Nov. 9, 1895.J 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



4 09 



WHEN THE LONG ISLAND RABBIT SEASON OPENS. — See page 401. 



FIELD TRIALS OF THE BRUNSWICK FUR 

 CLUB. 



The Brunswick Fur Club held its seventh annual field 

 trials at Barre, Mass., beginning Oct. 28 and ending Nov. 

 1. The hunting grounds were as well suited to the pur- 

 pose as any the club has tried. There are many hills from 

 which a good view of the surrounding territory can be 

 obtained, and there are large tracts of cleared land where 

 the hounds could be seen running for a long distance. 

 The greatest drawback to the region for field trial pur- 

 poses is the numberless stone walls and the rocky pas- 

 tures, where a fox could go for miles without touching his 

 foot to the earth. This latter objection, however, is not 

 an important one, for with such a pack of hounds as was 

 entered at these trials the fox had no time to pick his way ; 

 when the driving conditions were good he had to flee for 

 his life. 



The pack unquestionably contained more high-class 

 hounds than were ever brought together in New England 

 previous to this meet. Most of them were of the same 

 type and many were similar in markings, and the diffi- 

 culty of distinguishing one from another is obvious. To 

 remedy this each hound had a large letter painted upon 

 his sides in bright red paint. In this way the hounds were 

 easily distinguished, and the plan will be adopted in 

 the future trials of the club. The judges were able to 

 identify the hounds easily, and there was no danger of 

 mistaking one for another. 



During the four days of the trials the judges did an im- 

 mense amount of hard work. Judging such a pack is no 

 easy matter on horseback, and where the work must be 

 done on foot the difficulties are greatly increased. Luck 

 must always enter into such competitions to a certain ex- 

 tent, and hence it was a source of gratification to the 

 judges to know that their awards were generally in- 

 dorsed by those who bad followed the hounds during the 

 week. 



Jay Bird and Torment, the first and second prize win- 

 ners in the Derby, are remarkably good hounds for their 

 age. The former is built for speed more than endurance, 

 while the latter has the form and substance of an English 

 hound. Both displayed intelligence and perseverance in 

 all their work, but Jay Bird ranged wider, and when at 

 fault cast further than Torment. Polly, the third prize 

 winner, will improve with experience. 



Dan, the winner of the highest honors in the All- Age 

 Stake, is a stjlish hound of wonderful endurance, fine 

 nose, great speed and intelligence. He was bred by W. 

 S. Walker. Big Strive, well known on the bench, made 

 a record to be proud of in winning the second place in 

 such hot competition. 



Among the visitors at Barre was Howard Tracy, of 

 Louisville, Ky. He is the first sportsman from that State 

 .to enter his hounds at these trials, and it is hoped that his 

 "success in winning the Derby and the second place in the 

 All- Age Stake will induce him to come again and bring 

 his friends with him. Others present were Dr. A; C. Hef- 

 fenger, W, A. Bragdon, Portsmouth, N. H.; L, A. Tunley, 

 Boston, Mass.; Wm. H. Perkins, L A. Fisherdick, Ware, 

 Mass.; Solomon Bennett, Providence, R. I.; A. B. Mc- 

 Gregor, Poland, Me.; A. B. F. Kinney, W. E. Hapgood, 

 G. A. Goddard, J. A. Williams, Guy C. Whidden, W. R. 

 Dean, Worcester, Mass.; H. H. Shields, Bennington, Vt.; 

 O. F. Joslin, George B. Appleby, Oxford, Mass.; E. L. 

 Brooks, Brattleboro, Vt.; J. H. Gafney, Petersham, 

 Mass.; R. D. Perry, Portland, Me.; E. J. Hill, Phillipston, 

 Mass. ; S. B. Mills, J. William Jones, Needham, Mass. ; 

 George E.Carr, Holliston, Mass.; F. G. Stewart, New 

 York, N. Y . ; L. E. Conant, L. O. Dennison, Waltham, 

 Mass.; Bradford S. Turpin, Roxbury, Mass., and a num- 

 ber of others. 



Most of the sportsmen arrived on Monday and a club 

 meeting was held in the evening. Howard Tracy, Louis- 

 ville, Ky., was made an honorary member and the fol- 

 lowing gentlemen were elected active members: H. H. 

 Shields and W. A. Viall, Bennington, Vt. ; Jas. H. Gaf- 

 ney, Petersham, Mass.; L. Fisherdick, Ware, Mass.; Geo. 

 A. Goddard, Worcester, Mass. The Derby closed' with 

 the following entries and the meeting adjourned. 



Derby Entries. 



Torment — Dr. A. C. Heff enger's b. , w. and t. dog (Red- 

 stone — Nell). Maupin — Robinson strain, whelped, April, 

 1894. 



Bock— John M. White's b., w. and t. dog (Logan — Ag- 

 gie). Pooler strain, whelped July, 1894. 



Bessie— John M, White's b., w. and t. bitch (Logan — 

 Aggie). Pooler strain, whelped July, 1894. 



Polly — H. H. Shield's b., w. and t. bitch (— Molly). 

 Goodman — Walker cross, whelped Ma 1 -"* 1 



Pope's Frisky— White Oak Hill F | ,nd t. 



bitch (Poaler — Flirt). July— Goodi. Jluas, ,v helped 

 May, 1894. 



Jay Bird — Walker & Hagan's b., w. and t, dog (Sam — 

 May). Kentucky hound, whelped August, 1894. 



Tuesday— The Derby. 



Clouds covered the sky in the early morning and 

 threatened rain, but the sun broke through by 7 o'clock 

 and a fairly good hunting day resulted. 



The Derby entries were cast off a mile west of the vil- 

 lage at 6:25. They packed well and all seemed anxious 

 and willing to work. Jay Bird, Polly and Torment 

 showed greater hunting sense than the others and did 

 practically all the work of the day. No track fresh 

 enough to be worked was hit till about 9 o'clock. Then 

 Jay Bird struck a skulking fox, and with Torment and 

 Polly carried the track for more than two miles. Finally 



they got on running terms with the quarry and Torment 

 and Jay Bird ran him prettily for an hour or more. Polly 

 unfortunately was thrown out and did not get into the 

 chase. The other youngsters refused to hark to the driv- 

 ing hounds and Torment and Jay Bird had the race to 

 themselves. Jay Bird was the better, though Torment 

 was a good second. The fox was finally lost near Swift 

 River. 



The judges were: R. D. Perry, J. Wm. Jones, W. A. 

 Bragdon, Geo. E. Carr, S. B. Mills and John A. Williams. 

 They gave first prize to Jay Bird, second to Torment, 

 third to Polly. 



SUMMARY. 



Barre, Mass., Oct. 29.— Brunswick Fur Club Derby 

 open to all hounds whelped on or after Jan. 1, 1894; entry 

 fee, $2; first prize, 50$; second, 30;?; third, 20$ of entry 

 fees; six starters: 



First, Walker & Hagans's Jay Bird; second, A. C. Hef- 

 fenger's Torment; third, H. H. Shields's Polly. 



The entries in the All- Age stake were made on Tuesday 

 evening. 



All-Age Entries. 



Diamond K. — John M. White's w., b. and t. dog (Logan 

 —Wild). Pooler — Wild Goose cross, 3yrs. 



Fly — John M. White's b., w. and t. bitch (Crook— Bes- 

 sie). Walker hound, 4yrs. 



Piper — W. A. Bragdon's w., b. and t. dog (Strive — 

 Fly): Walker strain, 2yrs. 



Dock — W. A. Bragdon's w., b. and t. dog (Strive — 

 Rate). Walker strain, 2yrs. 



Stjnmaid— White Oak Hill Kennels' w., b. and t. bitch 

 (Traveler — Flash). July strain, 3|yrs. 



Clay— White Oak Hill Kennels' w., b. and t. dog (Scully 

 — B j ssie).. Goodman strain, 7£yrs. 



Banjo — Tracy & Hagan's b., w. and t. dog (Barbour's 

 Spot— Tracy & Hagan's Rose). Kentucky hound, 3yrs. 

 2mos. 



Big Strive— Hagan & Walker's b., w. and t. dog 

 (Striver — Sail), Walker strain, 2^yrs. 



Juliette— O. F. Joslin's w. and t. bitch (Sam King — 

 Daisy). July — Walker cross, 2fyrs. 

 • Dan— O. F. Joslin's b., w. and t. dog (Boston— Nell). 

 Walker strain ,-2yrs. lmo. , 



Rodes— O. F. Joslin's b., w. and t. dog (Brewer— Mag). 

 Walker strain, 2yrs. 2mos. 



Sim— O. F. Joslin's b., w. and t. dog (Jake— Cricket). 

 Walker strain, 2yrs. 



Rock — Geo. E Carr's b., w. and t. dog (Smitha's Logan 

 — Mush). Maupin — Robinson cross, 4fyrs. 



Driver— G. W. Pierce's b. and t. dog (Turk— Lake). 

 Goodman strain, 2yrs. 



Jennie Redstone— G. W. Pierce's b., w. and t. bitch 

 (Redstone— Jenny ). Goodman strain, 2yrs. 



Hoskie— R. D. Perry's b., w. and t. dog (Troupe— Blin- 

 kie). Walker strain, 2yrs, 5mos. 



Trailer— R. D. Perry's b. and t. bitch (Bonnie — Maggie). 

 Conant strain, 3^yrs. 



Tread— W. A. Viall's b. and t. dog (Bonnie — Maggie). 

 Conant strain, 3£yrs. 



JOE J. — Geo. A. Goddard's b. and t. dog (Adam — Wild). 

 Native — Wild Goose cross, 4yrs. 



Barney— Sandy Spring Hunt Club's gray, t. and w, 

 dog (Sport — Hester). July strain, 4*yrs. 



Beulah— Sandy Spring Hunt Club's b., w. and t. bitch 

 (Boston — Jule). July strain, 3yrs. 



Marquis— Noel E. Money's w., t. and gray dog, Welsh 

 hound (imported), 2yrs. 



Wednesday— The All-Age. 



A white frost, no wind and a cloudless sky promised 

 great sport on the first day of the running of the All- Age 

 Stake. But the promise was not fulfilled. 



At 6:30 the twenty-two entries were cast off at the same 

 place where the Derby was started on Tuesday. The 

 hounds found a track within two minutes and within ten 

 had two foxes up. One led away toward the west 

 driven by four or five hounds, and the other hotly pursued 

 by the rest of the pack started south. The scent was per- 

 fect and the speed terrific. The fox proved to be a "liner" 

 and away he went without a turn. As ill luck would 

 have it, however, he was headed and turned sharply back. 

 The pack over-ran badly and it was some minutes before 

 the hounds hit it off again. Some of them were thrown 

 out altogether and others were so far behind the leaders 

 that they became discouraged and finally gave it up. The 

 fox crossed Sherman Hill, ran to Thousand Acre Swamp 

 and then took a turn, toward Petersham. The pack was 



out of hearing by 9 o'clock and it was not till 1 that judges 

 Mills and Williams learned the whereabouts of the 

 hounds. Seven were still^working, picking a track slowly 

 along, with Joe J. and Driver doing the greater part of 

 the work. While the chase was hot it was simply impos- 

 sible for judges or spectators to come up with the pack 

 near enough to distinguish the individual hounds. The 

 judges worked hard and covered mile after mile on foot 

 only to find the hounds still ahead of them. Such work 

 was extremely tedious and unsatisfactory. 



The M. F. H. was busy till late in the evening searching 

 for lost hounds. He brought in all but Marquis— the odd 

 looking Welsh hound— Driver, Piper and Huskie. 



The judges were S. B, Mills, J. Wm. Jones, J. A. 

 Williams, Guy C. Whidden and Bradford S. Turpin. 

 The following hounds were spotted out: Fly, Barney, 

 Sunmaid, Juliette and Jennie Redstone. All these hounds 

 are capable of good work, but they failed to run in their 

 usual form to-day. 



Thursday. 



Again the club was favored with good hunting condi- 

 tions. In the early morning the ground was covered 

 with white frost and there was no wind. Later in the 

 day, however, a cold easterly breeze sprung up, making 

 the day the most comfortable one of the week for 

 sportsmen. 



Huskie, , Marquis and Piper were still missing when the 

 hounds were ordered out at 6 o'clock. Consequently the 

 pack consisted of but fourteen. Judge Whidden was 

 unavoidably absent. 



The M. F. H. ordered the hounds cast off at 6:40. They 

 quickly found a fresh track and carried it prettily and at 

 great speed for a couple of miles and then jumped their 

 fox. Every hound was on and the fox for an hour and a 

 half was pressed hard. Fortunately he was not an "old 

 liner," such as was started on Tuesday, and he furnished 

 rare sport for those who were so lucky as to be present. 

 After making a couple of turns about the hills where 

 he was started he led away for a large swamp. 

 Here he skulked for some time and very nearly 

 succeeded in throwing off the pack. But the hounds 

 finally jumped him a second time and once more the chase 

 was on. The speed up to this time had been ter- 

 rific, but now the ground became drier every moment 

 and the scent lay badly. The fox began to take his 

 own time, and after making a long swing to the southeast 

 he turned back toward the starting point. 



At 10:45 he was twenty minutes ahead of the pack, and 

 by 11 the hounds had lost him altogether. At the finish 

 there were only eight hounds driving— Dan, Sim, Diamond 

 K, Big Strive, Beulah, Joe J., Rodes and Tread. All the 

 others were either thrown out or had quit and gone home. 

 Dock had lost the pack, but later had started a fox alone, 

 and drove him for some time with Driver. 



During this great day's sport nearly all the hounds had 

 some good work put to their credit.. Among those seen 

 in the lead were Clay, Dock, Rodes, Big Strive and Dan: 

 but the latter was there more than any other hound, and 

 at the close of the day was as fresh as any hound in the 

 field. Clay in the early morning ran in the same splendid 

 form that he showed in the trials of '92, when he won the 

 highest honors. Rodes showed great speed after the fox 

 was up, but he took no interest in starting the game. 



The day was a most satisfactory one, as the judges had 

 many opportunities to see the work of the hounds. In the 

 evening they decided to order out all the hounds on Fri- 

 day that were out to-day. 



Friday. 



Hard rain fell all night, but at sunrise there were indi- 

 cations of pleasant weather, and by 9 o'clock the sun was 

 out. As the clouds drifted away the wind began to rise and 

 was soon blowing a gale, making it very difficult to keep 

 track of the hounds. 



The rain had washed away all the fox tracks, if indeed 

 any had been made during the night, and the only hope 

 of getting a run was in jumping a fox. Accordingly the 

 hounds were put in at the edge of a promising swamp and 

 worked to windward. For two miles or more they beat 

 out the swamps and covers without finding a track. 

 Then by good luck they ran directly upon the game and 

 a splendid cha3e followed, though the sport was marred 

 by the high wind. The pack, in drawing for the fox, had 

 held together wonderfully and all the hounds were on at 

 the jump. For two hours they ran the fox over the hills 

 and through the valleys, and m all that time there were 

 but two hounds thrown out— Rodes and Beulah. The 

 others packed perfectly, running in a bunch from start to 

 finish. The fox finding he could not escape on the up- 

 lands took to a large swamp and threw off the pack with' 

 out great difficulty. Just before the finish the hounds 

 crossed a brook, and Diamond K. was so unfortunate as 

 to be caught between two logs in such a way that he 

 could not escape. He was saved from drowning by one 

 of the hunters who happened to be in the vicinity. 



This chase ended the work of the meet. In the evening 

 the judges posted the awards as given below: 



summary. 



Barre, Mass., Oct. 30-Nov. 1.— Brunswick Fur Club 

 All- Age Stake; open to all foxhounds. Entry fee to all 

 classes, $3. First prize in each class 50 per cent., second 

 30 per cent, and third 20 per cent, of the entry fee. 

 Twenty-two starters. 



hunting class. 

 First, O. F. Joslin's Dan; second, George A. Goddard's 

 Joe J. ; third, O. F. Joslin's Sim. 



