142 The Sporting Dog 



Brunswick Fur Club trials of 1903 and supposed 

 to be the best America can produce. One looks 

 like a pointer and one like a very poor sort of a 

 half-English, and Mr. Hitchcock and Mr. Smith 

 are trying to persuade themselves that there is 

 such a thing as a breed of American foxhounds. 

 I have noticed at the bench shows of the Ameri- 

 can classes that the first prize usually goes to the 

 hound most nearly resembling the English (or 

 pure-blooded) hound. 



I have seen many ; but I never saw a hound in 

 America which I thought could possibly improve 

 a good English hound by crossing. The crossing 

 has all been done — by those who know anything 

 about it — by breeding their best-made American 

 bitches to a pure-blooded English hound. All the 

 " American " hound men breed to first-rate pure 

 blood whenever they get a chance. Yet, if you call 

 the result an English hound, they feel offended. 

 Oh, dear, no, they would not have an English 

 hound ! 



I would no more think of breeding to Mr. 

 Hitchcock's "Judy" or to Mr. Smith's "Shirley" 

 than a Kentucky breeder of thoroughbreds would 

 think of sending his Longfellow or Hanover mares 

 to a hackney stallion ; and what sort of a mongrel 

 do you think the crossing of " Shirley " and " Judy " 

 would produce .f* 



