New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-07-09

ored the spectacle being less attractive than wheh
they are stag or foxhounds. But there VIII 10
large muster Of men on foot. with poys' eVcn
women and girls. all looking forward to great ell
joyment when tho hounds are cast OIL Aiter uue
grace has been given for the laggards TO get up
the casting of is done in some near held' whele
there NAV be hone of finding hare. With fox
hounds it would be in wood or cover; so thosc
who hunt with barriers have better opportunity
| of witnessing them at their work; not only tue
search and quaiterngs but the chase itself For
Mt the aTaly-how Rcynard is off, and soon out OF
sight with little hope of being seen again. at least
by the foot following; while the "Niew-hallooF
which signals the start OF the hsre imparts no snc
cherries prospect. Instead, IRON convenient
hilltop view of the whole chase can often Do
commanded from beginning to end whether IL ter
inmate in n kill or in Puss outwitting the hounds
by a double or temporary retreat into some thich
covert of bushes. For this reason, though hunting
with barriers may be an inferior sport TO 1ox-hun'
ing as regards those horseback, 1t IS certainty
NOT so for the foctfolowng but rather the reverse
More especially is this the case in districts OF coNc
less open country, where the hare will often Ieau
| the honnds n long continuous chase; rs. for In
stance in treeless Ireland. There remember nav
inc ridden after barriers IN pursuit of the same mare
| from II A. m till in the afternoon; not III
STRAIGHT run but around hills with many turnings
and ,oublings as also intervals or lOst SCENT III III
of which an Irish hare will display quite as much
| cunning as a fox and frequently throw hounds
ont. | NAV observe that the Irish hare is OF
different species from that of England and although
not so long in the legs, is. believe swfter OF foot
If So It would he Ill cOnsonance with the Dar-
winian theory of adaptation to circumstances since
in country where there is little or no cover 10
conceal the chased ANIMAL only by swiftness can 1t
escape
Hunting with beagles is regarded as a speciality
of the chase even lower in degree than hunting
with barriers. Some, however. follow it with zest
and there are certain circumstances in its favor.
mack of these Llputian hounds costs little in the
keeping; and from their slow pace they can be
followed on foot as they often are; thus saving
horse expenses. They are also employed in hunt
ing rabbits that is running them out CT cover into
the open so that sight nav be got OF
them tor the gun. Many OF the
so-called beagle packs, however as already said,
are more than half harrers some indeed altogether
so. and usually distinguished as heagle-harrers
Otter-huntIng is another English sport in which
hounds are employed, these being of a small breed,
and rough-coated the long hair making them better
fitted for enduring cold while in the water. But
indeed most hounds can be trained to otter-hunt-
ing and in the packs-0f which there are several
or foxhounds that have not proved up to much in
the nobcr chase, and so got disbanded from it, The
otter still exists in many English streams; though
it is more abundant in those of Wales and Scot
land where most of the packs are kept up. AS its
hunt is necessarily along a rivers bank and gen.
erally over q rough ground, horses are not available
for it; the following being all afoot. Sometimes
the otterhunters appear in costume, though there
is no regulation dress either in cut or color as with
barriers and fox-hOnnds. Each hunt has It's own,
adopted according to fancy, just as with archery
clubs Pictures Of DETERMINING show men armed
with spears, and usually the otter hoisted upon one
This is a thing of the past; or, when designed to
represent scene of present time, it is only an
artists fancy. The modern otter-hunter OF England
carries no spear, nor anything of the SORT
Last in the list of English venene is hunting with
greyhounds, which is technically termed cours-
ing" the greyhounds themselves being in like
ner called dogs not hounds, by those who follow
the sport OF this no description need here be
given as doubtless most Americans are familiar
with it, They may not know, however, to what eX-
tent it is practsed in England nor were 1T easy to
say how many greyhounds are kept for it. since
they are not in packs, but of private ownership,
and distributed everywhere. But the number must
be enormous, in every parish there are several,
and in every shire hundreds, while the towns and
villages have their quota as well. lraucSlnen
gwen to sporting much affect them, and farmers
still more The expense is trhng, only the cost of
the "dOgs" keep, or couple of them, with the
dogtax of seven shillings and sixpence, which has
to be paid for any other kind of canine. Thus the
sport is within reach of anyone having leave to
course" over land privilege not very difficult to
obtain But there is a factor at the bottom
of coursing very different from any ideas of sport
Tho s2nc 777cii ;:adSios nearly every pastime in
England-that is, gambling. Writers moraze over
the bells of Homburg and Monaco, turning up Peck
snifian noses, as though shocked at the infamy of
such institutions in other lands while in England
itself gaming is passion universal anywhere,
and as universally INDUCED in, with all its cheat
ing and trckery. In a respectable way, though
the word respectable is favOrte-and not by
card-paying and dice throwing; instead English
men make the swift foot of the greyhound. las the
hoof Of the race-horSe, subservent 10 it, SO there
are "coursing Matches" day and daily all over the
land with large sums of money laid upon them:
couple of greyhounds unleashed after poor hare
to run the creature TO death-specacle affecting AS
crnel All this is recorded in due form and soem-
nifty not only in newspapers specially devoted to
sport but those highest in the ranks of journalistic
iteratnre-aye, i'll all of them. 1t seems mental
pabuum as necessary to the people of England as
the daily column of Court news with the dOings of
Royalty and Nobility.