned to the drain where the hounds began baying. Upon 

 the Duke's arrival, a consultation was held as to the feasibility 

 of bolting the fox, which, from no terrier being out, appeared 

 almost impracticable, and the idea was nearly abandcmed, when 

 having observed three or four yelping curs at a farm house in 

 the same field, I ventured to suggest to his Grace, that I thought 

 I could turn their noisy tongues to some better account, if he 

 would give me permission to try the experiment. Leave being 

 granted, and spade and pickaxe procured, we put in one cur first 

 at the upper end of the drain, who began barking furiously 

 when we battened him down ; we then opened a hole lower 

 down, and inserted another little dog in like manner, with his 

 head pointing down the drain. The first dog, hearing his com- 

 panion, forced his way to him, and their clamour drove the fox 

 further down, where, opening another hole, we jjut in the third 

 dog, and in a few minutes out bolted the fox, with the three 

 little dogs in full cry, close to his brush — thus proving the truth 

 of the old adage that, " Stratagem is better than force." I had 

 always a few terriers, which lived with the hounds, and ran 

 with them also. They had been many years in the family, and 

 were fast as well as good. They were capital at bolting a fox, 

 but if he would not bolt, they would invariably kill him. I had 

 two of these out with me one day, when we ran a fox into a 

 drain in our home country. The youngest dog was in first, but not 

 being able to get to the fox's head, held him by the brush. The 

 old dog was so near that the whipper-in seized him by the tail, 

 and, cheering him as usual, to bring him out, began gradually 

 pulling him back. Great was Jim's astonishment when he 

 found that the old dog, seeing he could not reach the fox, had 

 seized hold of the other dog's tail, which he held firmly and 



