The Hunting Year 



the country in which he hunts. But our friend 

 in velveteen has been hitherto neglected. 



It is not, however, because he has been for- 

 gotten, and he shall have a chapter all to himself 

 for he is an important person — a very important 

 person — in the economy of a hunting country. 



We hunting men owe the keeper a deep debt 

 of gratitude, and the many little things he does 

 — they may be apparently little in themselves, 

 but they have far-reaching consequences — which 

 contribute to the sport of fox-hunting, would 

 fill pages. 



It is, I know, amongst some hunting men, a 



habit to be constantly slanging keepers as a 



body. This is worse than unjust, if anything 



can be worse than injustice. It is foolish. I 



am not going to say that every keeper is a keen 



fox preserver. I am not going to say that no 



keeper was ever known to put a fox down. But 



I do say that as a body keepers, as I have 



known them, are friendly to hunting ; and I have 



had instances of keepers being as keen about 



the sport, and as proud about the show of foxes 



they had, and of their foxes beating hounds after 



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