78 HUNTING THE FOX 



indeed indescribable. But whether the Huntsman 

 be melodious or not, there is no excuse for his not 

 being audible and explicit. 



The horn and voice are organs that are given 

 to him not only to inspire others, but also to make 

 himself understood. In a woodland the unforgiv- 

 able sin is to indulge in long periods of silence. 

 One of the surest signs of incompetence is the 

 sight of stray Hounds standing about and listening 

 for their Huntsman, or running vaguely down the 

 rides, probably in the opposite direction to where 

 he is, trying to find him. It is not only waste of 

 time for Hounds to be hunting the Huntsman 

 instead of hunting the Fox, but also creates waste 

 of time later on when the pack has to be called 

 together to draw another covert. Two or more 

 couple are wanting. If he has to abandon them 

 altogether, he is exposing them to all sorts of bad 

 habits and dangers. Nothing is worse for a Hound 

 than to be " ungummed " and be left to his own 

 devices. He becomes independent. He is at 

 liberty to hunt hares, fill himself with garbage, or 

 go home. If the Huntsman stands still and blows 

 for the stray Hounds, valuable time is lost, and 

 much noise made, which may disturb Foxes and 

 so cause trouble. A man is sent back for them, 

 the Staff is depleted of his services at the very 

 moment when they may be most wanted. 



All these things would be avoided by a clear 



