- The elk has waded or swum down the stream, and the
baffled pack arrive upon the bank; their cheering music has
ceased; the elk has kept the water for perhaps a quarter of a
mile, or he may have landed several times during that distance
and again have taken to water.
Now the young hounds dash thoughtlessly across the river,
thinking of nothing but a straight course, and they are thrown
out on the barren bank on the other side. Back they come again,
wind about the last track for a few minutes, and then they are
forced to give it up - they are thrown out altogether.
Mark the staunch old hounds! - one has crossed the river; there
is no scent, but he strikes down the bank with his nose close to
the ground, and away he goes along the edge of the river casting
for a scent. Now mark old "Bluebeard," swimming steadily down
the stream; he knows the habits of his game as well as I do, and
two to one that he will find, although "Ploughboy" has just
started along the near bank so that both sides of the river are
being hunted.
Now this is what I call difficult hunting; bad enough if the
huntsman be up to assist his hounds, but nine times out of ten
this happens in the middle of a run, without a soul within a
mile.
The only way to train hounds in this style of country is to
accustom them to complete obedience from puppyhood. This is
easily effected by taking them out for exercise upon a road
coupled to old hounds. A good walk every morning, accompanied by
the horn and the whip, and they soon fall into such a habit of
obedience that they may be taken out without the couples.
The great desideratum, then, is to gain their affection and
confidence, otherwise they will obey upon the road and laugh at
you when in the jungle. Now "affection" is a difficult feeling
to instill into a foxhound, and can only be partially attained by
the exercise of cupboard love; thus a few pieces of dry liver or
bread, kept in the pocket to be given to a young hound who has
sharply answered to his call, will do more good than a month of
scolding and rating.
" Confidence," or the want of it, in a hound depends entirely
upon the character of his master. There is an old adage of "like
master, like man;" and this is strongly displayed in the hound.
The very best seizer would be spoiled if his master were a leetle
slow in going in with the knife; and, on the other hand, dogs
naturally shy of danger turn into good seizers where their master
invariably leads them in.
Not only is their confidence required and gained at these times,
but they learn to place implicit reliance upon their master's
knowledge of hunting, in the same manner that they acknowledge
the superiority of a particular hound. This induces them to obey
beyond any method of training, as they feel a certain dependence
upon the man, and they answer his halloo or the horn without a
moment's hesitation.
Nothing is so likely to destroy the character of a pack as a
certain amount of laziness or incapacity upon the master's part
in following them up. This is natural enough, as the best
hounds, if repeatedly left unassisted for hours when at bay with
their game until they are regularly beaten off, will lose their
relish for the sport. On the other hand, perseverance on the
huntsman part will ensure a corresponding amount in the hounds;
they will become so accustomed to the certain appearance of their
master at the bay at some time or other that they will stick to
their game till night. I have frequently killed elk at two or
three o'clock in the afternoon that have been found at six in the
morning. Sometimes I have killed them even later than this when,
after wandering fruitlessly the whole day in every direction but
the right one, my ears have at length been gladdened by the
distant sound of the bay. The particular moment when hope and
certainty combined reward the day's toil is the very quintessence
of joy and delight. Nothing in the shape of enjoyment can come
near it. What a strange power has that helpless-looking mass -
the brain! One moment, and the limbs are fagged, the shins are
tender with breaking all day through the densest jungles, the
feet are worn with unrequited labor and - hark! The bay! no doubt
of it - the bay! There is the magic spell which, acting on the
brain, flies through every nerve. New legs, new feet, new
everything, in a moment! fresh as though just out of bed; here we
go tearing through the jungle like a buffalo, and as happy as
though we had just come in for a fortune - happier, a great
deal.
Nevertheless, elk-hunting is not a general taste, as people have
not opportunities of enjoying it constantly. Accordingly, they
are out of condition, and soon be, come distressed and of
necessity "shut up" (a vulgar but expressive term). This must be
fine fun for a total stranger rather inclined to corpulency, who
has dauntlessly persevered in keeping up with the huntsman,
although at some personal inconvenience. There is a limit to all
endurance, and he is obliged to stop, quite blown, completely
done. He loses all sounds of hounds and huntsman, and everything
connected with the hunt. Where is he? How horrible the idea that
flashes across his mind! he has no idea where he is, except that
he is quite certain that he is in some jungle in Ceylon.
Distraction!
