THOUGHTS UPON HUNTING. 13^ 



J bred many years, and an infinity of hounds, 

 before I could get what I wanted : I, at lafl, had 

 the pleafure to fee them very handfome ; fmall, 

 yet very bony ; they ran remarkably well toge- 

 ther ; ran fall enough ; had all the alacrity that 

 you could delire, and would hunt the coldeft 

 fcent. — When they were thus perfedl, I did, as 

 many others do — 1 parted with them. 



It may be neceflary to unfay, now that I am 

 turned hare-hunter again, many things I have 

 been fayhig, as a fox-hunter; as I hardly know 

 any two things of the fame genus, (if I may be 

 allowed the exprelfion) that differ fo entirely. 

 What I faid in a former letter, about the huntf- 

 man and whipper-in, is in the number : as to the 

 huntfman, he fhould not be young : I fnould mofi: 

 certainly prefer one, as the French call it, d^un 

 certain age, as he is to be quiet and patient ; for 

 patience, he fhould be a very Grizzle ; and the 

 more quiet he is, the better. He fhould have 

 infinite perfeverance ; for a hare fhould never be 

 given up, whilfl it is poffible to hunt hc^ : Ihe is 

 fure to ftop, and therefore may always be re- 

 covered. Were it ufual ^to attend to the breed 

 of our huntfmen, as well as to that of our hounds^ 

 I know no family that would furnifh a better 

 crofs than that of the ftJeyit geyiihrnaiiy mentioned 

 by the Spectator : a female of his line, crofTecJ 



K 4 with 



