The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-10-14

4 inventors ol N-as an ar~~are called, IN u very
old work, . wise men, well skilled in human ma
ture." II was very early regarded as an import
ant national sport, not only as exercising the
body aud giving delight and entertainment TO
the mind, thereby highly conducive TO health,
but II was especially esteemed among the an
clients, as warlike exercise.
| According 10 Xenophon, some Of the most
renowned heroes Of antiquity, Theseus, Tor in
stance Castor, Pollux, Ulysses, Diomedes,
Achilles, and many others, by hunting dis
ciplined their feelings, and moulded their char
acters for war-their exploits against wild
beasts being sort Of prelude 10 their other vic
| torlous trlumphs In short, they all strove to be
reputed and in reality 10 be regular Nimrods,
Initiating the example of that mighty hunter,
4 who
| ---" first made on beasts
And stained the woodland green with purple dye"
assiduously applying themselves 10 the acquisi-
ton OF the art of hunting, as something that
would be vastly servlceable TO them in military
discipline.
Pliny observes, that those who were intended
for great commanders were always taught seer
tare cum tugacbus ferris cursu, cum audacibus
robore, cum callidis astu"
| ry strong evidence OF the respect in which
the gories of the chase were held in ancient
days, may be derived from the fact that the
classical poets both Greek and Latin, repeated
y allude to the subject. Virgirs description Of
1.-The getting up of hunting for Dido and HIneas
must be familiar TO all our classical readers:
| g In menus lite parant, ub prmus crastinus ortus
Extulent Itan radlisque retexer,t orbem,
Dunn 'repdant a9, saltusque indagne cngunt," &C.
| In the above lines Didos and Eneas prepare
| to go on a party of hunting III menus ire pa
RAM, Z. e. they prepare 10 go into the woods, as
soon as Titan (used here in the sense of Sol
the SUM dscloses the world by his beams, (Ra-
dns.) The third line is very significant also
| Ala sgnited the hunters on horseback stretch
| ed over the ground at their respective stands,
from one extremity of the drive to the other like
stretched out wings. Irepiddnt conveys an
idea Of the hurry and hustle of the party, scam
pering pell nell over the ground, after the game
| has been started
Quadrupedante putrem sonitu quit ungola
campum, as Virgil remarks elsewhere, describ-
ing the gallop of highmettled racer, shaking
the ground with his hoofs. BY the expression
| Imagine, some commentators understand the
| custom of arranging the hounds to scent the
game; what is termed in England Throwing
off, but in our country putting the dogs in"
| The happy day at last dawns, and the chase
commences; but let us follow the words of the
| poet: 4
Oceanum interea surgeons Aurora reliquit
II ports jubare exorto delecta juventus
Retia rara, plag9, lato venabula ferro
Massilque ruunt EQUITIES, ct odora canum Wis.
Regnan thaamo cunctantem al limina print
P9norum cxpcctant: ostroque insgnis ct aHro
Stat sonipes, ffGa ferox spumantia mandit.
Tandem progreditur, magma stipante caterva,
Sdonlam picto chamgdem circumdata limbo:
Cui phaIetra ex auro: crimes nodantur in aurum.
Aurea purpurcam subnectit fibual western
Necnon ct Phrygii comites, ct l9tus julius
lncedunt pse ante aos pulcherrImus omnes
Intert Sc sociom Eneas, atque agmina jungn:
Postquan altos venlum in monies, aqne invia
lusra
Erce ferg saxi drjec,G veitice capr9
Decurrere jugs ALA de pare patentes
Transmittunt cursu campus, atque agmina cervi
Pulverulenta fuga gomerant, montesque ren-
guunt
AT puer Ascanius mediis in vallihus acri
Gaudet equo; janque hos cursu, jam prGterit mos ::
Spumanlemque dari pecora inter inertia volts
Optat aprum, aut fulsum descendere monte leonem
Some very interesting particulars are present
ed TO us in the above description, which we must
not pass over without comment. They not only
furnish US with incidents which are expressly
part of the subject under consideration, but as
being highly poetcal-adapted to receive either
the most beautiful turns of poetry, or the most
| striking embellishments of the painter.
In the MINDS eve we at once see the horse
men assembling that were TO take part IN the
hunt, with their spears Of broad point, Eat The
present day they would have carried guns, Joe
Mantons instead of the "lato vcnabua ferro.) J
We see multitude of strong scented dogs,
odora canum Wis, and beautiful palirey stand
ing ready, richly caparisoned in purple and gold
for the Dido Can any thing be finer than the
image of the courscr here given-not only ferox
mandlt srunantia frTna, but he i presented
as covered with Tyrian cloak, circumdata Sy-
DOMAIN whilst Dido, with golden culver,
like another Diana, is in superb hunting dress,
(the chlamys,) covering the breastplate and
ldn. lI.,f IniI
wild animals thar might be started. HIneas,
Apoo.ike, makes his appearance and joins the
party.
- Ipse ante alios pulcherrmus omnes
lnert Sc sucium Eneas, atque agmina junglt"
The hunt then commences, but as IL is soon in
terrupttd, we will not dwell upon it.
Virgil touches upon the chase in other places
in the Kned And, as properly belonging TO
the same subject, IN his Third George he gives
some hints as to dogs, and what is a very re-
markabe coincidence. indeed, he directs that
they should be fed on buttermilk. "Pa,ce sero
pnguI'-feed with buttermik-a suggestion
that has not been thrown away upon our South
ern friends b, ttermilk at the present day forms
very considerable item in the food of young
dogs at the South we SHALL therefore hence
forth be induced To entertain an additional de-
gree OF respect for our sporting friends In this
region demo. .strating as they have manlfesty
done in this particular, such decided Difference
for classical authority.
The poet Ovid makes occasional illusions TO
the chase, and TO different kinds of sporting dogs
Graius Fascus, too, contemporary of Ovid
wrote a long poem on Hunting, in which he
describes the different varieties of hounds. The
Lybian breed he seems to prefer
F" No worthless race, no vulgar country blends
To cross the Lyb,an breed !"
and he gives us the information that certain
Hagnon, son of Estylus, was the first to bind
the hounds in slips