William Blane, William Somervile

“ Dogs should never be taken out to hunt unless they eat their food heartily, for if they do not, it is a sign that they are not healthy; neither if there is a high wind, for it dissipates the scent and prevents their hunting, neither can the toils or nets stand.
When neither of these things hinder, they should be taken out every third day. They should never be suffered to hunt Foxes, as that does them the greatest damage, and [22] they never are steady when it is necessary. ”

“ In the winter, the autumn, and the summer, the trail is for the most part straight, but in the spring it is more perplexed; for, though these animals copulate at all times, they do it chiefly at that season, and their necessary wandering on that account in search of each other occasions it.
The scent of the Hare going to her form lasts longer than that of her course when pursued. When she goes to her form she goes slowly, often stopping, but her course when pursued is performed running ”

“ I am there censured for adopting the technical Hunting Language of the present day; but, besides the curiosity of perceiving that the hunting phrases, and even the hollows, of the Antient Greek sportsman, exactly resembled those of the modern English one,it will be found impossible to render the original at all intelligible in a translation by any other means. I think the notes on the following pages will fully shew, that it is very difficult for a general Greek scholar to translate a Treatise on any particular Art, without being in some degree versed in that Art himself. ”

“ If she ran straight forward these things would seldom happen to her; but running a ring, and loving the places where she was bred and has fed, she is taken; for Hares, when followed by the foot, are not often caught by the speed of the dogs, but they are taken, contrary to the nature of the animal, by accident; for no animal of the same size equals the Hare for swiftness, her body being constructed in this manner:
The head is light, small, inclining downwards, and narrow in front. ”

“ To take the trail of the Hare the dogs should be drawn [9] from the cultivated fields upwards; (i. e. towards the mountains;) but those who do not come into cultivated places must be tried for in meadows, marshes, by streams, on rocks, or in woods. When the Hare is moved there should be no hollowing, lest the dogs, being made [10] too eager, should be hardly brought to find the scent. ”

“ And it becomes also perplexed when Foxes have passed over it before.
In the spring, on account of the mild temperature of the air, the trail would be very strong, if the earth, being full of flowers, did not puzzle the dogs, by mixing with it the odour of the blossoms. In the summer it is slight and imperfect; for the earth being hot, it destroys the warm particles it contains; and the scent itself is not only slight, but the dogs also smell less, on account of the relaxation of their bodies. In the autumn it is pure ”

“ And, when the Hare is found, if the puppies promise to have much foot, they should not be let slip immediately, but, when the Hare is got fo far as to be out of sight, then they may be let go. For, if those, who are high-mettled and swift of foot, are let go while the Hare is near, and catch a view, being very eager, they will be apt to strain themselves before their limbs have sufficient strength; therefore the Huntsman should be very cautious of this. But, if they are slow of foot, nothing hinders their being let slip directly ”

“ But there are other persons whose suffrages I am very desirous of obtaining, that may be inclined to look with disdain on a Work that treats chiefly of Hare-hunting, and seems to give it the preference to all the diversions of the fame kind. I mean the noble fraternity of Fox-hunters. As a Sportsman, I would carefully deprecate the resentment of so respectable a body, nor presume to defend the Author of the following Letters, in questioning the allowed superiority of Fox-hunting over the humbler
sports of the Hare-chace. ”

“ But that Laws should be made to prevent the man, whose family depends entirely on his labor for support, from quitting his flail, his plough, or his spade, to range the woods for the destruction of animals, which afford a noble and manly diversion to their Proprietor, I can conceive no more inconsistent with justice, than that he should be prevented from entering the orchard or the hen-roost. ”

“ I much question whether our morals, or even our manners, are greatly improved by that style of living, which empties our country feats to fill the metropolis, or the large provincial towns; and whether the manly character that once distinguished the Englishman has not suffered more on the side of firmness and integrity, than it has gained on that of politeness and elegance, by sacrificing the rough sports of the Field to the softer amusements of the Assembly and Card Table. ”

“ A healthy frame of body is to the full as necessary for our happiness as a sound disposition of mind. The Roman Satirist joins them together in his prayer, and, indeed, the latter is never perfectly attainable without the former. ”

“ The tail is inconvenient for running, being not proper to guide the body on account of its shortness: but she does that with either of her ears; and when she is near being taken by the dogs, she lays down one of her ears and stretches it out toward the side in which she thinks she shall suffer hurt, by which means she turns instantly, throwing the dogs that are dashing at her a great way behind. ”

“ I know the laws which are in force to preserve those Animals which are the objects of this diversion, are severely attacked by the sentimental Novel Writers of the present time: writers who, without invention, humour, or real knowledge of mankind, dress up some improbable tale with affected maxims of fine feeling, and exquisite sensibility, and endeavour to weaken the hearts, enflame the passions, and mislead the understandings of the rising generation. ”

“ And when no game is found [19] , all the hunting apparatus should be entirely taken away.
The accoutrements of the dogs consist in a [20] collar, a leather leading thong, and a surcingle to guard the body. The collar should be soft and broad that it may not rub off the dogs hair; the leading thong should have a knot for the hand to hold by, and nothing more; neither do those lead their dogs well who make part of the thong serve for a collar; the surcingle should have broad thongs that they may not gall the belly of the dog [21] , and sharp points are sewed on it to preserve the breed. ”

“ When the puppies can run about, they should have milk for the first year (which is a proper food for them at all seasons) , and nothing else, for the filling them with too heavy food will distort their legs, fill their bodies with diseases, and hurt their inside. ”

“ Now to gain this in a compleat manner, more exercise is certainly requisite than the tasked hour of walking or riding, which the Man of Literature or Business with difficulty persuades himself to snatch from his favorite employments. ”

“ When they are found and pursued, they will cross streams, or double, or hide themselves in deep vallies, and roll themselves up; for they are not only afraid of dogs, but of eagles, for they will sometimes carry off Hares under a year old as they pass over [11] high and exposed places; but larger ones are only taken by the pursuit of dogs.
The mountain Hares are swiftest, those bred in a plain country less so, but the marsh Hares are the slowest of any. Those who wander in all places are the most difficult to pursue, for they know the nearest ways. ”

“ The bitch puppies should be first taken out to hunt at eight months old, and the dogs at ten, but do not let them loose during the trail, but, keeping them tied in long leather slips, suffer them to follow the dogs that are trailing, letting them also go over the scent. ”

“ When they are near the Hare, they discover it to the Huntsman by shaking violently not only their tails but their whole bodies, by rushing on in a warlike manner, by trying to surpass each other in speed, by running eagerly together, by now crowding close, and then dispersing, and then again rushing on, till at length they come to the seat of the Hare, and run in upon her. ”

“ Besides, though the Middle-aged and the Phlegmatic may prevail on themselves to take these regular airings, the Young and the Sanguine must have some active enjoyment to call them forth; for they never will quit the most trifling, or even vicious pursuit, that engages their attention within doors, unless they have some other equally interesting to call them to the field. ”

“ After this, taking down the nets and toils, and calling off the dogs, he should give over the sport, staying somewhere, if it is the heat of the day in summer, lest the feet of the dogs should be scorched by the way.
The best time for breeding dogs is in the winter, when the labors of the chace are over, the quiet of that season, and the approach of spring, being most likely to contribute to form a generous race, for that time of the year agrees best with the growth of dogs. The time the bitch is fit to admit the male lasts a fortnight ”

“ There is, however, perhaps, no nicer point in the pursuits of Literature, than to discriminate nicely between adopting or rejecting modern phrases in translations from the Antient Writers. It is what we can hardly lay down rules for, though perhaps we may feel the distinition. ”

“ The puppies when they are whelped should be left with the mother, and not put to another bitch; for the care of others is not so good for their growth; the milk and even the breath of the mother is better for them, and her caresses more endearing. ”

“ And, perhaps, both the Active and the Literary may pay some deference to opinions backed by the authority of so respectable a name as that of Xenophon, who did not disdain to write a Treatise on Hunting. Though he considers that exercise as a proper school for forming the warrior, he evidently gives the preference to Hare-hunting. ”

“ She is so prolific, that at [7] the same time she will have young ones, be bringing forth others, and have newly conceived. The scent of young Hares is stronger than that of full grown ones; for, their limbs being tender, their whole body drags on the ground. ”

“ But, as the Author of the first of these Treatises justly observes, in many instances the various kinds of hunting are closely connected, and whatever be the game pursued, every Huntsman is equally interested in the breeding and education of the Hound, the nature of the scent, and the general rules of the chace. ”

“ When the earth begins to vegetate, she is found oftener in cultivated places than among mountains; but wherever she sits she continues even while they are trailing to her, unless she has been much alarmed in the night, in which case she will move. ”

“ And, when he finds where they are, if they are still on the scent, he should come up to them and encourage them, calling each dog by his name as often as possible, and changing the tone of his voice to harsh, or soft, loud, or low, according to the circumstance. ”

“ The person who stands at the nets gives a particular hollow, to signify whether she runs into them, or escapes by going beyond them, or turning short. If she is taken, they try for another; if not, they continue to pursue her, following the instructions already given. ”

“ When she wakes she winks her eyelids, but when she sleeps she keeps them continually open without motion, having her eyes fixed; she moves her nostrils frequently when sleeping, but less often when awake. ”

“ If they perceive the dogs first they stop, and, sitting on their breech, raise themselves up, and listen if they can hear any noise or opening of the dogs near them, and then turn from the place where they hear it. ”

“ When they are pursued they are most conspicuous as they go over plowed land, if they have any red about them, and through stubbles, on account of their reflecting the rays of light: they are also conspicuous in paths and highways, if they happen to be level ”

“ This may, indeed, just suffice to keep off the dreadful consequences which must inevitably attend an entirely sedentary life; but will never give that state of robust, and, if you will, of rude health, which no one who ever enjoyed will ever affect to despise. ”

“ The tail of one is variegated on every side, that of the other is [15] more conspicuous from being whiter. The eyes of one sort are yellowish, of the other greyish, and the black at the tip of the ears is large in the one and small in the other. ”

“ The dogs being brought to the wood so tied, each separately, that they may easily be let slip, and the nets being pitched, and a man placed at them to watch, the Huntsman himself, taking the dogs with him, goes in search of the game. ”

“ When she sits, the lower parts of her joints are covered by her belly. Her fore legs are most commonly close together, and extended, resting her chin on the extremity of her feet; her ears are extended over her shoulders, and she particularly covers her tender parts ”

“ He had before used the word εύναιος to express a Hare going to her seat, in contradistinction to her running when pursued; and which he now explains ο μέν ούν εύναιος, ποιούμενος ευνήν.The Latin translator, by not attending to this, has made nonsense of this passage. "Lepus cubans est qui cubile fibi struit." "A Hare is said to be lying when she is making her form." ↑ Δρομαῖος. The words εὐναῖος and δρομαῖος relate to the Hare herself in this paragraph, and not to her course ”