CHAPTER XI
In the presence of so many fine horsemen and horsewomen as we see to-day, the subject of this chapter must be approached with some diffidence. At most Meets of Foxhounds in the Midlands there are generally at least twenty-five ladies and gentlemen, each of whom not only means to be at the top of the Hunt, but also has the courage, the skill, the experience, and the horse with which to get there. The horses, within limits, are perhaps the least of these factors. If these same twenty-five people were to change horses with the second flight, they would still be first when Hounds run. So that any advice contained in this chapter is offered with profound respect.
The right beginning to a day’s hunting is to come to the place where the Hounds meet, and to come there in good time. This sounds like a platitude; but both these rules are occasionally broken with disastrous results. It is a very grave offence against the laws of Fox-hunting to be late for the Meet, or to speculate on the covert that the Master is likely to draw and to wait there for him to come. After Christmas, when Foxes are wilder than earlier in the season, the sound of a voice, the tread of a horse, or the slamming of a gate may very likely frighten the good Fox away before the Hounds come, and so the day’s sport is spoilt. Coverts should also be avoided on the way to the Meet for the same reason. If by an unavoidable accident you cannot arrive punctually at the Meet, the least likely way of spoiling other people’s pleasure is never to wait near a covert, but to ride the roads until you can join the Hunt. The Master can help very materially in the matter of his Field being punctual at the Meet if he always moves off precisely at the same moment every day. It is a good rule to advertise the Meet at 10.45 until the 1st of March, and move off without fail on the very stroke of eleven. This hour is easier to fix with precision than 11.15. A Master whose own punctuality is not above suspicion, and who, after he has arrived, dawdles about on foot and moves off at “any old time,” does not deserve to have a punctual Field.
The really keen Fox-hunter, who is determined to get a start, will not be very far behind the Hounds on the way to covert. If a Fox jumps out of a hedge or crosses the road on the way to draw—and many more wonderful things than this may happen—those who are nearest the Hounds get the benefit that always accrues to the man on the spot. It is always worth while to begin the day with the expectation that there will be a tearing scent, and that the run of the season is about to take place. It is time enough to talk to friends and leave things to chance after the Hounds have told you that it is a bad scenting day. On arriving at the covert, study the wind and mark in the mind the down-wind corner where the Fox is likely to break; map out, too, in advance, your dispositions for getting a good start if the expectation is realized. This is not difficult if the covert is small. If it is a woodland, the best thing to do is to try not to let the Huntsman get out of your hearing while he is drawing; but on no account follow him about or ride in his track now, or indeed at any other time. There is nothing more irritating to a Huntsman than to be conscious that some one is dogging his footsteps. Not only that, the Huntsman should be quite alone when he is drawing, so as to be able to use his ears to the fullest advantage. Another horse clattering, splashing, and champing the bit close behind him, may very easily prevent his hearing the first Hound open when the Fox is unkennelled. The Huntsman indeed should always be given plenty of elbow-room at every phase of the chase. Some people seem quite unable to ride anywhere else in the whole county except in the Huntsman’s pocket. Perhaps it saves them the trouble of thinking for themselves how to take their own line; perhaps they think that if they maintain a horse’s length distance in rear of him all day they are sure to see what there is to be seen; but, however this shocking habit has been contracted, it should be sternly repressed.
Let us now imagine that the Fox and the Hounds are well away, and that it looks as if we are in for a good thing. Unless you are one of the very first through the first gate, it is permissible, even if a trifle theatrical, to secure a good start by jumping the fence alongside the gate, if it is negotiable. If this has to be done, however, do it at least twenty-five yards away from the gate, and get your horse well by the head, letting him feel the rein and heel on the side farthest away from the gate, so as to distract his attention from the crowd. These precautions are sometimes forgotten, with the ignominious result that the horse refuses, and butts into the flank of the throng that is wrestling with the gateway. But whether the counter-attraction of the gate is there or not, all, or nearly all horses should be ridden with extra resolution over the first fence or two. If Hounds are really going to run, the ideal place to aim at is somewhere between fifty and one hundred yards to the right or left rear of the pack, keeping of course on the down-wind side. This is by right the place that should be occupied by and ceded to the Huntsman if he is there to claim it. If he is there no one ought to try to get nearer the Hounds by riding a line inside of that taken by the Huntsman. It is an offence to get between the Huntsman and his Hounds as long as he is riding well up to them. Some Huntsmen, indeed, seem themselves to be too fond of riding in the wake of their Hounds. By doing this they are only making their own job the more difficult. The leading Hounds can be more easily watched by the Huntsman if he rides slightly to one flank of them; but if he rides directly in their line, he will not only tend to drive them beyond the point where the Fox turns, but will also have a string of followers who will aggravate this danger. The ideal state of things is achieved when no one is riding in the wake of the pack, which should be left quite clear of horses for a considerable distance. Therefore, for a follower of the Hounds, the safest place in every sense of the word is well away on the flank. Here there is always plenty of room where he can indulge in that delightful sense of adventure arising from picking his own places at the fences. Some people ride fairly well up to Hounds all their lives, but seem to like a lead whenever they can get it. Most good riders to Hounds will tell you that, apart from the satisfaction of choosing your own line, your horse as a rule will go better with no one in front of him; there is nothing to distract his attention; there is no risk of having to pull him out of his stride if your leader has a fall; he is “on his own”; he has to look where he is going, and has no incentive to copy the mistakes of the horse in front of him. But in any case it is not wise to trust too much to the automatism of any horse. As a general rule, all horses should be definitely “made up” at each fence. Some riders rather appear to increase the pace as they get near the fence, and to be concerned with the fore part of the horse rather than with his hind part. The opposite practice is the safer; the rider should contract the stride of his horse by taking hold of his head about twenty yards from the fence, bring his hocks underneath him by pressure from leg and heel, and present him at the fence in collected form, marking with the eye the spot where he intends the horse to take off. This procedure also gives the horse the chance of filling his lungs with wind before he makes the effort to jump. Far more falls have been taken by riding too fast at the fences than by riding too slow. There are very few obstacles that a horse cannot clear from a collected canter. A bold horse should certainly be collected in the manner described. With a slug, or a possible refuser, it is obviously necessary to tighten up the collecting process, even to the extent of letting him feel the spurs, and feel them in good time, so as to make up his mind for him in advance. It is not of much avail to use the whip on a sticky jumper before the fence has been jumped, but, if he jumps it in a slovenly manner, it is wonderful what a few sharp cuts will do if properly applied the very moment he lands. He will dart over the next fence in a surprisingly agile manner. The exact explanation of this altered demeanour is not quite clear. But the above recipe is a certainty, and was recommended to the writer of this book many years ago by one of the finest horsemen in the British Isles, who had for many years ridden all sorts of horses over all sorts of fences at the very head of the Hunt.
Having got a good start and a good place, it is easy to form an opinion as to whether it is a good scenting day or not. If there is a good scent, you may, in the words of an amateur Huntsman who was generally in the same field with his Hounds, ride your horse up to 75 per cent of his value.
On the very best days Hounds will seldom run for more than twenty minutes without a check, or at least a breathing space.
On bad scenting days the wise man will give the Huntsman and the M.F.H. a wide berth, and thus save himself from getting disliked, and his horse from getting tired. On these days the Hounds check very often, and every time they check they get farther behind their Fox, and therefore tend to hunt more slowly. Yet there are always some sanguine spirits who would appear to think that, by some magical process, the scent will improve after each delay, and, as soon as the Hounds own the line again, begin to compete with redoubled vigour, regardless of the sad truth that, unless the Fox lies down or has a fit, he is every moment increasing the distance between himself and his enemies. The people who form this little band are the same every day. They are, no doubt unconsciously, a great nuisance to the Huntsman and M.F.H., but are animated by nothing but zeal. If only they could be persuaded to take a line either to the right or left of the Hounds, they would see far more sport. If, indeed, they get a little too forward on the flank, they do not do nearly so much harm as if they were riding on the very tail of the Hounds, provided they will pull up when the Hounds are in difficulties, and turn their horses’ heads the same way as the Hounds’ heads are pointing when they fling themselves towards the horses to recover the scent. Hounds take their sense of direction from horses to a greater degree than many people imagine; they yield to pressure from horses on their sterns and get driven past the magic spot where the Fox turned, but, when they fling to the right or left, will nearly always drive through a small group of standing horses to make their own cast, particularly if the riders conform to them by turning their horses’ heads.
These remarks are only intended to apply to days when the scent is poor. When there is a good scent nothing very much matters, and every one is at liberty to keep near the Hounds by the quickest route. On days when the scent is so poor that Hounds cannot run for three fields without checking, the wise riders will keep to the gates as much as possible, save their horses, and incidentally avoid making unnecessary gaps in the fences.
If a member of the Field views a Fox, he should turn his horse’s head in the direction the Fox has taken, stand up in his stirrups, and point with his hat in hand. It may be remarked in passing, that he cannot do this if he has a hat-string. If he is at a place where the Huntsman cannot see him, he should holloa. Never mind if it is a fresh Fox; the Huntsman need not come to the holloa if he is engaged in doing something else. If nothing happens, it is well to ride back to the Huntsman and give him the fullest information. This should still be done even if the Huntsman answers the holloa. Ride back to him, meet him, and place him in possession of everything you know, so that he may know how to act when he arrives on the spot. If you see any one on foot who has seen a Fox, the cardinal questions to ask him are where he last saw the Fox, which way his head was, and, above all, how long ago. The Huntsman is sure to ask you this last question directly you get into touch with him, and it creates an unfortunate lapse in your information to be obliged to confess that you did not ask. It is true that some people’s estimation of time is a little vague, but as much can be gathered from the manner of the informant as from the exact number of minutes he reckons.
As was stated at the beginning of this chapter, these few hints to ladies and gentlemen who hunt are offered with real respect. They are the result of some observation as to the manner in which the duties of the M.F.H. and his Staff can be made as easy as possible by the Field. It is not proposed to enter at any length into the delicate relationship between the M.F.H. and his followers. In truth he can make it whatever he likes as far as his own limitations will allow. Some Masters may be efficient without being popular. Some may be popular without being efficient. Some may be both popular and efficient. But having devoted a few paragraphs to the conduct of the Field, experience of human nature will tell us that as a general rule it is better for the M.F.H. to say “Thank you” than to say “Get out of the way.” Sometimes the tongue obeys the brain too readily, and the sharp word is on the wing. But all sportsmen are very generous, and only too ready to put it all down to zeal, provided that an honest attempt is being made to show sport. And when all is said and done, the two chief points for the M.F.H. to remember are, that every one comes out for enjoyment, and that the best answer to criticism is to show a good run and kill a dead-beaten Fox in the open. The general public are not bad rough-and-ready critics of any given performance, whether it takes place in the theatre or the hunting-field. In either case their criticism, good or bad, has to be accepted, or else the Box Office returns are apt to suffer.
