FRIENDS AND ENEMIES OF HUNTING 33 



company. Watch him at a local hunt race meeting, or 

 any other meeting where farmers congregate. He will 

 be surrounded by parasites, who have but small claims 

 to be called hunting farmers, except that they occupy 

 land which hounds occasionally cross ; but they serve 

 to enhance his importance. The Master of Hounds 

 knows that these small farmers can do as much (if 

 not more) either to promote or to ruin sport as the 

 men who farm some hundreds of acres ; therefore, it 

 is imperative for him not to offend the curmudgeon, 

 even if he be convinced in his own mind that the 

 latter is a fraudulent friend of fox-hunting. 



I have known many cases in which it was advisable 

 that there should be an intervener between the small 

 farmer and the Master of Hounds, or the Hunt Com- 

 mittee. My experience is that, unless the landlord 

 takes an interest in the matter, the intervener should 

 be a large farmer. But in these days of absentee 

 landlords, it is wiser to go to the " man on the spot." 

 Where the Hunt Secretary is, or has been, a farmer, as 

 is the case with the Albrighton Hunt, there can be 

 no doubt but that he is the proper man to smooth 

 away these little worries of the hunting-field. Of 

 course, different Hunt secretaries have very different 

 ideas of their duties, and Masters of Hounds disagree in 

 regard to these duties. Thus, in some Hunts the Secre- 

 tary may be described as an accountant's clerk, while in 

 other Hunts his position and authority are almost 

 equal to those of a Joint Master. In the latter circum- 

 stances it may happen that the Master becomes jealous 

 of the influence of his Secretary ; but I am glad to 



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