FROST AND PHYSICING HOUNDS. 169 



was highly and justly conducive to his universal 

 popularity as a master of hounds, independent of his 

 well appointed establishment. Even in anger his 

 mildness and polished method of rebuke never ex- 

 ceeded the limits of good breeding ; and amongst the 

 numerous anecdotes related of the Squire of Sundorn, 

 the following is highly characteristic. Having run a 

 fox to ground in the neighbourhood of Hampton cop- 

 pice, at a place called Olton End, the residence of two 

 old maiden ladies of the name of Spooner, who were 

 inveterate card players, Mr. Corbet requested to 

 be permitted to dig him out. This was peremptorily 

 refused by the old maids, and as such an objection was 

 exceedingly ill-natured, the master of the pack of 

 course felt much disappointed in consequence. " Give 

 my compliments to the ladies," said Mr. Corbet, "and 

 tell them I hope they will never get spadille as long as 

 they live." 



After the regular hunting season has commenced, a 

 general physicing will be needless where the pack 

 have been properly prepared, until after Christmas, 

 when the first opportunity of administering a mild dose 

 should never be lost sight of; but as the endurance 

 of frost is always very uncertain, it should be of such 

 a nature that the field may be taken immediately, upon 

 the sudden return of open weather ; but when hunting 

 is fairly stopped by the extreme hardness of the 

 ground, and the chance of again going to work is 

 undoubtedly gone for many days, the attention of the 

 huntsman must be awakened towards allaying the 

 excess of stimuli, which a long continuance of hard 

 work and high feeding, have produced ; those hounds 



