NOTITIA VENATICA. 105 



exhilarating moments of tho chase, I could never discover any other 

 mode of passing my existence in a way to me so truly plcasuraldo as in 

 long morning rides with my hounds at exercise, where the nature of the 

 ground is such, that the pack can be taken out where there is plenty of 

 grass, as there is in parks, large commons and forests, &c., or, Avliat is 

 nearly as good, if not even better for a change, along the line of the sea 

 coast at low Avater. In these long and unrestrained Avandcrings over 

 some neighbouring hiUs, you may ride along, refreshed with the odour of 

 the wild thyme, as you listen to the humming of the industrious bees, 

 the " drowsy tinkhng" of the sheep-bells, the distant voice of the plough- 

 man as it breaks upon tho car, the varied song of the lark, the springish 

 notes of the cuckoo, while the "many colour 'd pack," reflecting on 

 their glossy coats the rays of the sun, are allowed to traverse the adja- 

 cent lawn, docile and unrestrained, to the distance of a hundred yards, 

 or to polish their muscular sides on the velvet carpet of the ancient 

 sheep-walk. 



In some kennels where strict economy, or, as it should bo more ap- 

 propriately termed, parsimony, is the order of the day, the hounds linve 

 no beds allowed tliem on their benches during the summer months ; but 

 it is a bad system. In the first place the kennels do not smell lialf so 

 sweet as when they arc allowed beds, which can be removed as often as 

 occasion may require, nor can the vermin be kept from getting into 

 their coats half so easily, as when there is a little straw to shake the sul- 

 phur upon ; moreover, liounds by continually lying upon hard boards, 

 not unfrequently become quite bare upon their hocks and elbows, which 

 has an unsportsmanhke and unsightly appearance. Where straw is too 

 dear and precious an article (as it is in some counties nearly as dear as 

 hay) to be wasted, fern or bracken, which can be sometimes had for the 

 mere cutting and fetching, is an excellent substitute, and I have known 

 many instances where the hounds were bedded with no other litter for a 

 whole summer, and looked exceedingly well and bright in their coats. 

 Ticks as well as fleas are a sad nuisance in some kennels, but they are 

 undoubtedly a sure demonstration of bad, lazy, kennel-huntsmanship, 

 being, in the first instance, nothing else than the effects of idleness, 

 filth, and neglect ; and nothing can be easier than to eradicate such 

 pests from aU sorts of kennels if the feeder will set to work in a proper 

 manner when he first perceives the evil to break out. Pointing up all 

 cracks and crevices to the fullest extent upon the walls and ceilings, 

 and two or three whitewashings with hot lime water, well scalding tlie 

 benches, and afterwards dressing the joints with corrosive sublimate dis- 

 solved in spirit and mixed with water, will perfectly and effectually 

 eradicate the intruders, provided that when the hounds again return to 

 their lodging rooms their coats are free from vermin, which can easily be 

 effected by the mild dressing usually used in kennels. But as prevention 

 is always better than a cure, a little sulphur sprinkled upon the beds will 

 prevent the vermin from ever breaking out again, unless the hounds are 

 allowed to pick up ticks and fleas when shut up in strange places, or the 

 kennels to become saturated with filth and dirt under the benches or in 

 the remote and dark corners of the building. The establishing a good 



