16 HUNTING IN MANY COUNTRIES. 



Humber Hill, and a few other gorse coverts in the open. One 

 of the chief difficulties which foxes caused in the Broomshields 

 district, and, indeed, much further afield, and which John 

 Greenwell worked hard at getting the better of, was caused 

 by the country being full of old stone drains, many of which 

 were nearly always dry, in which foxes would breed, and where 

 they were often hidden exactly when they were wanted. The 

 fact is that when tile draining became universal the old stone 

 drains were left, and after a time many of them were forgotten, 

 especially where bracken and gorse had grown over them. The 

 pipes, often at a lower level, caused the stone drains 

 to become |dry, and as a rule when foxes used them 

 all entrances and exits would be hidden. Some, of 

 course, were well known, and early in the year a 

 terrier would be run through and the mouths secured 

 by iron gratings, but others were constantly found in 

 the most unlikely places, and at one time half the foxes in 

 the country were bred in these drains. As long as one knew 

 which drains were being used, those particular drains could be 

 stopped at night like any other earth, but some of them were 

 connected with others, like the trenches in France, and at 

 times it was almost impossible to find all the entrances until 

 a whole field had been pulled to pieces. To give an example, 

 I have in recollection a day in the early eighties when all the 

 Broomshields oovertswere blank, though John Greenwell — who 

 for many years was his own earth stopper — had actually 

 watched several foxes leave two or three sets of earths on the 

 previous evening. As may be imagined, the Squire of Broom- 

 shields was terribly upset, but for the next few days he was 

 too busy for an investigation. On the following Sunday, 

 however, he started a close examination of all the underground 

 haunts of foxes in the neighbourhood, and to his great surprise 

 his terriers bolted half a dozen in quick succession from a field 

 drain on East Broomshields farm, which had been permanently 

 closed at the beginning of the season, but nov/ had the grating 

 removed on the offchance that a fox might have found 

 another entrance. It was obvious that there must be an un- 

 known entrance, but search was fruitless, and " John " was 

 in despair for some days. Then one day he was crossing the 

 field adjoining the lane into which the drain debouched when 



