THE HARRIER. 283 



As to the various sporting details .connected with this animal, such as breeding, 

 training, feeding, etc., they may be found in many sporting works, where they are elabo- 

 rately discussed, but are not suitable for a work of the present character. 



THE HARRIER, so called because it is chiefly employed in hunting the hare, is in the 

 present day nothing more or less than a small foxhound, the description of the latter 

 animal serving equally for that of the former, with the one exception of size. As has 

 been mentioned in the account of the foxhound, the average height is about twenty-three 

 inches, but the height of the Harrier ought not to exceed eighteen or nineteen inches. 



Partly on account of its smaller size, and partly on account of the character of its 

 work, the Harrier is not so swift an animal as the foxhound, and does not test so fully 

 the speed and strength of the horses that follow in its track. It is a swifter animal in 

 these days than was the case some few years back, because in the modern system of 

 hare-hunting, poor " puss " is so rapidly followed by the hounds that she has no time 

 to waste in those subtle contrivances for throwing the hounds off her track for which 

 she is so justly famous, and which have often baffled the efforts of the best and strong- 

 est Harriers. 



The points of a good Harrier are similar to those of the foxhound, and may be 

 described as follows : 



" There are necessary points in the shape of a hound which ought always to be 

 attended to by a sportsman, for if he be not of a perfect symmetry he will neither run 

 fast nor bear much work. He has much to undergo, and should have strength propor- 

 tioned to it. Let his legs be straight as arrows, his feet round and not too large ; his 

 shoulders back ; his breast rather wide than narrow ; his chest deep ; his back broad ; 

 his head small ; his neck thin ; his tail thick and bushy ; if he carry it well, so much 

 the better. Such hounds as are out at the elbows, and such as are weak from the 

 knees to the foot, should never be taken into the pack. 



" I find that I have mentioned a small head as one of the necessary requisities of a 

 hound ; but you will observe that it is relative to beauty only, for as to goodness, I 

 believe that large-headed hounds are in no wise inferior. The color I think of little 

 moment, and am of opinion with our friend Foote, respecting his negro friend, that a 

 good Dog, like a good candidate, cannot be of bad color." 



These remarks were written by Beckford, in the year 1779, and are of such sterling 

 value that they are accepted even in the present day as the criteria of a good hound. 

 He proceeds to observe in the same letter from which the above description has been 

 transcribed, that the shape of the Dog's head is as variable as the color of his hide, 

 and that some sportsmen prefer a sharp-nosed hound, while others care nothing for a 

 Dog unless he have a large and roomy head. Each, however, in his opinion, is equally 

 useful in its own way ; for " speed and beauty are the chief excellences of the one, 

 while stoutness and tenderness of nose in hunting are characteristic of the other." To 

 these qualifications the modern huntsmen have added another, consisting of depth of 

 the back ribs, in order to secure a stout build, and the capability of enduring daily 

 work for a lengthened period. 



Uniformity of size and color is even more requisite in a pack of Harriers than of 

 foxhounds. Such packs indeed are often composed of the latter variety of Dog, which 

 are too small to be admitted into the regular foxhound pack. However, if a pack is 

 composed of these dwarf foxhounds, the two best characters of the true Harrier are 

 lost, namely, the musical tongue and the sensitive nose, and the only compensating 

 quality that these animals possess is extreme speed. A pack of true Harriers is dis- 

 tinguished for the melodious tongues of its members, which can be heard at a distance 

 of several miles, while the delicacy of their scent is so great that they can work out all 

 the complicated doubles of the hare. 



There are several breeds of the BEAGLE, which are distinguishable from each other 

 by their size and general aspect. 



The Medium-sized Beagle is not unlike, the harrier, but is heavier about the throat 



