Hare Hunting and Harriers
Grant Richards 1903
CHAPTER XVIII
SPORT WITH BASSET HOUNDS
Hunting with bassets a new feature - Bassets unknown in England before 1875
A very old Continental breed - Sir Everett Millais and the Earl of Onslow sponsors in this country
Rise of the basset - Different varieties - Colours - How used on the Continent - Hare-hunting bassets
Different packs - The Walhampton - Messrs, Heseltine - Their success with these hounds
Captain Heseltine’s account
of basset hounds and hunting - Statistics - Some fine runs
Patience required for this pursuit - Points of the basset
Woodcut of Everett Millais’
Basset Hound ‘Model’ (1879)
Hunting with basset hounds is a comparatively new
feature in British field sports. It dates back little
farther than fourteen or fifteen years, and, in fact,
may be said not to have been really established on
a businesslike footing until the Messrs. Heseltine
began to hunt regularly in the year 1891. It is not
a sport which, for various reasons, is ever likely to
oust beagles or harriers from their ancient popularity.
In the first place, bassets are much more difficult to
get hold of and more expensive to buy. In the second
place, although they have wonderful noses and are
most determined workers, they are, from their very
conformation, exceedingly slow, and take several
hours, usually from two to three, sometimes even
more, to wear down their quarry. This style of
hunting, although to the chosen few who love hound
work before anything else most interesting to watch,
is, to the average modern sportsman, inclined to be
tedious, and most men would, therefore, prefer to
take their pleasure with a faster type of hound. Still,
bassets have come to stay ; they are now growing
far more numerous than they were a dozen years
ago ; many fanciers have become greatly attached
to them ; there are a Basset Club and a Stud Book,
and each season, among the list of packs of hounds
hunting in these islands, there are to be found two or
three packs of these bizarre-looking, but wonderfully
handsome, hounds.
Before the year 1875, the basset hound was practically unknown in England. He had flourished for
ages upon the Continent, chiefly in France and Belgium,
as well as, to a lesser extent, in Austria and Germany,
where he had been employed for various purposes
connected with sport. But in England, prior to that
year, the Earl of Onslow was, I believe, the only person
who had ever kept bassets in this country. Lord
Onslow had, in fact, a kennel of these hounds before
the late Sir Everett Millais, who was, next to him,
the earliest introducer of them, appeared on the scene.
These had been presented to Lord Onslow by the
Comte Tournon de Montmelas. In 1875 Sir Everett
(then Mr.) Millais first exhibited one of these hounds,
the celebrated ‘Model’, which is still often referred
to as a typical hound of this curious breed. The
basset became quickly a fashion. Sir Everett Millais
did much to encourage fanciers, and even wrote a
monograph on the new importation,1 and before very
long - by the year 1883 - this hound had acquired so
much of fame and repute as to demand a Club of its
own, as well as a place in the Kennel Club Stud Book.
Since that time, the march of the basset has, among
connoisseurs who can afford the luxury of a new and
somewhat expensive fashion, been a triumphant one.
In 1883 there were but ten entries of these hounds in
the Kennel Club Stud Book, In 1896 there were no less
than ninety bassets entered at the Kennel Club Show.
Yet, although the basset has thus achieved a
not inconsiderable triumph in a comparatively short
period, he is still a somewhat scarce commodity, caviare
to the general public. A certain number have seen
him on the show benches, or walking abroad with his
master ; few have watched him at work in the hunting-
field. In appearance, the basset hound looks somewhat
like a handsome foxhound - with long ears, deepish
flews, and a somewhat old-fashioned type of head - set
on extremely squat legs, the fore-legs, especially, being
much bent inwards. As to the conformation of the legs,
they give, at first, the impression of this hound having
some kinship with dachshunds and the old English
turnspit. But, as a matter of fact, they are totally
distinct. The dachshund is a terrier, while the basset
is a pure hound of very ancient descent.
How long he has been bred in his present state it is impossible to say with anything like precision. By some authorities the basset, as found in France and Belgium, is placed in three classes :
Bassets a jamhes droites (or straight-legged bassets).
-
Bassets a jamhes demi-torses (with fore-legs half crooked).
-
Bassets a jamhes demi-torses (with fore-legs half crooked).
To these, again, three variations of coat are assigned,
smooth, rough, and half-rough. The rough-coated
variety is, by the way, known as the Griffon-basset.
The crooked-legged bassets are in most favour, and
are regarded as the best representatives of their race.
They show a finer type of hound head, with the long
pendulous ears, and other points laid down as desirable
in this kind of hound. Bassets run in all colours,
foxhound colour, blue-mottle, lemon-and-white, hare-
pie, black-and-tan, and whole red. Sir Everett Millais,
who studied the type most closely, favoured the tri-
coloured variety, that is, a hound with a tan head
and a black-and-white body. This type is still much
fancied. His well known hound, ‘Model’, weighed
forty-six pounds, and had the following measurements.
Shoulder height, twelve inches ; length, from tip of
nose to setting on of tail, thirty-two inches ; height
from ground, between fore-feet, two and three-quarter
inches. The texture of the coat is described as that
of a hound, by which one understands the modern
English foxhound.2
In La Vendee, Luxembourg, Alsace-Lorraine, and
other parts, where coverts are extensive, the rough-
coated basset seems to be most in favour, but this variety
is, as a rule, much scarcer than the smooth-coated
hound. The basset is an independent, determined
kind of hound. He prefers to take nothing on trust,
but, instead of giving tongue and joining in the cry
of the other hounds, which have already owned the
scent, likes to work out the line for himself and then
raise his voice. He has an extraordinarily delicate
sense of scent. On the Continent this race was,
apparently, used very largely for shooting purposes,
hunting the country for different kinds of game, and
driving it to the guns posted in various positions.
In the Ardennes, a bigger breed seems to have been
used for driving wolves, boar, and roe ; this is the
rough-coated kind, previously referred to. But in
various districts this useful hound was, and is, employed for all kinds of sport, including badger, vermin,
and even truffles. A good truffle-hound is, of course,
a real treasure. The basset is a most courageous
beast and takes readily to the chase of wolf, which
ordinary hounds are said to be not very keen about.
It is even stated that a well-bred basset will hunt a
wolf single-handed, which, considering his inferior size,
must be taken as evidence of very high mettle.
When these hounds were first used for hunting
hare in this country, it was quickly discovered that,
although they had wonderful noses and were infinitely
persevering, they had certain drawbacks which required correction. They are inclined, as I have
shown, to dwell too much on the line, and are somewhat too independent, and they are rather easily
frightened by the whip. Still, within the last ten
years they have shown excellent sport. I find, from
my ‘Field’ lists of hounds, that in 1895-96 three
packs of bassets were hunting, viz., the Walhampton,
the Wintershill, and the Wolvercote. In the next
season there were four, viz.. The Walhampton, the
Wintershill, the Delaprè, and Mr. Moss’s. In 1897-98
the Wintershill dropped out, and the Highworth
were added to the other packs. In 1898-99 three
packs remained hunting - the Walhampton, the Delapre,
and the Highworth. In 1899-1900 the Walhampton
apparently held the field alone, to be joined in 1900-01
by the Stoodleigh and the Knowlton. 1901-02
saw two packs again hunting - the ever-faithful
Walhampton and Mr. E. H. M. Denny’s, the latter
hunting from Chiddingstone Castle, Kent - the Knowlton and the Stoodleigh having retired. The Knowlton,
it is to be noted, were mastered and hunted by Miss
Gladys Peto, to whom two sisters and a brother acted
as whippers-in. During the season, 1902-03, the
Walhampton and Mr. Denny’s were joined by a new
pack, the Reepham, hunting near Lincoln.
From these particulars it would seem that many
people have tried hare-hunting with bassets for a short
time, usually a season or two, and have then abandoned
it. Whether they found that the sport was somewhat
slow, or that these dwarf hounds required more time
and patience in their education than they could afford
to give them, it is beyond me to say. Probably
both reasons led to their abandonment, after a brief
trial. In some few instances, no doubt, the pack was
started as a mere passing fad or fashion, the owner
having acquired a few couples of these hounds and
wishing to see how they would behave themselves in
the field.
The Walhampton pack, as will be seen, have alone
remained constant, season after season, to the sport
which they inaugurated in 1891. They have been
invariably mastered and hunted by the Messrs. Heseltine, Mr. Christopher Heseltine acting as Master, and
Captain Godfrey Heseltine having usually carried the
horn, except during his absence on service in South
Africa.
Captain Heseltine has been good enough to send
me particulars of the pack and accounts of some of
their best runs ; and the narrative seems to me so
instructive, not only in reference to sport with bassets,
but as regards hare-hunting generally, that I have
thought well to print it, in its entirety. It will be
noticed with what patience and care this pack has
been trained and matured to a successful issue, and
how disappointing, comparatively, were the first
essays in hare-hunting during the season of 1890-91,
when the hounds never killed a hare. It will be
noticed, too, how much more readily even bassets
can kill hares early in the season, i.e., in September,
October, and the early part of November, than later
on when hares are so much stronger. This is a point
that is often forgotten by young Masters of harriers
and beagles.
Here, then, follows Captain Heseltine’s account of
the Walhampton Basset Hounds :
“(i) The first couple of basset hounds we ever
possessed were given to us by Captain Peacock (late
M.F.H. Hertfordshire, Isle of Wight, etc.), in 1890,
and with four or five couples we used to chivey
about, but in April 1891, we purchased 9½ couples
from Mr. T. Cannon, Junr., of Danebury, and commenced hunting regularly in the season, 1891-2, and
I have a record of every day’s sport from then till
now. We commenced hunting badger in the New
Forest in July 1891, and had several good hunts,
both by moonlight and in the early morning, but gave
it up for hare-hunting in September, and have never
hunted anything but hare since. In the seasons 1891-2,
1892-3, the hounds hunted during term time at Cambridge, having their kennels at Chesterton ; the remainder of the season they hunted in the New
Forest, and around Lymington. Since 1892-3, with
the exception of the season, 1900-1, they have been
regularly hunted by the writer in the New Forest
and the neighbourhood of Lymington. The hounds
are the joint property of my brother and myself.
My brother is the Master of the pack, and I have
always hunted them, with the exception of Nov. 1894,
when my brother hunted them. At the present
moment (December 1903) kennels are being erected
at Canterbury, where I hope to hunt them till the end
of the season.”
“We have had as many as fourteen couples of
puppies at walk, but the last two seasons we have been
particularly unfortunate in not being able to breed
half that number, I do not think I got more than
four couples of whelps. In March 1896, we purchased
the whole of the late Major V. Ferguson’s pack of
basset hounds (15 couples), from which we made a
good selection ; and in August 1896, Prince Henry
of Pless presented us with the whole of his pack from
Germany, consisting of about 10 couples. And at
various times since then we have purchased small
packs, with a view to selecting some 2 or 3 hounds
to add to our pack.”
Hunting with basset hounds is a comparatively new
feature in British field sports. It dates back little
farther than fourteen or fifteen years, and, in fact,
may be said not to have been really established on
a businesslike footing until the Messrs. Heseltine
began to hunt regularly in the year 1891. It is not
a sport which, for various reasons, is ever likely to
oust beagles or harriers from their ancient popularity.
In the first place, bassets are much more difficult to
get hold of and more expensive to buy. In the second
place, although they have wonderful noses and are
most determined workers, they are, from their very
conformation, exceedingly slow, and take several
hours, usually from two to three, sometimes even
more, to wear down their quarry. This style of
hunting, although to the chosen few who love hound
work before anything else most interesting to watch,
is, to the average modern sportsman, inclined to be
tedious, and most men would, therefore, prefer to
take their pleasure with a faster type of hound. Still,
bassets have come to stay ; they are now growing
far more numerous than they were a dozen years
ago ; many fanciers have become greatly attached
to them ; there are a Basset Club and a Stud Book,
and each season, among the list of packs of hounds
hunting in these islands, there are to be found two or
three packs of these bizarre-looking, but wonderfully
handsome, hounds.
Before the year 1875, the basset hound was practically unknown in England. He had flourished for
ages upon the Continent, chiefly in France and Belgium,
as well as, to a lesser extent, in Austria and Germany,
where he had been employed for various purposes
connected with sport. But in England, prior to that
year, the Earl of Onslow was, I believe, the only person
who had ever kept bassets in this country. Lord
Onslow had, in fact, a kennel of these hounds before
the late Sir Everett Millais, who was, next to him,
the earliest introducer of them, appeared on the scene.
These had been presented to Lord Onslow by the
Comte Tournon de Montmelas. In 1875 Sir Everett
(then Mr.) Millais first exhibited one of these hounds,
the celebrated ‘Model’, which is still often referred
to as a typical hound of this curious breed. The
basset became quickly a fashion. Sir Everett Millais
did much to encourage fanciers, and even wrote a
monograph on the new importation,1 and before very
long - by the year 1883 - this hound had acquired so
much of fame and repute as to demand a Club of its
own, as well as a place in the Kennel Club Stud Book.
Since that time, the march of the basset has, among
connoisseurs who can afford the luxury of a new and
somewhat expensive fashion, been a triumphant one.
In 1883 there were but ten entries of these hounds in
the Kennel Club Stud Book, In 1896 there were no less
than ninety bassets entered at the Kennel Club Show.
Yet, although the basset has thus achieved a
not inconsiderable triumph in a comparatively short
period, he is still a somewhat scarce commodity, caviare
to the general public. A certain number have seen
him on the show benches, or walking abroad with his
master ; few have watched him at work in the hunting-
field. In appearance, the basset hound looks somewhat
like a handsome foxhound - with long ears, deepish
flews, and a somewhat old-fashioned type of head - set
on extremely squat legs, the fore-legs, especially, being
much bent inwards. As to the conformation of the legs,
they give, at first, the impression of this hound having
some kinship with dachshunds and the old English
turnspit. But, as a matter of fact, they are totally
distinct. The dachshund is a terrier, while the basset
is a pure hound of very ancient descent.
How long he has been bred in his present state it is impossible to say with anything like precision. By some authorities the basset, as found in France and Belgium, is placed in three classes :
Bassets a jamhes droites (or straight-legged bassets).
-
Bassets a jamhes demi-torses (with fore-legs half crooked).
-
Bassets a jamhes demi-torses (with fore-legs half crooked).
To these, again, three variations of coat are assigned,
smooth, rough, and half-rough. The rough-coated
variety is, by the way, known as the Griffon-basset.
The crooked-legged bassets are in most favour, and
are regarded as the best representatives of their race.
They show a finer type of hound head, with the long
pendulous ears, and other points laid down as desirable
in this kind of hound. Bassets run in all colours,
foxhound colour, blue-mottle, lemon-and-white, hare-
pie, black-and-tan, and whole red. Sir Everett Millais,
who studied the type most closely, favoured the tri-
coloured variety, that is, a hound with a tan head
and a black-and-white body. This type is still much
fancied. His well known hound, ‘Model’, weighed
forty-six pounds, and had the following measurements.
Shoulder height, twelve inches ; length, from tip of
nose to setting on of tail, thirty-two inches ; height
from ground, between fore-feet, two and three-quarter
inches. The texture of the coat is described as that
of a hound, by which one understands the modern
English foxhound.2
In La Vendee, Luxembourg, Alsace-Lorraine, and
other parts, where coverts are extensive, the rough-
coated basset seems to be most in favour, but this variety
is, as a rule, much scarcer than the smooth-coated
hound. The basset is an independent, determined
kind of hound. He prefers to take nothing on trust,
but, instead of giving tongue and joining in the cry
of the other hounds, which have already owned the
scent, likes to work out the line for himself and then
raise his voice. He has an extraordinarily delicate
sense of scent. On the Continent this race was,
apparently, used very largely for shooting purposes,
hunting the country for different kinds of game, and
driving it to the guns posted in various positions.
In the Ardennes, a bigger breed seems to have been
used for driving wolves, boar, and roe ; this is the
rough-coated kind, previously referred to. But in
various districts this useful hound was, and is, employed for all kinds of sport, including badger, vermin,
and even truffles. A good truffle-hound is, of course,
a real treasure. The basset is a most courageous
beast and takes readily to the chase of wolf, which
ordinary hounds are said to be not very keen about.
It is even stated that a well-bred basset will hunt a
wolf single-handed, which, considering his inferior size,
must be taken as evidence of very high mettle.
When these hounds were first used for hunting
hare in this country, it was quickly discovered that,
although they had wonderful noses and were infinitely
persevering, they had certain drawbacks which required correction. They are inclined, as I have
shown, to dwell too much on the line, and are somewhat too independent, and they are rather easily
frightened by the whip. Still, within the last ten
years they have shown excellent sport. I find, from
my ‘Field’ lists of hounds, that in 1895-96 three
packs of bassets were hunting, viz., the Walhampton,
the Wintershill, and the Wolvercote. In the next
season there were four, viz.. The Walhampton, the
Wintershill, the Delaprè, and Mr. Moss’s. In 1897-98
the Wintershill dropped out, and the Highworth
were added to the other packs. In 1898-99 three
packs remained hunting - the Walhampton, the Delapre,
and the Highworth. In 1899-1900 the Walhampton
apparently held the field alone, to be joined in 1900-01
by the Stoodleigh and the Knowlton. 1901-02
saw two packs again hunting - the ever-faithful
Walhampton and Mr. E. H. M. Denny’s, the latter
hunting from Chiddingstone Castle, Kent - the Knowlton and the Stoodleigh having retired. The Knowlton,
it is to be noted, were mastered and hunted by Miss
Gladys Peto, to whom two sisters and a brother acted
as whippers-in. During the season, 1902-03, the
Walhampton and Mr. Denny’s were joined by a new
pack, the Reepham, hunting near Lincoln.
From these particulars it would seem that many
people have tried hare-hunting with bassets for a short
time, usually a season or two, and have then abandoned
it. Whether they found that the sport was somewhat
slow, or that these dwarf hounds required more time
and patience in their education than they could afford
to give them, it is beyond me to say. Probably
both reasons led to their abandonment, after a brief
trial. In some few instances, no doubt, the pack was
started as a mere passing fad or fashion, the owner
having acquired a few couples of these hounds and
wishing to see how they would behave themselves in
the field.
The Walhampton pack, as will be seen, have alone
remained constant, season after season, to the sport
which they inaugurated in 1891. They have been
invariably mastered and hunted by the Messrs. Heseltine, Mr. Christopher Heseltine acting as Master, and
Captain Godfrey Heseltine having usually carried the
horn, except during his absence on service in South
Africa.
Captain Heseltine has been good enough to send
me particulars of the pack and accounts of some of
their best runs ; and the narrative seems to me so
instructive, not only in reference to sport with bassets,
but as regards hare-hunting generally, that I have
thought well to print it, in its entirety. It will be
noticed with what patience and care this pack has
been trained and matured to a successful issue, and
how disappointing, comparatively, were the first
essays in hare-hunting during the season of 1890-91,
when the hounds never killed a hare. It will be
noticed, too, how much more readily even bassets
can kill hares early in the season, i.e., in September,
October, and the early part of November, than later
on when hares are so much stronger. This is a point
that is often forgotten by young Masters of harriers
and beagles.
Here, then, follows Captain Heseltine’s account of
the Walhampton Basset Hounds :
“(i) The first couple of basset hounds we ever
possessed were given to us by Captain Peacock (late
M.F.H. Hertfordshire, Isle of Wight, etc.), in 1890,
and with four or five couples we used to chivey
about, but in April 1891, we purchased 9½ couples
from Mr. T. Cannon, Junr., of Danebury, and commenced hunting regularly in the season, 1891-2, and
I have a record of every day’s sport from then till
now. We commenced hunting badger in the New
Forest in July 1891, and had several good hunts,
both by moonlight and in the early morning, but gave
it up for hare-hunting in September, and have never
hunted anything but hare since. In the seasons 1891-2,
1892-3, the hounds hunted during term time at Cambridge, having their kennels at Chesterton ; the remainder of the season they hunted in the New
Forest, and around Lymington. Since 1892-3, with
the exception of the season, 1900-1, they have been
regularly hunted by the writer in the New Forest
and the neighbourhood of Lymington. The hounds
are the joint property of my brother and myself.
My brother is the Master of the pack, and I have
always hunted them, with the exception of Nov. 1894,
when my brother hunted them. At the present
moment (December 1903) kennels are being erected
at Canterbury, where I hope to hunt them till the end
of the season.”
“We have had as many as fourteen couples of
puppies at walk, but the last two seasons we have been
particularly unfortunate in not being able to breed
half that number, I do not think I got more than
four couples of whelps. In March 1896, we purchased
the whole of the late Major V. Ferguson’s pack of
basset hounds (15 couples), from which we made a
good selection ; and in August 1896, Prince Henry
of Pless presented us with the whole of his pack from
Germany, consisting of about 10 couples. And at
various times since then we have purchased small
packs, with a view to selecting some 2 or 3 hounds
to add to our pack.”
“Here is a short summary of our hunting seasons, with the number of hounds in kennel at commencement of the season :
No. of |
No. of Blank |
No. of Hares |
No. of Couples |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
Season 1891-2 |
47 |
2 |
9 |
10 |
Season 1892-3 |
54 |
4 |
17 |
12 |
Season 1893-4 |
42 |
3 |
11 |
14 |
Season 1894-5 |
43 |
1 |
14 |
13½ |
Season 1895-6 |
38 |
2 |
19 |
14½ |
Season 1896-7 |
41 |
0 |
17 |
17½ |
Season 1897-8 |
34 |
1 |
12 |
17 |
Season 1898-9 |
32 (8 by-days) |
0 |
16 |
17½ |
Season 1899-00 |
20 |
1 |
4 |
13 |
Season 1901-2 |
38 |
2 |
19 |
14½ |
Notes |
|
|---|---|
Season 1890-1 |
No record kept; hunted with 5 couples of hounds, but never caught a hare. |
|
Season 1894-5 |
6½ brace of hares were killed this season in
27 hunting days. |
|
Season 1899-00 |
Hunting very irregularly; |
Season 1900-1 |
In 1900-1 these hounds did not hunt, owing to the South African War. |
“S. Walker has been the kennel huntsman and
whipper-in since 1891 (sic).” The following is a summary
of hounds for this season :
WALHAMPTON BASSET HOUNDS.
Season 1902-03
Dogs |
Bitches |
Hounds |
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
Eight years old |
1 |
1 |
2 |
|
Six years old |
2 |
2 |
||
Five years old |
1 |
3 |
4 |
|
Four years old |
1 |
6 |
7 |
|
Three years old |
4 |
6 |
10 |
|
Two years old |
1 |
2 |
3 |
|
One year old |
4 |
4 |
8 |
|
Total dogs and bitches |
12 |
24 |
36 |
“(2) The country in the New Forest is admirably
suited to basset hounds, being moorland or large open
woodland.”
“The heather on the moor is not sufficiently high
to stop these little hounds and invariably carries good
scent. The country round Lymington is chiefly plough
and banks. The country around Cambridge was
chiefly plough, and fen-land, which latter suited the
hounds very well, if it had not been for the dykes.
Deep ditches or stone walls are a terrible hindrance
to basset hounds.”
“(3) In the New Forest, during the months of
September, October, and early part of November,
given a scent, the hounds can bring a hare to hand
in 50 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes. After the
middle of November till the end of the season, I have
scarcely ever hunted a hare to death in less than 2
hours and it has much more often been 3 or 4 hours ;
it is very seldom that these hounds manage to kill a
hare before she is so beat that you can pick her up
yourself.”
“They are very slow to take any advantage ; sometimes they would rather throw their tongues than
bite ; in many cases beagles or even terriers would
have killed a hare which has absolutely escaped from
the jaws of the pack, because they are so slow to grasp
the situation, or, more to the point, the hare.”
“(4) I do not think that our kennel management
differs in any degree from that of a pack of foxhounds,
except that our hounds have biscuit with their meal
during the hunting season, and that I only give
them the soup from the horse-flesh and none of the
meat ; otherwise, the kennel management is the same.
The floors of the lodging-houses are boarded with
battens, 4 inches from the cement flooring, so that no
hound can lie on the cement when shut in the lodging-
house.”
“(5) I beheve Major Croker and Mr. Miles B.
Kennedy were two of the first ever to attempt hunting
a hare with basset hounds, about 1886. There were
no basset hounds in England prior to 1872, and
Lord Onslow, the late Sir Everett Millais, and Mr.
Krehl were three of their first admirers.”
Six good days with the Walhampton Basset Hounds.
(From Capt. Heseltine’s Diary.)
“On Saturday Sep. 24, 1892 (10½ couples), met,
11-30, Hill Top Gate, Beaulieu. Found immediately
a three-part grown leveret ; raced her for 25 mins.,
without a check, and killed her at Harley Pitts. Found
No. 2 Harley Pitts, hounds ran away from us ; they
ran straight to the Nodes, which they skirted, sinking
the valley thro’ King’s Hat Enclosure, crossed the
high road ; she jumped up close to Ipley River, and they
ran a circle by King’s Hat Enclosure. She squatted
off a track and we had a long check.”
“We had been running 1 hr. 10 mins. and the point
was nearly four miles ; a forest keeper poked her out,
and 9 mins. later Radical rolled her over in the open
in Dibden Bottom, running game to the very end.
Who- Whoop !”
“On Wedy. March 8, 1892, a blazing hot summer
day, met for a by-day, 1-30 p.m. at the Kennels, Chesterton, Cambridge. The ploughs raised a dust cloud,
as hounds ran over them ; we found a hare at Chesterton at 2-30 P.M. and hunted her to death at 5-25 p.m.
A small jack hare.”
“On Monday Sep. 17, 1894 (10½ couples), met at
Walhampton. Found on Warborne and ran her to
ground ; had her out and turned her down in the
forest ; she ran back to Warborne, and, after hunting
her for 53 minutes, killed her.”
“Found No. 2 on Warborne, and had 47 mins.
without a check and killed her. Hounds rather tired,
so sent Sam home for 2 couples left in kennel. Found
No. 3 close to Bull Hill, ran her by Pilley Green, over
Ditton Farm, and thro’ Sheffield Copse to the forest,
where Sam joined us with two couples of fresh hounds,
and we had an excellent hunt and killed our hare in
the middle of Beaulieu Heath. Time i hour, 3 mins.”
“On Friday, Nov. i, 1895, met, 10 o’clock, Hill
Top Gate (13 couples). Found at 11-15 close to
Harley Pitts ; they ran over the burnt ground and
on to the cultivated land at Hythe Cross Roads down
to Butts Ashe ; hounds were running hard and they
packed like a flock of pigeons ; they never left her in
covert and hunted her back to Hythe Cross Roads.
Christopher viewed her away, leaving the Nodes on
their left ; they sank the valley, but on rising the opposite hill, hounds were at fault on heather, burnt
ground, but we viewed her making for Ipley.”
“I lifted them and they hunted beautifully past
King’s Hat Enclosure, which they left on their left,
up the high road, and across Ipley Farm, running
parallel to Ipley River ; we reached the Decoy Farm,
and viewed her ‘tit-titupping’ on to the forest moor
again ; she made a sharp double, and hounds were
at fault, but I fresh found her on the river bank, where
it runs below the L. & S.W.Ry. at the head of Mattey
bog, and hounds being on excellent terms with her,
hunted her to death, close to Deerleap Enclosure, at
2-20 P.M., nearly five miles as the crow flies, from
Butts Ashe, after a slow but good hunting run of 3 hrs.
5 mins.”
“On Jan. 31 (Friday), 1896, met at Shirley Holmes
Station, 11 o’clock, a by-day. A cold, cloudy day,
wind N.W. very slight. Immediately we began draw-
ing just above Shirley Holmes, hounds began to puzzle
out a line, but we never got on terms with our hare,
and a road beat us. Time i hr. Found No. 2 at Marlpit Oak and had 30 mins. very fast by Set Thorns,
Hincheslea, to Sway, where I think a man with a long
dog accounted for our hare.”
“The hunt of the day was yet to come ; we found
a hare at 3-30 p.m. at Boldre Grange, in a fallow field ;
they ran fast to Batramsley Cross Roads, bearing
left-handed through Mead End and Rope Hill, and
back to St. Austins to Boldre Grange, thro’ the wood,
and drove her out the bottom end of the covert. They
swam the Lymington River below Heywood Mill,
and scuttled best pace by Boldre Church ; I held
them forward with a long cast up the road, until they
hit it off at a gateway, and had to run but slowly
over sheep-stained ground. In Sheffield Copse we
fresh found her, and on the Forest scent began to
improve ; bearing left-handed they hunted beautifully by Greenmore, and so to Stockley Cottage ;
our hare had now run the road (Beaulieu and Brockenhurst), but Resolute, Stella, Minstrel, Dauntless and
Coquette revelled in the enjoyment of an undeniable
scent, as they hunted it down the road for over a mile.
When nearly opposite the head of Hatchet Pond,
Gaston’s reassuring chime led us over the moor once
more ; it was now almost dark, and by the time we
were running round the head of Hatchet Pond it was
dark ; but they were not to be denied ; they ran with
increasing music, or was it the stillness of the evening
which made the cry so sweet. They ran yet faster as
they neared Blackwater bog ; I thought I saw her
just in front of them, but it was so dark I could not
be certain ; the pace meanwhile improved. From
Hatchet I had run my very best and had only just
succeeded in living with them ; no one was with me
except a young farmer, who joined me at Sheffield
Copse. Close to Pilley Green, I saw without a doubt
a hump-backed spectre against the brighter light
caused by the reflection of a pond in the heather ;
so did Raglan and Gaston, and with a fresh chorus
and crash of music six couples were straining for
her blood, and pulled her down in the middle of the
pond at 5-45 P.M. The best hare-hunt I have ever
seen in my life ; 2 hrs. 15 mins. and a big point.”
“On Monday, Jan. 10, 1898, met, 11 o’clock, at
Efford, Lymington, and found a hare close to Vidle
Van Farm ; bearing right-handed, they crossed the
Milford Road just below Keyhaven, and hunted
slowly over 2 rivers, by the golf-links, and down to
the sea, left-handed down the Stour beach, nearly
to Hurst Castle, when up she jumped and immediately
took to the sea. She swam nearly 500 yards before
she turned back against the current and landed on
the beach again, where hounds killed her. Time,
something over an hour.”
“All these days, which I have taken out of my hunting diary, have ended successfully with blood ; and
there are many more, which I have enjoyed equally
well, that have not, but I have not the time to write,
nor you the patience to read more.”
“The day - Jan. 31, 1896 - is the best thing of its sort I have ever seen.”
These most interesting notes prove very conclusively
that hare-hunting with bassets can, if properly managed,
yield very fine sport. The Walhampton Master is
fortunate in being able to get puppies walked in his
surrounding country. A puppy show is annually held,
and, in addition to other prizes, since 1897 a Record
Reign Challenge Cup, to be won twice before becoming
the absolute property of any walker, has been established for the benefit of those undertaking the temporary care of young hounds. It remains to be said
that the Walhampton bassets have been as successful
on the show benches as they have in the field.
Several of the present pack have been distinguished
at the Kennel Club Show, Crystal Palace.
In addition to the packs I have before referred
to, I believe that, here and there, a little hunting is
attempted with a few couples of bassets ; these are
probably not thought worth while including in the
annual lists of hounds. That for the first season or
two not much sport may be expected with a new
pack has been demonstrated by Captain Heseltine’s
experiences. But with any new pack of hounds,
whether in pursuit of fox, hare, or otter, the same
difficulty must be experienced until the huntsman
has learnt his craft. The late Rev. John Russell,
the famous hunting parson of North Devon, has left
on record the ill success of his first season or two with
otter hounds. He got together a pack, but could do
nothing with them. “I walked,” he says, “three
thousand miles without finding an otter ; and although
I must have passed over scores, I might as well have
searched for a moose deer.” However, he presently
got hold of a hound that understood the business,
and by its means educated his scratch pack to proper
hunting-pitch. In his next two seasons he tells us,
he scored “five-and-thirty otters right off the reel.”
Now, this is the experience of a man who had been
entered to hunting from his earliest boyhood, and not
of a raw hand, who had never seen hounds handled
before. It is not surprising, bearing this precedent
in mind, that Masters of basset hounds or beagles,
who have hitherto had small experience of hunting
hare, or of the management of hounds, should find
themselves unable to show sport or obtain blood as
often as they could wish. There is no royal road to
hunting ; a man can only learn the business by long
and sometimes rather painful experience, and by
constant application and a steady determination to
master the mysteries of a most difficult yet absorbing
form of sport, at any cost of time and trouble. Just
before I wrote this chapter, a gentleman sent to
the Field the following letter, which, it seems to
me, illustrates very well the points I have been
discussing :
“Sir, - I have this season been hunting a small
pack of basset hounds, and although we have had
some excellent runs, and the hounds when on a good
scent are absolutely impossible to stay with, our
number of kills has been very small. I do not know
much about beagles, but have one-and-a-half couple,
which I hunt with the basset hounds, and they (the
beagles) are not any faster than the bassets, and
certainly do not stay as well. I see, however, every
week in the papers accounts of kills by beagles in
England, and I cannot understand why they should
get into their hare so much oftener than we do. Is
there very much difference in the English and Irish
hares, for, if so, perhaps this would account for it?
Perhaps some of your readers, who are interested in
foot-hunting, would be good enough to throw some
light on the subject. I may add that the country I
hunt in is mostly pasture, with very large fields and
fences.”3
It is, I think, almost certain, that this gentleman
owed his lack of that crowning triumph and supreme
test of a run - the kill - to the great and sufficient
reason that he and his pack were probably not well
practised in hare-hunting. If the same pack were
hunted next season, it is almost certain that, after the
experience they had thus painfully acquired, they
would begin to kill hares. Even the Messrs. Heseltine
did nothing in their first essays ; yet in the following
season they began to get blood and so moved forward
by degrees from success to success. Bassets are proverbially poor catchers of a hare at the end of a run,
and it is in the last phases of the chase, just when she
is getting most beaten, that the hare practises all
those wonderful tricks and stratagems which are
found so puzzling even by practised huntsmen. As
to Irish and English hares, it may be stated with confidence that English hares are at least as stout as those
of the Sister Island. Most men who have hunted with
both would be inclined to yield the English hare the
superiority in this respect.
It is difficult to understand the writer’s assertion
that his beagles are no faster than bassets. Unless
the beagles are very small indeed, it is, I think, the
experience of most sportsmen who have tested the
question that the average beagle is considerably
faster than the short-legged, long, and heavy-bodied
basset.
Before concluding this chapter, it may be not out
of place to mention the value of the points of a basset
hound, as now recognised for judging :
“(2) The country in the New Forest is admirably
suited to basset hounds, being moorland or large open
woodland.”
“The heather on the moor is not sufficiently high
to stop these little hounds and invariably carries good
scent. The country round Lymington is chiefly plough
and banks. The country around Cambridge was
chiefly plough, and fen-land, which latter suited the
hounds very well, if it had not been for the dykes.
Deep ditches or stone walls are a terrible hindrance
to basset hounds.”
“(3) In the New Forest, during the months of
September, October, and early part of November,
given a scent, the hounds can bring a hare to hand
in 50 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes. After the
middle of November till the end of the season, I have
scarcely ever hunted a hare to death in less than 2
hours and it has much more often been 3 or 4 hours ;
it is very seldom that these hounds manage to kill a
hare before she is so beat that you can pick her up
yourself.”
“They are very slow to take any advantage ; sometimes they would rather throw their tongues than
bite ; in many cases beagles or even terriers would
have killed a hare which has absolutely escaped from
the jaws of the pack, because they are so slow to grasp
the situation, or, more to the point, the hare.”
“(4) I do not think that our kennel management
differs in any degree from that of a pack of foxhounds,
except that our hounds have biscuit with their meal
during the hunting season, and that I only give
them the soup from the horse-flesh and none of the
meat ; otherwise, the kennel management is the same.
The floors of the lodging-houses are boarded with
battens, 4 inches from the cement flooring, so that no
hound can lie on the cement when shut in the lodging-
house.”
“(5) I beheve Major Croker and Mr. Miles B.
Kennedy were two of the first ever to attempt hunting
a hare with basset hounds, about 1886. There were
no basset hounds in England prior to 1872, and
Lord Onslow, the late Sir Everett Millais, and Mr.
Krehl were three of their first admirers.”
Six good days with the Walhampton Basset Hounds.
(From Capt. Heseltine’s Diary.)
“On Saturday Sep. 24, 1892 (10½ couples), met,
11-30, Hill Top Gate, Beaulieu. Found immediately
a three-part grown leveret ; raced her for 25 mins.,
without a check, and killed her at Harley Pitts. Found
No. 2 Harley Pitts, hounds ran away from us ; they
ran straight to the Nodes, which they skirted, sinking
the valley thro’ King’s Hat Enclosure, crossed the
high road ; she jumped up close to Ipley River, and they
ran a circle by King’s Hat Enclosure. She squatted
off a track and we had a long check.”
“We had been running 1 hr. 10 mins. and the point
was nearly four miles ; a forest keeper poked her out,
and 9 mins. later Radical rolled her over in the open
in Dibden Bottom, running game to the very end.
Who- Whoop !”
“On Wedy. March 8, 1892, a blazing hot summer
day, met for a by-day, 1-30 p.m. at the Kennels, Chesterton, Cambridge. The ploughs raised a dust cloud,
as hounds ran over them ; we found a hare at Chesterton at 2-30 P.M. and hunted her to death at 5-25 p.m.
A small jack hare.”
“On Monday Sep. 17, 1894 (10½ couples), met at
Walhampton. Found on Warborne and ran her to
ground ; had her out and turned her down in the
forest ; she ran back to Warborne, and, after hunting
her for 53 minutes, killed her.”
“Found No. 2 on Warborne, and had 47 mins.
without a check and killed her. Hounds rather tired,
so sent Sam home for 2 couples left in kennel. Found
No. 3 close to Bull Hill, ran her by Pilley Green, over
Ditton Farm, and thro’ Sheffield Copse to the forest,
where Sam joined us with two couples of fresh hounds,
and we had an excellent hunt and killed our hare in
the middle of Beaulieu Heath. Time i hour, 3 mins.”
“On Friday, Nov. i, 1895, met, 10 o’clock, Hill
Top Gate (13 couples). Found at 11-15 close to
Harley Pitts ; they ran over the burnt ground and
on to the cultivated land at Hythe Cross Roads down
to Butts Ashe ; hounds were running hard and they
packed like a flock of pigeons ; they never left her in
covert and hunted her back to Hythe Cross Roads.
Christopher viewed her away, leaving the Nodes on
their left ; they sank the valley, but on rising the opposite hill, hounds were at fault on heather, burnt
ground, but we viewed her making for Ipley.”
“I lifted them and they hunted beautifully past
King’s Hat Enclosure, which they left on their left,
up the high road, and across Ipley Farm, running
parallel to Ipley River ; we reached the Decoy Farm,
and viewed her ‘tit-titupping’ on to the forest moor
again ; she made a sharp double, and hounds were
at fault, but I fresh found her on the river bank, where
it runs below the L. & S.W.Ry. at the head of Mattey
bog, and hounds being on excellent terms with her,
hunted her to death, close to Deerleap Enclosure, at
2-20 P.M., nearly five miles as the crow flies, from
Butts Ashe, after a slow but good hunting run of 3 hrs.
5 mins.”
“On Jan. 31 (Friday), 1896, met at Shirley Holmes
Station, 11 o’clock, a by-day. A cold, cloudy day,
wind N.W. very slight. Immediately we began draw-
ing just above Shirley Holmes, hounds began to puzzle
out a line, but we never got on terms with our hare,
and a road beat us. Time i hr. Found No. 2 at Marlpit Oak and had 30 mins. very fast by Set Thorns,
Hincheslea, to Sway, where I think a man with a long
dog accounted for our hare.”
“The hunt of the day was yet to come ; we found
a hare at 3-30 p.m. at Boldre Grange, in a fallow field ;
they ran fast to Batramsley Cross Roads, bearing
left-handed through Mead End and Rope Hill, and
back to St. Austins to Boldre Grange, thro’ the wood,
and drove her out the bottom end of the covert. They
swam the Lymington River below Heywood Mill,
and scuttled best pace by Boldre Church ; I held
them forward with a long cast up the road, until they
hit it off at a gateway, and had to run but slowly
over sheep-stained ground. In Sheffield Copse we
fresh found her, and on the Forest scent began to
improve ; bearing left-handed they hunted beautifully by Greenmore, and so to Stockley Cottage ;
our hare had now run the road (Beaulieu and Brockenhurst), but Resolute, Stella, Minstrel, Dauntless and
Coquette revelled in the enjoyment of an undeniable
scent, as they hunted it down the road for over a mile.
When nearly opposite the head of Hatchet Pond,
Gaston’s reassuring chime led us over the moor once
more ; it was now almost dark, and by the time we
were running round the head of Hatchet Pond it was
dark ; but they were not to be denied ; they ran with
increasing music, or was it the stillness of the evening
which made the cry so sweet. They ran yet faster as
they neared Blackwater bog ; I thought I saw her
just in front of them, but it was so dark I could not
be certain ; the pace meanwhile improved. From
Hatchet I had run my very best and had only just
succeeded in living with them ; no one was with me
except a young farmer, who joined me at Sheffield
Copse. Close to Pilley Green, I saw without a doubt
a hump-backed spectre against the brighter light
caused by the reflection of a pond in the heather ;
so did Raglan and Gaston, and with a fresh chorus
and crash of music six couples were straining for
her blood, and pulled her down in the middle of the
pond at 5-45 P.M. The best hare-hunt I have ever
seen in my life ; 2 hrs. 15 mins. and a big point.”
“On Monday, Jan. 10, 1898, met, 11 o’clock, at
Efford, Lymington, and found a hare close to Vidle
Van Farm ; bearing right-handed, they crossed the
Milford Road just below Keyhaven, and hunted
slowly over 2 rivers, by the golf-links, and down to
the sea, left-handed down the Stour beach, nearly
to Hurst Castle, when up she jumped and immediately
took to the sea. She swam nearly 500 yards before
she turned back against the current and landed on
the beach again, where hounds killed her. Time,
something over an hour.”
“All these days, which I have taken out of my hunting diary, have ended successfully with blood ; and
there are many more, which I have enjoyed equally
well, that have not, but I have not the time to write,
nor you the patience to read more.”
“The day - Jan. 31, 1896 - is the best thing of its sort I have ever seen.”
These most interesting notes prove very conclusively
that hare-hunting with bassets can, if properly managed,
yield very fine sport. The Walhampton Master is
fortunate in being able to get puppies walked in his
surrounding country. A puppy show is annually held,
and, in addition to other prizes, since 1897 a Record
Reign Challenge Cup, to be won twice before becoming
the absolute property of any walker, has been established for the benefit of those undertaking the temporary care of young hounds. It remains to be said
that the Walhampton bassets have been as successful
on the show benches as they have in the field.
Several of the present pack have been distinguished
at the Kennel Club Show, Crystal Palace.
In addition to the packs I have before referred
to, I believe that, here and there, a little hunting is
attempted with a few couples of bassets ; these are
probably not thought worth while including in the
annual lists of hounds. That for the first season or
two not much sport may be expected with a new
pack has been demonstrated by Captain Heseltine’s
experiences. But with any new pack of hounds,
whether in pursuit of fox, hare, or otter, the same
difficulty must be experienced until the huntsman
has learnt his craft. The late Rev. John Russell,
the famous hunting parson of North Devon, has left
on record the ill success of his first season or two with
otter hounds. He got together a pack, but could do
nothing with them. “I walked,” he says, “three
thousand miles without finding an otter ; and although
I must have passed over scores, I might as well have
searched for a moose deer.” However, he presently
got hold of a hound that understood the business,
and by its means educated his scratch pack to proper
hunting-pitch. In his next two seasons he tells us,
he scored “five-and-thirty otters right off the reel.”
Now, this is the experience of a man who had been
entered to hunting from his earliest boyhood, and not
of a raw hand, who had never seen hounds handled
before. It is not surprising, bearing this precedent
in mind, that Masters of basset hounds or beagles,
who have hitherto had small experience of hunting
hare, or of the management of hounds, should find
themselves unable to show sport or obtain blood as
often as they could wish. There is no royal road to
hunting ; a man can only learn the business by long
and sometimes rather painful experience, and by
constant application and a steady determination to
master the mysteries of a most difficult yet absorbing
form of sport, at any cost of time and trouble. Just
before I wrote this chapter, a gentleman sent to
the Field the following letter, which, it seems to
me, illustrates very well the points I have been
discussing :
“Sir, - I have this season been hunting a small
pack of basset hounds, and although we have had
some excellent runs, and the hounds when on a good
scent are absolutely impossible to stay with, our
number of kills has been very small. I do not know
much about beagles, but have one-and-a-half couple,
which I hunt with the basset hounds, and they (the
beagles) are not any faster than the bassets, and
certainly do not stay as well. I see, however, every
week in the papers accounts of kills by beagles in
England, and I cannot understand why they should
get into their hare so much oftener than we do. Is
there very much difference in the English and Irish
hares, for, if so, perhaps this would account for it?
Perhaps some of your readers, who are interested in
foot-hunting, would be good enough to throw some
light on the subject. I may add that the country I
hunt in is mostly pasture, with very large fields and
fences.”3
It is, I think, almost certain, that this gentleman
owed his lack of that crowning triumph and supreme
test of a run - the kill - to the great and sufficient
reason that he and his pack were probably not well
practised in hare-hunting. If the same pack were
hunted next season, it is almost certain that, after the
experience they had thus painfully acquired, they
would begin to kill hares. Even the Messrs. Heseltine
did nothing in their first essays ; yet in the following
season they began to get blood and so moved forward
by degrees from success to success. Bassets are proverbially poor catchers of a hare at the end of a run,
and it is in the last phases of the chase, just when she
is getting most beaten, that the hare practises all
those wonderful tricks and stratagems which are
found so puzzling even by practised huntsmen. As
to Irish and English hares, it may be stated with confidence that English hares are at least as stout as those
of the Sister Island. Most men who have hunted with
both would be inclined to yield the English hare the
superiority in this respect.
It is difficult to understand the writer’s assertion
that his beagles are no faster than bassets. Unless
the beagles are very small indeed, it is, I think, the
experience of most sportsmen who have tested the
question that the average beagle is considerably
faster than the short-legged, long, and heavy-bodied
basset.
Before concluding this chapter, it may be not out
of place to mention the value of the points of a basset
hound, as now recognised for judging :
Points |
|
|
|---|---|---|
Head, skull, eyes, muzzle, and flews |
15 |
|
Ears |
15 |
|
Neck, dewlap, chest, and shoulders |
10 |
|
Fore-legs and feet |
15 |
|
Stern |
10 |
|
Back |
10 |
|
Colour and markings |
15 |
|
Coat and skin |
10 |
|
Basset character and symmetry |
5 |
Notes:
1“Bassets, their Use and Breeding.”
2For further information on the basset, the reader may-
be referred to the works of Mr. Hugh Dalziel and Mr. Rawdon
Lee on British dogs, and to Sir Everett Millais’ book on this
hound.
3The Field, Feb. 14, 1903, p, 234,
The above is a chapter from Hare Hunting and Harriers
published in 1903 by Grant Richards.
For those interested, click here to read the whole book.