The New York herald., 1922-04-02
Horse Still King in Ireland for Racing and Money Makng
Specially Made of Selling High Class Jumpers to England

OpGCldlCy
Special Correspondence Of The NEw YORK
Copyright, 1899. ly THE NEw YosE HEsAIn
New York Herald Bureau,
Dublin. March 22.
Hunting in Ireland means fox hunt
ing and nothing else. And any one
who has seen or been hunting in ire
land at the very utterance of the word
sees picture brilliant and gay with
a background that only Ireland could
supply. Irish hunting is not merely
the expensive joy Of the landed rich
there are landed poor-it is almost an
industrialized sport supported by those
who gain from both It's industrial side
and its sporting side. The man who
breeds the horse, the man who rears
the horse, the man who deals in the
horse. the man who does little but live
to ride a horse and the man who
vets the horse. all have vested in
terest in hunting.
Likewise the dog breeder. the farm
ers in more than one way, the local
cobbler, tailor and universal provider,
and the man, whatsoever he be. over
whose land the hunt passes and whose
skill in the compilation OF a bill for
damages" willingly and promptly paid
by the hunt club, is uncanny. all bene-
fit by "the hunt" And for the most
part. all attend Il.
Hunt clubs are distributed more or
less evenly all over Ireland. There are
twenty-five official packs" Ca pack
means so many couples Of hounds),
but there are many more unofficial
ones. a fee OF about SIS is exacted--
often literally-from members, and no
tices are served upon them in time to
prepare for the next meet" OF the
hounds. Prepare may mean buying a
horse. borrowing horse, or condition
ing a horse which it is hoped some
one at the hunt will borrow and ulti-
mately buy. For no matter how good
! the horse may look or actually be, II
is borrowed a good many times before
it is really sold.
Approaches Hard Labor.
| Those who smile at the idea Of fox
hunting have far less ground for their
| caustic comment in Ireland than in any
| other country where the sport IS IN
Iulged in Hunting over Galway coun-
try. for instance, is an exercise as nearly
approaching hard labor as anything IN
tile world. And there is more lunlbago
in hunting districts after the first hunt
OF the season than IN all tho rest OF
the year combined. Long gallops over
| big smooth fields is pleasure Confined
to only one or two counties in Ireland.
| C:allops OF an hour and a half have been
known in the counties Of Meath and Kill
dare, but in other parts Of the country,
ard especially in the West, hedges.
bitches fences, gates, bogs, flint-strevn
roads and fields inches deep with mnd
are more the lot OF the hunter
| There Is as big an element of danger
! ir fox hunting here as could be fur-
nished by most other sports in which all
| ,an indulge. The jumping. which Is per-
| ,aps the real raison d'etre OF hunting, i
never under any circumstances without
1 its thrill Even the Oldest and hardest
hunter experienced within him when
taking his jump yesterday something of
the same thrill as he did when he MADE
| his first.
The best horse at the hunt is the horse
whose jumping is "clcanest." not the one
who IS the speediest. And in this con
| nectiou IL is remarkable to see the fine
point to which huntsmen here have
brought the selection OF the horse TO
the country" In the County Sligo, for
| instance. it would be hard to find one
single thoroughbred in hunting fieid.
| The country over which the Sligo hunt
travels is no place for thoroughbred,
| the Sligo man says. The fields are 100
rough and hilly, the ground too treacs-
crous and the jumps are not "fier
| enough for the long -striding thorough
bred. In Sligo nearly everybody rides
the famous Irish half bred. the progeny
| Of thoroughbred sire and a plow
mare. the type of horse which IS the
very backbone of the Irish hunter
stock. He is faster over bad field than
any thoroughbred and his knowledge OF
| how TO negotiate a stone wall stuck on
TOP OF a steep stony bank with dirty
! boggy ditch on the opposite or II. 10
something 10 which his more aristocrauc
brother can never attain
Meets Picturesque.
The scene provided BY hunt IN Ire Ire
land is wonderfully picturesque. Inc
meet" IS generally at IL o'clock N some
chosen demesne. The whippers-in decked
.....- -nd l,Iarly and white cos