HOLLOOING. 



465 



bad, making hounds apt to disregard it; yet a 

 huntsman would be sadly at a loss without it, not 

 only in getting hounds away from cover and in 

 chase, but in drawing large covers, in which they 

 will occasionally get wide. Here a twang of the 

 horn saves a huntsman's voice in bringing them 

 over to him. One short blast is sufficient. 



" He gave his bugle-horn a blast, 

 That through the woodlands echoed far and wide." 



The following observations on hoUooing are from 

 the pen of an old sportsman. They contain hints 

 that it would often be advisable to profit by ; and 

 they apply not only to huntsmen, but to the field. 

 '' A general rule as to hallooing is, never to halloo 

 unless you can give a good reason for so doing. A 

 constant and indiscriminate use of the voice is 

 blameable in a huntsman ; his hounds, by con- 

 stantly hearing his voice, will soon learn to pay 

 no more attention to it than they do to the singing 

 of the lark, and they will not come to him when 

 they are called. Some huntsmen, in making a cast, 

 try that part of the ground where they can most 

 conveniently ride, instead of that where it is most 

 likely the fox is gone. Others ride on hallooing, 

 without regarding their hounds, while making their 

 cast ; their own noise then prevents them from 

 hearing their hounds, who often take the scent 

 without their being aware of it.'' 



" No person should halloo that is not well for- 

 ward. It signifies little what words you use, as a 

 hound's knowledge of language is confined to a view 

 halloo, a call, and a rate ; it is the tone of the voice, 



