Of more recently established packs the Dumfriesshire; Mr. R. W. Buckley's (Wales), The Hon. C. H. Wynne's, Captain Dawson's (Otley, Yorks) and Mr. Cloete's may be specially mentioned, and there are other otter hounds hunting in Devonshire, Somersetshire, Hampshire, Yorkshire, Carmarthenshire, Merionethshire, Brecknockshire, in county Wexford, and near Dublin.

The dog otter hound should stand about 26 inches at shoulder, the bitch about 24 inches. The best and most favourite colours are the blue and white, though not so much mottled as the beagle, and a hard looking pepper and salt colour. Yellow and

fawn, and yellow or fawn and white hounds are likewise good old colours, and, as I have said, black and tan is not amiss, with, maybe, white on the breast and feet, but black tan and white in patches is not nice on an otter hound, however gaudy it may be on others of the race. I have also seen one or two almost white hounds, but never one of the latter with the correct coat, which should be hard and crisp and close, as water and weather resisting as possible, and not too long. Often the long coats incline to an indication of silkiness in texture, which, however, is preferable to a soft, woolly jacket. In build an otter hound should be like a foxhound, strong, level, and well put together, stern carried

gaily, feet close and particularly hard, and this is even more desirable than in a foxhound, as being one minute in the water and another on the hard rocks and stones tries the pads very much. A big foot is likely to increase the pace in swimming. The head must be long, jaws strong and powerful, eyes giving a certain sedate and intellectual appearance; they sometimes show the haw, which is no defect. Ears long and pendulous, close set, in order that the water may be kept out of the external orifices. However, what an otter hound ought to be the illustration preceding this article will best inform the reader searching after information. A nice weight for a dog hound is 65lb., and for a bitch 55lb.

CHAPTER VIL

THE DEERHOT

be & mont

en Elizabeth's got, that pulled er the ordinary The latter

FAILING any further inform than we at present possess, it point whether the hounds used for delectation at Cowdray Park, a down sixteen bucks in a laund," greyhounds or the Scottish deerhemds were likely enough to be fashionable as imals at the close of the sixteenth century, for they had already been described by Boece, in his History & Scotland, published in 1526; and, thirty-four years latch, Gesner, in his "General History of

ives an illustration of three Scottish chem answering to our modern deerha ippearance. The drawing for this was Jenry St. Clair, Dean of Glasgow of hose family kept the breed for very ing interesting story in connection thre don another page.

Good Queen Bess was fond of her d