The noble science: a few general ideas on fox-hunting, for the use of the rising generation of sportsmen, and more especially those of the Hertfordshire hunt club

Front matter

A"

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LONDON : RUDOLPH ACKERMANN,

Preface

' Eloquar an Siluam ? "

Ovid.

To those who ask, why I have had the presumption to offer another volume, in addition to all which have already been published upon fox-hunting, my answer is, that, since the time of Beckford, whose maxims are now, for the most part, obsolete, it has been generally remarkable, that nothing (with the exception of that which has flowed from the classic pen of Nimrod) has appeared upon the subject, qualified for a place beyond the saddle-room, or servants' hall. It was not till after the full completion of my task, that I was shewn an article upon fox-hunting, in a work entitled, "Sporting, by Nimrod." Had I been sooner aware of the existence of this, I might possibly have omitted some passages in the earlier parts of my pages, with reference to the respectability of " the Noble Science ;" seeing that he proves it to have been worthy of all acceptation, not only by crowned, but by mitred heads; but so far from attempting any such alteration of my

VI PREFACE.

text, as might constitute a deviation from his path, I have been proud to find that I have unconsciously trodden in his steps. The mode of treatment cannot be very dissimilar, where both are impressed with the same exalted view of the subject. It is not necessary that a painter should expunge the effect of a rainbow from his landscape, because he finds that the idea had previously been adopted by another artist.

To all other faults of this work will be superadded that of egotism. The third person is more consistent with the labour of composition ; like the editorial '' we," it may afford some ambush, or may soften the asperity of didactics; but hoping that, while I am above ground, no one will ever draw for me without a certainty of finding, I have preferred egotistically to answer in my own person, for every precept I have ventured to propagate ; have adhered throughout, " currente calanio," to the epistolary style, and may safely affirm, that from the first to the last line committed to press, I have not made two copies of one single page.

If I am taxed with undue criticism upon The Diary of a Huntstnan, or with a desire to disparage that production, the manner in which I have spoken of its author, as a sportsman, previous to his appearance as a penman, must acquit me of anything approaching, in the remotest degree, to personal disrespect. To

PREFACE. Vll

liave been silent altogether, would have argued that I held the writings of a contemporary as utterly unworthy of notice, or that I yielded a tacit assent to the promulgation of doctrines which, not only in my own opinion, but in that of all enlightened anthorities to whom I have refeiTed theui, are calculated to mislead those wliom they are intended to enlighten. In dealing with these, as with public property, I trust it is unnecessary for me to disclaim a spirit of acrimony, or any feeling unworthy the relationship of brother sportsmen, both aiming at the same end.

I remember once to have heard a celebrated general officer remark, in allusion to the publication of a certain adjutant upon field exercise, " That adjutant is a better man with the drill than with the quill." It is very possible, that a man may shine as a rider, without attaining any degree of eminence as a writer. I may, perhaps, in my own person, offer an instance of failure in both respects ; but having, in my first chapter, touched sufficiently upon my own fears, I will only add, in the apologetic sense of one line, and in the supplicatory tone of another, from Ovid,

LIST OF EMBELLISHMENTS.

STEEL PLATES.

Hugo Meynell, Esq. with his Huntsman, Jack Raven, and the Hound Glider. From the original Painting by C. Loraine Smith, Esu., in the possession of the Rev. L. Lorai.ve Smith. Engraved by J. W. Archer Frontispiece

C. Loraine Smith, Esq., from a Portrait in the possession of the

Rev. L. Loraine Smith. Engraved by H. B. Hall. . . to face p. 317

ENGRAVINGS ON WOOD.

(From original designs, by the Rev. C. D. Radcliffe. Engraved by E. Landells.) Ornamental Title to precede the printed Title page.

Plate L Going out to cover to face p. 145

Plate II. Drawing in Gorse 153

Plate III. Gone away 161

Plate IV. Close at him — " the earth is open " 169

Plate V. Bolted, and Whoo-whoop 181

Plate VI. Going home 191

Plate VII. Foxhounds at the face of a drain 273

Chapter II

Management of Hounds — Doing the thing as it should be done — Knowledge of Country essential in the Master and Huntsman — Compared witli an Amiy — Business of Hunting — Differences in Country — Leicestershire and Hampshire — Necessity of Hounds being qualified for their particular Country— Mr. Smith and the Hambledon ... 8

Chapter III

Description of Hound adapted to Hertfordshire — Good and bad Luck — Mr. Meynell's Opinion as to the Size of a Hound — Mr. Barnett and the Cambridgeshire — Fast Hounds and quick Hounds — Lord Segrave's Blood — Draft from his Kennel — Hon. G. Berkley and his Hounds — Size of Hounds best for Herts. — Arched Loins, or wheeled Backs — Purity of Blood to be preferred to any Cross — Mr. Smith's Cross with the Bloodhound — Shape of Hounds — their height 17

Chapter IV

Huntsman, as an intellectual Being — The Power of Mind — " Blood will tell " — Gentlemen against the World — Duke of Wellington and the Army — Best Class of Professional Huntsmen — Advantages of Temper in all Education — Difference in Disposition of Hounds — Peculiarities — Summary of General Duties of Huntsmen in Kennel 37

Chapter V

Whipper-in — Advantages of Practical Explanation — Anecdote of a Miracle — Essentials in a Whipper-in — Duties in Kennel, and in the Field— Discrimination — Passive Obedience — Tom Ball 50

CONTENTS.

Chapter VI

Riding to Hunt and Hunting to Hide — Horsemanship inseparable from Enjoyment of the Cliase — Going a-Hunting — Price of Horses — Thorough-bred versus Cock-tails — Blood, again, will tell — a Man without a Grandfather — The Wendover run — Nimrod's Letter on Condition — Physic — Bleeding 61

Chapter VII

Continuation of Remarks on Condition — Nimrod's alterative Balls— Gruel nfter Hunting — Tired Horses, Treatment of — Hints intended for Owners of Short Studs — Shoeing— Lost Shoes — Anecdote of a H. H. Divine and his Bishop — Spare Shoes — Method of Shoeing at Oakley — Grooved Shoes — Overreaches — Feet and Legs — Foot Lameness — Hot Water as a general Specific — Knee Buckets — Bleeding in the Foot — Use of Physic — Feeding after Hunting — When to use Beans — Preparation or Training of Hunters — Rules for getting them fit — Sweating — Clipping, Grooming, and Dressing — Time for Clipping — Precautions — Legs — Firing and Blistering — Salt and Water Bandages — Mercurial Charges — The late Mr. Villebois — Efficacy of his Application — Ventilation of Stables — Its Importance — How easily contrived — Beauty of a Horse's Coat as an outward Sign of Health 74

Chapter VIII

Riding to Hounds — Difference of Countries — Of Horses — Expense — Economy — Equipment of a Hunter — Riders — Long or short Stimips — ■ Hand — Temper — Horseman — Accidents — Crossing Ruts — Cramped Places— Blind Ditches — Timber and Bull-finchers — Falling on the right Side — Useful Horses — Favourites — Colour — Size — Sex — Railroads tlic Curse of the Country — Impending Evils of Fox-hunting " a thousand years hence" — Conclusion of Advice on Treatment of Hunters — Dress of a Gentleman Sportsman — Mrs. Trollope on Male Attire — L'air noble — Change in Costume — Black Cravats — Jack-boots — Continuations— Best Dress for Hunting — Origin of wearing Scarlet; Royal Rule for ditto — Hats — Caps — Wliips— Spurs — Characteristics of a real Gentleman Fox-hunter in contrast with the mere Vermin-killer . .104

Chapter IX

A Hunting Morning; Mood for Enjoyment of; Different Sentiments upon — Place of Meeting — Forcing a Fox — Wliere is the will, is the way — View Halloos — Noise — Silence — The Human Voice divine — Field Language — "Tally-ho" versus "Tally-O" — Mr. Smith's

CONTENTS. xi

PAOK

Glossary — Drawing Coverts — Up or down wind — Instance of an up-wind draw in a Spinney— Getting away with a Fox — Tlie Burst — Pressing liim — Advantage of a Start to the Fox — Mr. Smith's Idea of a Fox's Knowledge of Scent — Covert side — " Coftee-housing " — The Number of Hounds for an effective Pack — Number in the Field — The great Mr. Meynell, with a Hundred Couples out — Success of such a Pack — Killing above Ground, and Digging — Drawing over Foxes — Getting settled to one — "Ware Riot" — Mischief of Interference — Hare and I^ox on the same Line — Lawful Assistance, when admissible and advantageous — A quick find — Liability to Riot in a long draw Blank — Punishment of Hounds — A Day in Herts. — Average Sport — The Find — -"Gone away" — The first Ten Minutes — A Huntsman in his proper Place ; how to keep it — Varieties of Soil — A Check — Eye to Hounds, and last Recovery — Forward again — Racing for the lead — Over-riding Hounds — Settling to Business — Hunting and Running — Hunting a Fox, not riding him down — A View in Chase — The Thick of the Tiling — A Second Check at the Plough Teams — Headed or not? — Huntsman's head required — Forward again and again — The Field in high Feather — A sinking Fox — " Hang those Footmen, how they holloa!" — A fair Finish — Whoo whoop! This i-un compared with a better — Double Casts with divided Pack — The forward Principle, the Rule of Fox-hunting — Drains — Going home — The Time for all Things — Return to Kennel — Efficacy of Hounds — Mr. Smith's Breed of Foxes that can beat any Pack — Condition everything, and everything depending on " System of Kennel " Ill

Chapter X

System of Kennel — Baths — Feeding — Warmth — Diet — Ventilation — Oatmeal — Vegetables — Mangel Wurzel — Sago — Biscuit — Milk — Breeding — Walks — Sires and Dams — Generative Economy — Choice of Whelps — Naming — Rounding — Dividing Pack — Drafting — Cub-hunting — Going out in the Evening, an old Practice — Entering young Hounds — Killing Cubs — General Responsibility of Masters of Hounds 191

Chapter XI

Uncertainty of Scent— Signs and Indications— Mr. Smith's Theory disputed — Arguments in Proof of Scent coming from Body and Breath of the Animal, and not from Touch of Pad alone — Exemplified by Case in point— Old Wells and the Oakley— Effect of Dew upon Scent— Ascent of Dew versies Descent — Experimental Philosophy — Dr. Dufay and M. Muschenbrock — Results of Experiments— Mr. Smith upon "Metal." 223

CONTENTS.

Chapter XII

Hunting from Home — M. F. H. in his own Country — Presents — The late Mr. Hanhury — Popularity — Satisfaction — Rights of Country — Support of Hunting — Errors of Custom — Remedies — Difficulty of Reformation — Earth Stopping — Mr. Smith's Plan — Game-keepers — Habits of Foxes — Importance of Rural Amusement — Decline of Shooting — New Game Bill — Fox-hunting the only Resource — Estimate of Expenses . 217

Chapter XIII

Of Provincial Countries — Fox-hunting in Hampshire — Mr. Assheton Smith — His Career in Leicestershire — Character as a Sportsman and Horseman — Removal to Hampshire — Tedworth and its Agremens — Visit to the Kennel — Reception there — Description of the Kennel and Premises — Stables, &c. &c. — Appearance — Local Advantages — Huntsman — Entry — Stamp of Hoimds — Radical good — Success of the Pack — Horses — Summary of this Sketch — Plans of the Building . 287

Biograpliical Sketch of Two Sportsmen of the last Century 317

CHAPTER I. From the Album of a Parisienne

INTRODUCTORY.

It has been generally admitted, that few can have read ■" The Complete Angler " of old Isaak Walton, without being bitten by the seductive language in which he clothes the communication of his ideas upon his favourite pastime. Many have, indeed, founded their first taste for, and their subsequent proficiency in the gentle art of angling, upon their acquaintance with his pages ; and I do not envy the temperament of that man who can rise from the perusal of Somervile's " Chase " uninfluenced by a corresponding effect upon his feelings. All, however,

B cannot enter into the enthusiasm of the poet, — cannot be, with myself, at once transported into the very heart of that " dehghtful scene where all around is gay :" — but if less has been written upon " The Noble Science" of Hunting, than upon other subjects of far less importance to the good of man, it is not from any lack of materials for quartos— but, simply, because the practice so far outweighs the theory ; because, like good wine that needs no bush, it refjuiies. no description to enhance its attractions ; and because considerably more than three parts out of four of the number of hunting men, are contented to take their share of the enjoyment, as they find it, without a thought towards the scientific or theoretical part of the pursuit, on the due cultivation of which there is so much more than they are aware of, depending.

Far be it from me to desire that all sons of Nimrod should degenerate, or be at once transformed into scribblers, book-worms, or, as a huntsman of my acquaintance more aptly designated them, bookmen. Heaven forefend, too, that those actively engaged in high and useful calling, should not, in the joys of the chase, find legitimate relaxation from the arduous course of literary avocations ! — but, as some apology for committing to paper my " Thoughts upon Hunting," I would impress upon those friends who may vouchsafe an attempt to read what I have written, the fact, that few, possessing the ability, have foimd the inclination, either for their

THE NOBLE SCIENCK. «i

own amusement or the benefit of others, to publish matter which must be more or less interesting to every true votary of the science, if founded only upon the solid basis of experience.

Furthermore, be it remembered, that anything emanating from the mere theorist, is as little worthy of notice as " An authentic Account of Operations from the Seat of War in Spain," issuing periodically from a garret in Seven Dials ; that no one should pretend to write or offer an opinion upon the subject, who cannot of these things say, " Quaeque ipse vidi — et quorum pars fui."

Now for myself, in defence of this, my humble essay, I do not pretend to say with Horace, " Dicam insigne, recens adhuc Indict urn ore alio." I am bound to state, feeling tremblingly alive to the imputation, on the one hand, of presumption, should I attempt to deviate from, or of plagiarism, should I follow too closely in the track of those who have preceded me, that I am actuated by no hope of bringing to light anything new under that sun which I invoke to shine upon my endeavours, and to dispel the threatening clouds which will gather upon the horizon of an author's morning ; by which, in plainer or less poetical phraseology, I would be understood to mean a first attempt at any publication beyond a pamphlet or a song. It is, perhaps, far less incumbent upon me to say one word in anticipation of a charge which never can arise, lest the truism of tlie French proverb should at

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* THE NOBLE SCIENCE.

once present itself, that " qui ^excuse s'accuse" with regard to my liaving joined the class of tmitatores, which, from our school-boy days, we have held as " servum pecus," and it will be too evident, I fear, that I have never read one line of the several works of a similar tendency aind purport which have appeared in my time, with the exception of Beckford, whom " not to know argues oneself unknown."

When I say that, although I have of course heard of, I have never seen Colonel Cooke's work, or even, to my knowledge, an extract from his " Observations upon Hunting," I need not add my conviction that it would be far better for my object if every line of it were committed to my memory ; but still I will arrogate for my bantling, with all its imperfections on its head, the merit, if any there be, of originality, if not in conception, at least in arrangement, of idea ; and in addressing it more especially to my friends and acquaintance in my own provincial district, I shall hope to secure one portion of favourable, if not of partial, critics.

If I am accused of quoting too freely from Greek, Roman, or British Ppets, wherever the aptness of the quotation is admitted, no apology need be made for having endeavoured to convey, in the beauty of language, ideas, which could not otherwise be half so well expressed. I hope to escape the imputation of having affected a scholastic pedantry, to which I have no pretension ; and that those who may look over (I trust with the intention of overlooking,) these and other failings in the following pages, may find them not wholly deficient in a redeeming portion of plainer English.

I have already stated, that much has been written upon subjects far less important to the good of man than hunting ; but having been, in this, my introductory chapter, more than sufficiently prosy, I will not tax the patience of those whom I wish to dip further into this volume, by entering into a consideration of the progress of " The Noble Science " from its origin to its present state of perfection, or of its bearings upon the social character of man ; but I will here briefly record my opinion, that hunting is entitled to all the encom'agement which any State may have the power to bestow upon it. The effect of so manly an exercise upon the mind of youth has been well described by abler pens ; its tendency to promote that good fellowship which should be " our being's end and aim " is duly tested by the position of society in those counties where its influence has been most felt. No higher testimony to its practical utility, in a national point of view, can be required than that of as brave a hero as ever drew a sword, — the gallant Lord Lynedoch : — He whom Napoleon characterised as " that daring old man " has often affirmed, that he should not have been the soldier he is, had he not been bred a fox^ hunter.

The Roman poet, speaking of Diana, the goddess of hunting, says, " Deas supereminet omnes." From the time of Nimrod to the present, hmiting has ever ranked first and foremost of all exercises, whether by man, in an uncivilized state, as the natural means of subsistence, or by the most enlightened and refined, as a soul-inspiring source of pleasure.

Furthermore, I will add that fox-hunting ever has been, still is, and, I trust, ever will be, enthusiastically upheld by men of the highest endowments, — by men possessed of all the noblest and best attributes of human nature, many of whom have devoted themselves to its objects with an assiduity alone sufficient to prove the wortliiness of the cause.

Its operations upon agricultural produce, are, also, sufficiently well known, though, I fear, hardly enough appreciated by that class, the " fortunati nimium, sua si bona norint, agi-icoljE." I will, in an appendix, dedicate to the farmers of my own county a letter which I published some eight years since, in the Sporting Magazine, upon the subject of riding over wheat ; but I will here hold hard, nor allow myself to be led further into a repetition of truisms so thoroughly established.

Convinced, myself, that, for the health, the recreation, the general good, there is nothing to bear a moment's comparison with hunting, taking it relatively, or collectively ; taking it as affecting the physical condition of men, or that "noblest animal in the creation" (as he has been styled), the horse, I will only add to the motto, " Floreat scientia" the heartfelt aspiration, " esto perpetiia!" — May it flomnsh till time shall be no more! And now, in proceeding with my comments upon the manner in which I would see it conducted (a work commenced originally for my own occupation during the leisure hours of summer), let me say that, if I should be the humble means of awakening the attention of any one individual to the real interests, or tend in the slightest degree towards the promotion of that sport to which I have been addicted from my cradle, with which I have been for the last eight years most intimately connected, and to which (apart from higher considerations) I must ever remain devoted, I shall have gained my end.

CHAPTER II. Keen on the scent

At fault none losing heart ! — but all at work ! None leaving his task to another ! — answering The watchful huntsman's caution, check, or cheer, As steed his rider's rein. Away they go ! How close they keep together ! What a pack ! Nor turn nor ditch nor stream divides them — as They move with one intelligence, act, will!"

Love Chase.

Management of Hounds — Doing the thing as it shoidd be done^Knowledge of Country essential in the Master and Huntsmen — Compared with an Army — Business of Himtiiig — Difi'erenccs in Country — Leicestershire and Hampshire— Necessity of Hounds being qualified for their particular Country — Mr. Smith and the Hambledon.

That " whatever is worth doing at all, is worth doing well," is one of those maxims which may be fearlessly asserted, without risk of controversy ; and to no undertaking is it more applicable than to the manage-

THE NOBLE SCIENCE. W

ment of a pack of foxhounds. To do the thing well, and as it should be done, ought to be the primary object of any one aspiring to the office : but let us consider in what does this well-doing consist. It will not be found alone in the tout e«S(?;M6^e, the faultless appearance of the turn out. Too much attention cannot be paid to the due efficiency of all appointments, with regard to " dogs, horses, and men ;" but an aspirant for fame, as a master of foxhounds, may give an exorbitant sum for a pack of hounds of unquestionable celebrity, — he may give carte hlanclie to Anderson, Bean, and Elmore, to fill his stables : — he may secure the services of the best of huntsmen and whippers-in, — he may bring all these into the best of countries, — still it is no paradox to say, that, with all these means and apphances to boot, the thing may not be done well, or as it should be done. I have heard of men, ambitious, formerly, of emulating the place of Lord Jersey, and such performers over a country, who have, in the purchase of the very horses which they had followed as briUiant lights, considered that they had attained the summum boniim, the grand requisite to go and do likewise ; and woful has been their disappointment at finding that, without the presiding genius, — the head-piece, which has ruled the hand which guided them to glory, — the implements were but common tools in hands of ordinary workmen ; and they were httle, if any, better than in statu quo. With all due allowance for

c native valour, few, I imagine, will maintain that the flower of a British army would, under the generality of commanders, have achieved the prodigies which have rendered the name and fame of Wellington imperishable : and thus is it with an establishment qualified properly to hunt any country. The chief must not only be heart and soul in the cause, but he must endeavour to fortify himself with that thorough knowledge of the busi7iess, which is essential — I say, indispensable — to complete success. The word, business, may grate upon the ear of those conversant only with the pleasure, and brings to my mind the waggery of a story, appertaining, I believe, to Theodore Hook, in which a citizen is driven to exasperation by being told that he could not, by any possibility, have any business in his boat, — ^his own boat, — because, as is ultimately explained to him, it is his pleasure-hodit. But I contend, that it is a business of no slight importance to cater for the amusement of a whole county ; setting aside the hopeless effort to give unqualified satisfaction, it is a business so to conduct all matters as to do justice to those who have confided to him the administration of the policy which rules the destinies of the little empire which is his theatre of action. I have been told, upon the best authority, of that great general, to whom I have before alluded, that, on the eve of battle, not only would he sleep soundly, but say that he had as good a right to sleep, then, as the Lord Mayor had in

London, even should they be all killed and eaten by the enemy on the morrow, having made all the dispositions calculated to guard against every contingency, and entitle him to feel that confidence in his own resources which was the forerunner of victory. So, in hke manner, parvis componere magna — to compare great affairs with those comparatively of little consequence — should a master of foxhounds, upon joining, at the covert side, a host of followers, all " with souls in arms, and eager for the fray;" when contemplating the responsibOity which rests with him, — when reviewing the numbers looking up to him as arbiter of what that day shall bring forth, be enabled to say to himself, " I have done my duty, to the best of my judgment; I have fixed to draw the covert, which, of all others, it is most expedient to draw ; I have ascertained the more than probability of finding here, or in the neighbourhood ; I am not at variance with any farmer or landholder who might have been propitiated ; I have brought an effective estabhshment into the field ; in short, I have done, and shall do, all within my power towards the sport, which, all must know, will ever very much depend upon the elements, and a variety of circumstances over which I have no control, and which, whether favourable or otherwise, will affect me, at least as much as, if not more than, any one else." He will thus be supported through all the trying events of the day, by a consciousness that his field lack none of that zeal and energy which he should supply. He will, under failure of scent, or any of the catalogue of miseries to which he is exposed, even to the heading of a fox, patiently, if not cheerfully, submit to evils which he cannot surmount ; and should all go right, and " merry as a marriage bell," who, in the whole of that well-pleased field, will have half the excitement, the exultation, the delight, which he will find in this joyous result of all his hopes and endeavours ?

To return to my position, that with the best establishments which money can produce, a man may fail — may fail in shewing that sport which will stamp the character of his pack ; — for justice. Wind justice, is very blind indeed in this respect, and will take success as the sole criterion of merit. I have said that it is not enough to bring into the field men, hounds, and horses, of the best pretensions ; I repeat, that it is not enough, unless all are pre-eminently qualified for the particular country in which their lot may be cast ; unless the seiTants possess, in addition to every professional quahfication, that intimate knowledge of all localities which is indispensable, and not less so to the master, if he assume, as he should do, the absolute command ; unless much, very much, have been done in the time of preparation which cannot be done during the season, which is as the harvest of the months of promise which have preceded it. As one striking instance, in support of what I have thus

THE NOBLE SCIENCE. l.'J

advanced, and drawing, as will be my invariable rule, solely upon facts within my own experience, it will be fresh in the memory of all Hampshire gentlemen, that when the great Mr. Osbaldeston— (and great he certainly and deseiTedly was, and ever must be held, as a master of hounds) — temporarily removed his splendid establishment from Leicestershire into the Hambledon country, with the aid of no less a man than the renowned Sebright, now with Lord Fitzwilliam, to hunt one of the best packs of hounds ever bred, so gi-eat was the transition from the verdant vales of Leicester to their antipodes in the good county of Southampton, that, although " the Squire" had good-humouredly threatened the utter extinction of the whole race of Hambledon foxes, each day was but a repetition of " confusion worse confounded ;" and they very soon abandoned the country, with all the disgust which the proverbial odiousness of comparisons was likely to engender.