New-York tribune., 1901-09-07
SPORTING BOOKS.
HUNTING TALES AND RACING TABLES.

SPORT IN EUROPE. Edited by Z; G. Ahalo
Caldwell and F. F. T. Bennett and from Photo
graphs Quarto, PIP xii. iSS E. p Dutton
RACING CALENDARS. IssllSss. Compiled by
PIP 20 257. 255 Printed not Published. by W.
G Whitney
THE BRITISH THOROUGHBRED HORSE. His
History ana Breeding. Together with an Ex-
position OF the Figure System BY William
piece and Ten Other Illustrations octave, pp-
xiii. ls4. f. p Dutton & Co
"sport in Europe" a thick profusely illustrated
volume. contains a series of articles from the
pens Of representative native sportsmen whose
experiences have qualified them TO give accurate
descriptions of the of sport obtainable in
their respective countries. BY sport the editor
OF the volume means shooting. fishing and hunt
ing TO hounds. The Duke Of Frias, in his
count OF shooting and fishing in Spain. devotes
nearly his entire attention to the royal and
other preserves TO which the average foreigner
could scarcely gain admission. Other writer's
take particular pains TO emphasize the pre-
lminaries necessary before foreigner can
enjoy certain sports in their countries. Some
of these preliminaries are interesting. In Ger
many, the Baron Donald Sch0nberg informs US,
a shooting license is necessary everywhere. 1t
costs all the way from l. TO 20 shiilings. and
is valid only for the State where it is issued.
The foreign sportsman in Germany is warned.
too, of ancient customs which he viii be ex-
pected TO observe. one Is me Sueche, or
game parade OF which the author says:
At the end OF a DAYS shoot the game is col
lected and laid out carefully in due order or
merit, and then the master and his guests eN-
anime il, generally just before or after dinner
Often after dark when the castle ward or the
country house lawn is lit up by torches. and
the keepers sound the halali on their bugles, IL
is a pretty sight and a sporting conclusion 10 a
days sport. When big game is shot with the
rifle or hunted with TIE hounds the keeper or
the master breaks t,yig, touches with II the
Tho nCGTT
hunter on the top OF his doffed hat. The twig
may be worn that day only.
That standards OF sport differ il many Euro
pean countries from those that obtain here is
evident. Several of the writer's of this volume
speak with apparent, or, at least. tacit APP
provaI Of bags Of game SO great that they seem
10 imply little less than slaughter. In Denmark,
for example it appears that a bag of from one
10 two hundred hares in two days shooting is
not uncommon for a single gun. Another writer
informs US that in Belgium nineteen guns one
day bagged lilo head of hares, rabbits, roe
deer, pheasants and woodcock- A two days
drive" on the estate of Baron Wcot de Janee
bagged / 500 head. including twenty-nine roe
deer. But even this death list is overshadowed
by a tally OF thirteen days shooting on the
estate Of Count Frederic Wenckheim. in Hun
gary. Within that time twelve guns bagged
l2755 hares > 339 pheasants. 23s partridges.
l5,462 head! German notions of sport seem to
be more in accordance with Says the
Baron Donald Sch0nberg on this point: In his
sport. the average German does not belle his
Teutonic origin and his close Relationship 20 his
English brother. spor1 for him is not for show
or for the pot as with some Oriental and oJher
races. Like the Engiishman he IS refined in
his pleasure, not cruel to animals thorough
sportsman. who loves sport for its OWN sake"
He,-
that Lord Granville Gordon, who writes of
sport In the British Isles. is of the opinion that
the days OF foXhunting in England are nun
bered. 1T is doubtful" he says. IF foXhuntns
can long continue in, congested country like
England Bad agricultural seasons and barbed
wire point 10 its DOOM" He adds: I'm the
rocky glens and valleys Of Scotland the fox is
once foe 10 grouse and all game nuisance
10 the farmer ard a general pest. while in Eng
land he is animal to be reverenced AID in
dulged all spring and summer, 10 chased
with fierce hatred and bated breath al winter"
Especial pains now taken by european gov
ernmental authorities 10 preserve the norrhcrn
elk and reindeer, as well as the chAanois, me
ibex and the red deer. and the severity with
which poachers are treated is Illustrated by the
fact that in Germany pensions are granted the
widows OF gamekeepers killed on duty.
The volume under discussion contains several
the King" says the Portuguese writer. Of Don
Carlos I. shoots the quail quickly that he
kills them short distance from the muzzle Of
the dog that points them. My friend d. Fer
nando Manoel Atalaya always waits moment
when a cock and hen rise until they cross, and
then fires and kills them with shot. This
he does with the greatest accuracy" This book
affords something more than birdseye view
OF the field for the benefit of the intending Wis
itor. In the seventeen articles that compose II
the naturalist will discover something to interest
and enlighten him, while the lawyer may find
some significant phases Of sporting legislation.
The illustrations are many and Illuminating;
large number are from photographs. and among
these are two Of the late King Humbert of Italy.
with some hex trophies.
IN recent years Mr. William c. Whitney has
become one Of the foremost turfmen both in the
Old World and the New. His practical interest
in running horses is not Of very long standing;
but when he had once made up his mind TO con-
Germ himself with racing his undertakings were
on the largest and most liberal scale. He has
now two famous stables, one in this country and
another in England. His policy IN the manage
ment Of these and. in fact, in all his relations
with the sport, has been thorough" and il is
not surprising that he has assumed response
bility for the three well printed little volumes
in which the racing calendars Of thoroughbred
contests in the United States from 1861 to 1869
have just appeared. The tables have been com
piled with painstaking research by II. C. Crick-
more. very high authority racing lore in
the United States He is a turf historian 10
whom the slightest slip in citation the least
error in the summary OF race would be
source OF poignant regret.
In looking through these calendars racing men