128 HUNTING DIRECTORY. 



Of Entering 



in the covintry they are meant to begin to hunt, is an ad- 

 vantage: they acquire a knowledge of it; and if they 

 happen to be left behind, they will thus be enabled to 

 find their way home more easily. 



" Summer hunting, though useful to young hounds, is 

 prejudicial to old ones : I think therefore (observes the 

 writer whom I have had frequent occasion to quote) you 

 will do well to reserve some of the best of your draft 

 hounds to enter your young ones with, selecting such as 

 are most likely to set them a good example. I need not 

 tell you they should not be skirters ; but, on the contrary, 

 should be fair hunting hounds, such as love a scent, and 

 that hunt closest on the line of it : — it will be necessary 

 that some of them should be good finders, and all must 

 be steady. Thus you procure for your young hounds the 

 best instructions, and at the same time prevent two evils, 

 which would necessarily ensue, were they taught by the 

 whole pack ; one, that of corrupting and getting into 

 scrapes, such as are not much wiser than themselves; 

 and the other, that of occasioning much flogging and 

 rating, which always shies and interrupts the hunting of 

 an old hound. An old hound is a sagacious animal, and 

 is not fond of trusting himself in the way of an enraged 

 whipper-in, who, as experience has taught him, can flog, 

 and can flog unjustly. By attending to this advice, you 

 will improve one part of your pack, without any injury 

 to the other ; whilst such as never separate their young 

 hounds from the old, are not likely to have any of them 

 steady." 



The time of entering young hounds must depend upon 

 circumstances. The sooner they are entered the better 



