Part 4

Some huntsmen, on nearing a small covert, are fond of catching hold of their hounds, and holding them forward so as to hit the fox’s line if he has gone through. If this is done it is an absolute necessity that one of the whippers-in should hang back till the line has been hit off. If the covert is a large one, the huntsman will, of course, go in with his hounds, and the first whipper-in should take a ride parallel to him, so that they may have the hounds between them. If the hounds are running down wind the second whipper-in may with advantage get on to the far end, but if it is up wind or the fox is tired, he will do better to keep a quarter behind the huntsman, as in these cases the fox is sure to turn back before he has gone far, and if he does not the hounds will soon run into him without help.

A hunted fox is a most difficult thing to be certain about, and at times even the most experienced will be deceived. A fox that is very tired indeed will at times, and especially if he is being holloaed at, look and move exactly like a fresh one; but if you are lucky enough to get a good view of him without his seeing you, you can generally tell. If you are a good way ahead of the hounds, and the hunted fox comes up to you and lies down, and you hear the pack hunting up to him, let him lie; watch him, but do not say a word. Every minute he lies there is bringing his enemies nearer to him, and making his death more certain. Of course, if the hounds are manifestly at fault, or have changed on to a fresh fox, you must attract the huntsman’s attention somehow. In the open this can generally be done by holding up your cap without moving the fox; in covert you will probably be obliged to give him a holloa, but you must not do so till other means have failed.

Lastly, save your horses as much as you can consistently with doing your work, and save them before they are tired; it is too late to do so afterwards. Always choose the best and soundest going you can. Jump no large fence when a small one or a gate will land you as near the hounds.

Try and keep up your zeal and attention all day, and be as keen in the evening as in the morning; and as long as the huntsman thinks it worth while to persevere after his fox do you persevere too, and do your level best to help to end the day with a kill, however hopeless such a result may at times appear.

Always be neat and tidy, and take a pride in cleaning your hunting things well and putting them on smartly.

THE RIVERSIDE PRESS LIMITED, EDINBURGH.

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● Transcriber’s Notes: ○ Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected. ○ Typographical errors were silently corrected. ○ Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation were made consistent only when a predominant form was found in this book. ○ Text that was in italics is enclosed by underscores (italics).