THE WHIPPER-IN 73 



wish to save himself, and he adds, if the Whip is really fond of 

 the sport he never will. 



Upon this point, however, we may observe that the greatest 

 keenness may be subdued by work, and that the difference 

 between a gentleman's keenness and a servant's keenness is, that 

 the gentleman's work is voluntary, but the servant's work 

 is compulsory ; gentlemen can go or stay at home, as the 

 humour seizes them, but servants cannot. Even on the wildest 

 and most unlikely days, some people will turn up at the 

 appointed meet. 



Mr. Smith says, " A Whipper-in should not ride as if he was 

 riding for amusement or credit, but should have his eye to the 

 hounds tvithout distressing his horse, which is a great recom- 

 mendation to every Master of Hounds. The greatest fools ride 

 the hardest generally ; the proof of their being so, is, that 

 they forget they must go on till night, but men who hunt ivith 

 hounds can go home when they please. A proof of a clever 

 Whipper-in is, that he is always up at a check, without ever 

 being seen in front, except by accident, and no one else there ; 

 but it is his duty to hold in, and by that means he has always 

 something left in his horse, when others are beaten. There are 

 Whippers-in now going who are never seen in a quick thing, 

 and yet are never missed, because they are alwajs up when 

 wanted. Who looks for a Whipper-in e.xcept then ? He does 

 not hunt the fox." 



It has always appeared to us, in our casual observation of 

 hounds and different establishments, that servants — Whippers- 

 in in particular — do not give that delightful animal, the hound, 

 due credit for the extraordinary sagacity it possesses. They 

 treat them too much like cattle or flocks of sheep. There is no 

 animal so grateful for kindness, so sensible of injury or reproach 

 as the dog. We often think a London dray-horse possesses far 

 more sense than the great two-legged, plush-breeched buffer 

 on the flags, whose whip point dangles in our eyes. We should 



