The Bourbon news. [volume] (Paris, Ky.) 1895-19??, 1897-11-12
VIRGINIA FOX HUNTERS
The Kind of Horses They Breed and
the Clubs That Exhibit.

the Clubs That Exhibit.
The fox hunters of Loudoun, Eau
quier, Prince William, Fairfax, Culpep-
er and Rappahannock counties, which
comprise in great part what is known
as Piedmont Virginia, are looking for
ward to season of fine sport, as there
are many well-bred horses in that field
this fall fit for the chase, and foxes are
reported to be plentiful. The farmers
are happy over abundant and lucrative
crops, and are now preparing for
royal holiday, with their horses and
dogs.
For the last five or six years consider
able attention has been paid by the Vir-
ginians to the development of the
hunting horse in that part of the state,
and the results which have been
achieved show that the breeding of that
class of stock has been conducted on
an intelligent and extensive scale.
Their hunters and jumpers, which are
the get of thoroughbred sires crossed
on general utility mares, are classed as
half and three-quarters bred. By ex-
perimenting on these lines it has been
discovered that such standards are the
most desirable for steeplechasing and
the hunting field.
1t is imperative that good bone"
shall figure in the anatomy of cross
country stock, and for this reason it is
believed to be a mistake to cultivate
its lineage up to that of the thorough
bred. The Virginians are not only
painstaking and intelligent breeders,
but they have studied the art of train
ng, or schooling" as it is termed in
hunting circles. and added to this is
remarkable knack for riding, which is
common among them. The conse-
quence is they have established profit
able industry, and find ready markets,
not only in Washington and Baltimore,
| but in Philadelphia, New York and
Boston, and have even supplied horses
! to the officers of the English garrison
stationed at Jamaica.
The Upperville Colt club, the Warren
| ton Hunt, the Prince William Horse
mems association at Manassas, the
Hamilton horse show and the Culpeper
Horse and Colt club are the chief organ
| izations which are promoting the horse
interest in that region, and the races
and shows which they held last sum-
mer demonstrated a notable improve
ment, not only in the saddler, but the
driver as well.
One of the most successful stock farms
in the state devoted to the breeding of
trotters is "Millburn," in Fauquier
county, which is under the manage
ment of Messrs. Marshall and Thomp-
son, of Warrenton. The head of their
stud is Gov. Stanford, with a record Of
1921. He took first prize at Philadel-
phia in 1893, and was the winner of the
Breeders stake at Detroit as a four
year-old, his sire bcing the great Elec-
tioneer, with $50 ia the 2:30 class.
Reynard IS conceded to be one of the
shrewdest productions of nature
wherever he may abide; especially so is
the red-haired member of his family,
who dwells among the wooded recesses
and rocky Businesses of the spurs of
the Blue Ridge. Old hunters in that
section say that it is a singular fact
that the gray fox almost invariably
makes his home in the lowlands, where
as the red fox, which is much the gamer,
has his den among the hills.
This red fox of the Piedmont country
is genius at stratagem. He can swim
like a duck, run like a race horse for a
mile, climb a tree or crawl into squir-
rel hole, though he generally disdains
such base subterfuges if he has any
thing like fair start of the dogs. He
also has a wonderful knowledge of
scent, and his mind is a map of the
country. He delights in checkmating
his pursuers when they are most san
guine of their game.
He has been known to give hunters q
straight run of ten miles, and frequent
ly makes a grand Recommendations" of
twice that distance, when he displays
his remarkable powers of speed, en-
durance and deception. Craftiness is
the code of this theiving vagabond of
the woods, who leads such a gay and
gypsy-like existence, but whose death
is invariably tragedy.-Baltimor
Sun.