DIFFICULTY IN REARING BEAGLES. 



313 



game they are on may be distinguished by the peculiar tone of their voice as they announce a 

 find. The troublesome characteristic of Beagles, as dogs to shoot over, is their inveterate 

 propensity to chase. 



One of the most remarkable little packs of Beagles which ever came beneath our 

 notice was shown by Mr. G. H. Nutt, of Maidstone, at the Alexandra Palace show of 1877. 

 During the progress of the exhibition Mr. Nutt treated his friends to a glimpse of his pigmy 

 pack at work, for he ran them a short drag in the grounds, much to the delight of many lady 

 visitors to the palace. Mr. Nutt has since informed us that he has been compelled to give 

 up his pets, as the difficulties he had to encounter in his breeding operations, from the small 

 size of the bitches, fairly tired him out. As he somewhat pathetically remarked, " they had 

 hardly the strength to produce their young, and when they succeeded in doing so, were usually 

 too weak to bring them up." Of course this difficulty need not appear in larger-sized packs 

 (Mr. Nutt's being remarkably small, and, as he expressed it, " only fit for ladies to run after"). 



In the present day the average height of the working pack is about 14^ inches, which, 

 though small in comparison to the size of a Foxhound or Harrier, is sufficiently large for the 

 purposes for which they are required. 



As regards a standard of points for judging this breed, we cannot do better than refer 

 our readers to that given in the Foxhound chapter ; as the Beagle, with the exception of its 

 size, can be satisfactorily judged by the scale used in the case of Foxhounds. 



