Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-10-05

staghound expert of all France, pro-
claims them to be the only natural
change dogs in the world. Her own
Vendean animals are fools in comparison.
yet bloodhounds." says the duchess,
"in spite Of their infallible scent, will not
do for fashionable hunting. Today, with
blooded horses and what amounts to a
new type OF dog. the stag Is taken by
speed. The modern hunter wants to
finish by lunch time"
Yes. but the sheriff don't The sheriff
has time to go slow, and sure. Every
rural police center of France ought to
have st. Hubert dogs to trail down
burglars. providers and evildoers.' she
says. The police dogs Of cities are alto
gether different The st. Hubert is slow,
houn' dog. and not combative, but he
is the only born trailer remaining. The
security Of country districts cries aloud
for him. which is his vindication, after
all the centuries.
Now and again some thoughtful but
impractical person tried to reinsts.te the
bloodhound. but the times were not ripe
Such was Napoleon III, who exhibited a
pair in 1865, at the third Paris bench,
show. Though the race continued to
exist in several parts of France, he had
procured the pair in England and the
dog antiquaries, then as now, made no
doubt they were pure descendants of the
first famous race, the venerable and
antique r4ce Of st. Hubert
Existing as a remnant in France and
England, they now have their first real
chance. The public eye is on them. In a
few years thousands can be bred
They have. suddenly. great reputation.
Marvellous tales are told Of their success
in following the frebIgs who burned the
garage in Cauterets. Over Travelled roads,
in and out villages, across one mountain
pass and over running water at the end Of
the fourth day and in pelting rain. they
obstinately sat and bayed at the kitchen
door of Spanish road-mender Canton
nier)-in quasi-governmental functions,
and unsuspected-who was sheltering the
evil-ooers. doubtless innocently.
They are not likely to succeed in mod
ern staghunting. in spite of the enthu-
siasm Of Comte Lecouteulx. They are
overcautious, slow of foot and unmelo-
dious. compared with the new dogs. But
what heredity!
X
They held royal favor from before Char
lemagne until the epoch Of the Crusades.
Then st. Louis. being in the Holy Land.
procured specimens of a race of hounds
of Tartary. whose descendants became
'the great gray dogs of st. Louis known
to legend. The great grays did not last,
and you will see the marvellous old st.
Hubert strain required. again and again,
In the mating of the new royal races.
ST. Hubert blood Is found even in the
modern Vendeans of the Duchesse-and lit
tells the story. Going back in the long
mixed descent of such present-day ami
mails. their pure Vendean line springs
from two historic animals whose race
In its turn, triumphed over the great gray
dogs. poor Vendean gentleman pre-
sented to Louis XII a white dog marked
with orange; his name was Greffier and
Hubert bloodhound (called in England
today the Talbot dog), with dash Of
mastim blood. Grefiier was mated to
female of his color and marking. no less
tie dog Of Anne of France. daughter Of
Louis XXI. Baude seems to have been a
prague (poacher's dog Of England). re-
,embling our pointer From this union
descended the white dogs Of the king"
centuries Of royal favor. Then. being
finally supplanted by the Normans, they
continued to be used only in the Vendee,
district Of their origin. And the trium-
Simply cross between these same Ven
deans and-guess?-white st. Hubert
There Is nothing like the old blood.
hound race for scent, but fashionable
hunting asks more Of a dog than scent.
It demands an assemblage of qualities
If which scent Is but one. It may seem
absurd to object to st. Huberts that their
notes lack sweet melancholy. Yet
voice has become Of first Importance.
The hounds. following the stag, give
1oice continually. melodiously,
Behind them. often at considerable dis
.ance. the tones for. the dogs Of the