THE FOXHOUND. 53 
bearing. But in actual work it enables him to drive his way 
through gorse and thorns with much less injury to his ears, 
though without the advantage to the eyes which is supposed to 
accrue by some writers. How it can be imagined that an organ 
which hangs, when at rest, at some distance behind the eyes, 
should protect them from injury in driving the head forward 
through gorse or thorns, I am quite at a loss to know; but such is 
the extent to which certain theorists have gone. The fact really 
‘is, that experience teaches the huntsman to remove all superfluous 
parts which he finds liable to be torn in covert, at the same time 
taking care not to lose such as are advantageous. He knows that 
a most essential organ to keeping his pack together is that of 
hearing, by means of which every individual hound judges of the 
first whimper heard in “drawing” whether or not it is reliable, 
and owns it or not as he thinks right. Again, he requires it to 
ascertain the direction of the “cry,” so as to get quickly to it, and, 
accordingly, enough of the flap of the ear is left on for good hearing, 
while the remainder, as being likely to be torn, is removed by the 
rounding-iron ; and even from a humanitarian point of view the 
practice is entirely justified, as also is the removal of the dew 
claws, which, like the ear-flaps, are constantly liable to be torn. 
For these reasons the artist and the ardent lover of animals should 
forgive the practice of “rounding,” malgré Mr. Colam, who has 
more than once run a tilt against it. In some packs rounding is 
now discontinued. ; 
A third faculty in which this hound differs from his congeners 
ig a mental one, leading him always, when he loses scent of his 
quarry, to cast forward rather than backward, and to do this with 
a “dash” altogether unlike the slow and careful quest of the 
bloodhound and others of that ilk. This, of course, may be over- 
done, like all good qualities, and-in that case the hound constantly 
overruns the scent; but without it in these days few foxes would 
be killed, for unless they are hard pressed the scent soon fails and 
is altogether lost. 
Beyond the formation of each individual in his pack, the M.F.H. 
‘also has to consider the “sortiness” and “suitiness,” that is to 
say, he desires that all should be of the same “sort,” or, in other 
-words, should show themselves to be of the same breed, and should 
