THOUGHTS UPON HUNTING. 2,95 



LETTER XXIII. 



T TOLD you, I believe, at the beginning of our 

 ■^ correfpondence, that I dilliked bag-foxes ; I 

 fhall now tell you what my objections to them 

 are : — the fcent of them is different from that of 

 other foxes ; it is too good, and makes hounds 

 idle ; befides, in the manner in which they gene- 

 rally are turned out, it makes hounds very v/ild. 

 They feldom fail to know what you are going 

 about before you begin ; and, if often ufcd to 

 hunt bag- foxes, will become riotous enough to 

 run any thing. A fox that has been confined 

 long in a fmall place, and carried out afterwards 

 in a fack, many miles perhaps, his own ordure 

 hanging about him,mufi: needs iVmk extravagantly. 

 You are alfo to add to this account, that he moll 

 probably is weakened for want of his natural 

 food and ufual exercife ; his fpirit broken by de- 

 fpair, and his limbs ftiifened by confinement ; 

 he then is turned out on open ground without 

 any point to go to : he runs down the wind, it is 

 true, but he is fo much at a lofs all thewliile, 

 that he lofes a deal of time in not knowing v>'hat 

 to do; while the hounds, who ha^^e no occaiion 

 to hunt, purfue as clofely as if they were tied to 



U 4 him. 



