FOXHOUND AND HARRIER KENNELS, ETC. 279 
four lodging-rooms described there should always be two dry and 
clean in the early morning, having been washed the day before. 
Into these the general pack should be turned as soon as the doors 
are opened, or, if the morning is not wet, directly after a short 
airing in the paddock. The feeder then sweeps out the room in 
which they have slept, and afterwards mops it clean, drying the 
floor as much as possible, so that by ten or eleven o'clock it is fit 
for the hounds to re-enter. The men then get their breakfast, and 
directly afterwards the hounds are taken out to exercise, or the 
hunting hounds to their regular day’s work. If the former, they 
are brought back to kennel at eleven o'clock, fed, and returned to 
their regular lodging-room, or in some kennels they are still kept 
in a separate room during the day and night, always taking care 
that they are not turned into a room while the floor is damp, and 
that strict cleanliness is practised nevertheless. The hour of feed- 
ing is generally fixed for eleven o'clock, but for the day before hunt- 
ing it should be an hour or two later, varying with the distance 
they have to travel. Water should be constantly provided, taking 
care that the troughs are raised above the height at which dogs can 
pass their urine into it, which they will otherwise be constantly 
doing. As before remarked, iron troughs are the best. After feed- 
ing, the hounds should remain quiet for the rest of the day, only 
stirring them in removing them from their day-room to their night- 
room, if two are allowed, which, I think, is an excellent practice. 
The food of hounds is composed of meal flavoured with broth, 
to which more or less flesh is added, or with greaves as a sub- 
stitute when flesh cannot be obtained: The relative value of the 
various meals is described at page 262, but I may here remark 
that old oatmeal is the recognised food of hounds, though Indian 
meal is an excellent substitute. . After boiling the flesh till the 
meat leaves the bones readily, take all out with a pitchfork and 
put it to cool, skim all the fat off the broth, and fill up with water 
to the proper quantity ; next mix the meal carefully with cold 
water, and then pour this into the hot broth, keeping it con- 
stantly stirred till it thickens ; after which it should be boiled very 
gently till it has been on the fire for half an hour, continuing the 
stirring to prevent its burning. Lastly, draw the fire and ladle out 
the stuff into the coolers, where it remains till it has set, when 
