New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-01-29
THE MODERN BLOODHOUND.
ONE OF THE MOST AMIABLE OF DOGS.


From The London Spectator
The bloodhound trials held on the moors near
Scarborough are interesting rather as drawing
attention to a neglected AMI possibly valuable
form Of animal talent than for any cOntribu-
ton they made to our knowledge Of what these
dogs can do The runs were scarcely a mile
in length. and most OF the hounds acquitted
themselves creditably The result has shown
that after some century and half, during
which the breed has not been trained or eXer-
Cised in the work which was formerly the sole
object for which il was lept. the dogs readily
follow the trail Of "A n once, and at rapid
pace. But heather Is the best seeming ground
in England. and it was largely such moor
lands that the Border boodhounds were used
II only required To follow a single trail there
is little doubt hat the dogs would have gone
not one mile bu; ten In 1910 MI fCuatt wrote;
The ThrapstOne Association lately trained
Bloodhound for the detection Of sheep-stealers.
In order Ia prove the usefulness Of this dog, a
person h had not seen was ordered TO run as
fast and IS FAR as his strength would permit.
An hour arterward the hound was brought out.
He was placed Oh the spot where the man had
started. He almost Immediately detected tho
scent and broke away. and after chase or
an hour and a half found him concealed in A
tree fifteen miles distant" The figures require
the man 10 have kept up pace Of SIX miles an
hour not az all an improbable pace across couh-
try. The past history ~ the breed SHOWS that
this particular hound always has Teen used iOr
purposes OF police. and for nothing else. though
some enthusiastic "fancicrs' MAINTAIN mat ne
modern boodhounls have been established Tor
hunting tame deer and present very splendid
appearance. like the hounds that Thcseus
showed HippoIyta. except that the modern
bloodhound has straight legs instead Of being
"crook- knecd" But they never had and never
needed pace. like q f0XhOund or staghound for
much Of The tracking was done over country
where horse could 70. and even when cattle
were driven off boy mounted moss troopers, no
pace could ever be maintained across such
ground. " the party reached a place where
the track of cattle was clear they picked up
the dog and carried il across a Morse as the
dog had not the sI.eed 10 follow But the blood
hound though slow sure. II VAS a pure
blooded hound Of the ancient stock. kept en-
lirely for slow tracking by scent There was,
therefore, no inducement To impair this natural
Gift by crosses To give speed or courage. such
as were necessary 10 develop the foXhound ana
sfaghound. and II is still equipped with proba-
bly, the best powers of scent of any breed OF
Found.
The following first hand notes on the "apt-
tud4" # a young English bloodhound. absO-
Iutely unframed. show the material which the
breed presents for Development When a puppy
Il naturally followed its master by scent. put
ting its nose lwn al once on to the grass path
Of the garden. Later it was seen 10 pick up the
scent Of its master fOrty-eght hours old. and
run 10 for TWO miles home across gIaNeNy foot
maths near London II was taught ID an use
itself 1y hitting of his track and finding him
I'm 4 large wood which IL did very successfully
and on Eastbourue Downs often ran a three
mile course when thu ground was hard frozen
and SNOW was lEius i'm the hpii1Ws With a
sfr,r1 wind Blowing across the trail n ran
narluel with this. hut fr m fifty yards 90 one
hundred yards to l-eward. at such a headloug
pace that ii move than once went heat over
heels in snow drifts. Like almost All blood
hounds. tins was gentle animal and very
t-acEaDie. would fetch slippers. mind" babies
and u It's own accord struck up q friendship
with Tho police whose fire at the Office" he
frequently shared,