24 THE MASTER OF HOUNDS 



The races take place over unknown land, strewn with 

 obstacles, the distances being from four to seven versts, 

 i.e., from two miles six furlongs to four miles four 

 furlongs. The troopers take part in these races with 

 the officers, and the chargers jump almost as well as 

 the thoroughbreds. 



Owing to the circumscribed area of English hunting- 

 fields, it would be impossible for us to follow the 

 example of Russia, so far as a Hunting College is con- 

 cerned. Besides, with us hunting is essentially a 

 cosmopolitan sport, in spite of the efforts of certain 

 misguided individuals to make it the sport of the 

 wealthy few. Nor would the landowners and tenant- 

 farmers allow the War Office to make use of the land 

 without liberal compensation. But the rule is for each 

 squadron to have one officer and eight men trained as 

 scouts and to occupy ground from point to point across 

 country. Now, to use the words which Colonel Bower, 

 of Droxford, used in i860, "when the number of hunt- 

 ing-men in Great Britain is considered, all of whom 

 would be ready to turn out to harass the flank of an 

 invader, beyond reach even of his cavalry, some estima- 

 tion may be formed of the value of this contribution to 

 the plan of defence." Forty years later the enrolment 

 of the Imperial Yeomanry, owing to the exertions of 

 Lord Chesham, proved beyond all doubt that the hunt- 

 ing-field can supply men and horses for the defence of 

 the country, while the zeal of first-flight men to fight 

 for the Empire largely increased the popularity of 

 hunting. People who had hitherto regarded hunting 

 as an extravagant pastime only to be indulged in by 



