ties attached to horse-stealing, by asserting that the studs of the Duke of A. or Marquis of B. were too tempting to his honesty, with as much justice as that with which the poor or their friends demand the abolition of the game laws in order to remove from them the temptation to poaching. We may rely upon it that one concession of the rights of property, such as that required by the would-be game-law repealers, will speedily be followed by a demand for another; so that, let hares, partridges, and pheasants be destroyed (for that would be the practical operation of a repeal of the game laws), we may soon look for a body of philanthropists to arise, who will demand an act of parliament condemning Chanticleer and his harem to the knife, on the ground that the barn-yard affords too strong an inducement to felony to be resisted. The third charge I have mentioned-viz., that the game laws are often made the instruments of tyranny and oppression-I fear is too often true. But where is the law framed by human wisdom which is not open to this impeachment? The fault lies not so much in the laws as in the administration of them; and the remedy is in their hands. As well might we call for the destruction of the custom-house, because irate travellers bore the editors of morning papers with details of abridged liberty, and indignities offered to carpet-bags and portmanteaus, as cause the game laws to be swept away; because country gentlemen, angry at the murder of pheasants and hares, occasionally deal too harshly with "the first offence," or punish offences which may have been accidental, as though they were committed with the most malicious forethought. And here, O ye Great Unpaid, on whom the administration of these laws devolve! one word to you: temper justice with mercy; send not the poor man who may have been caught snaring his first hare, and who otherwise is a respectable man, to jail, only to come out an accomplished villain; visit not with the extremity of your severity the juvenile yokel's first essay to ferret a rabbit. Try the effect of warning and persuasion, and of providing such offenders with the means of earning a livelihood and with amusements suitable to their station; but reserve the vials of your wrath for the professed night-poacher-the man with the dirty cottage, suspicious lurcher, and no visible means of livelihood-he is the worst enemy to the game, and his career only tends to the demoralization of his comrades, and will in all probability end in the remote region of Botany Bay. I am aware that, in writing the foregoing remarks, I have not been able to treat the question as it deserves; but I shall be satisfied if my hints have the effect of raising some more powerful champion than myself, for a subject so interesting to all the sportsmen of Old Eng land. Lincoln's Inn, October 22nd, 1845. H H OXFORD PARODIES. " BY THE AUTHOR OF HINTS TO FRESHMEN," &c. No. 1. AIR-"The fine old English Gentleman." I'll sing you a sporting song, for you all love well the chase, And says His room at home is hung around with emblems of his pride, With sporting prints and foxes' heads, which in good runs have died: Th' Oxonians on hacks, in "teams," do gladly gather here And when at break of early day he sallies to "the meet," In Heythrop's grassy avenue, a goodly sight, I ween, "The silent system" Jim forswears: how to his voice they run! For this first-rate &c. List! list! Old Vanguard challenges: the pack in turn reply; And Jim's "Hark for'ard !" now is heard as on they quickly fly: He leads the van on Spangle; next Jack+ upon his mare; There's neither wall nor water shall stop the gallant pair Of first-rate &c. A check! a check! now, freshman bold, "hold hard, Sir, if you please:" Just watch Jim's clever casts, Sir, just watch his "busy bees:"t A contiguous pack; but, in my day, very inferior. Jack Goddard, the first whip; and, me judice, the first of whips. The name which Jim bestowed on "the little pack :" I suppose, because they could fly and work all day. And now the His tongue hangs out, his brush lies low. Whoop! he's down, indeed! Dismount, ye joyous ones, dismount! and light the soothing weed, Thus, thus this gallant huntsman keeps up the merry game; H. THE FIELD AND ITS ASSOCIATIONS. BY AN OLD ENGLANder. (Concluded from page 83.) In WOUNDS.-These may be divided into three classes, namely, the simple incision, the lacerated, and the puncture. Of these the first is most easy of treatment-unless, indeed, it be so situated or of so extensive a nature as to have caused injury to some important part, such as sinews or arteries: this, however, is of rare occurrence. the last case, the only chance of saving life till the arrival of a veterinary surgeon is to endeavour to arrest the flow of blood, which will be most readily effected by the application of pressure, something after the same manner as a tourniquet is applied to the human subject in cases of amputation. This may readily be formed by means of a handerchief and the handle of a whip, hedge-stake, or any stout stick. When, however, it has not arrived at anything more serious than a simple cut, the remedy is short and plain enough. The first object with every description of wound is to be exceedingly particular that no particle of dirt, however minute, shall be suffered to remain in it; and to this end no pains must be spared in bathing it with warm water, which will also answer the double purpose of dispelling inflammation. If after this there remains no unnatural heat about the part, it may, unless it be so situated as to be much influenced by motion, be speedily healed up by keeping the edges as much together as possible, and the application of a little Friar's-balsam, or even the still more simple one of cold water. Few persons are aware of the sana tive qualities of this unpretending element. When, however, wounds are of a lacerated nature, they may require somewhat more elaborate treatment. It is, of course, equally necessary that all cause of irritation in the shape of dirt or gravel should be thoroughly removed; after which, if any small particles of skin or flesh are found hanging loose, and which there might be a difficulty in uniting, they had better be removed. This may readily be effected with the help of a pair of sharp scissors. Should it appear free from inflammation, the same applications recommended in the previous case will answer equally well for this. It must always be borne in mind that no attempt should ever be made to close wounds prematurely; as long as there remains any heat about the part, poultices will prove not only the safest, but also the most speedy remedy. In some situations the cure of these injuries is a very tedious affair. I had once a hunter unable to stir out of her stable for six weeks, scarcely even into a loose box, from nothing but a slight cut across the front of the pastern of one of the hind-legs, about an inch above the coronet. The incision was a mere trifle in itself; but, from the situation, the mare could not so much as turn over in her stall without opening it afresh. Had this wound occurred in any part less influenced by motion, I will undertake to say that six days would have sufficed to effect a perfect cure. cases of this description, the necessity for diminishing the ordinary high-feeding, and substituting bran-mashes, will be at once obvious. A dose of physic may also be given with manifest advantage for reasons heretofore mentioned. The most tedious of the three, however, when the depth is at all considerable, is the puncture, as it requires no small degree of care and attention to induce it to heal up properly from the bottom. Indeed I should not hesitate to say that, in the greater number of instances, it will be found most advantageous to call in the timely assistance of a veterinary surgeon, as setons are frequently requisite to bring about a healthy action; and any person not much experienced in them is easily deceived by appearances. not unfrequently happens that when to all external appearances everything is progressing in the most desirable manner, matter is forming at the bottom which will eventually break out afresh, thereby causing a very bad place, and requiring ten times as long to effect a cure as would have sufficed if properly treated in the first instance. In It I have been induced to enter thus much in minutiæ from the impression that there may be some who would gladly be participators in the noble diversion of fox-hunting, were they not deterred by the expense which they see incurred by all around them. As I promised, I have dealt with nothing but the " simples," to the full extent of the word; nor, indeed, have I attempted to give any directions in those cases where it might be requisite for the horse to be thrown out of work for any length of time; and I have confined myself to the "simples" from the circumstance that, although the more intricate affairs of the hunting stable have been repeatedly treated of, many of these, from the very fact of their simplicity, have escaped the notice of those persons who have turned their pens to the subject. It is true that nearly, if not quite, everything here mentioned, and perhaps ten times more, is well known to all hunting grooms; but these few pages were intended for the use of those who are under the necessity of superintending the affairs of their own stables; and, simple as they are, I have met with many owners of hunters to whom they were unknown. It may be objected by some that a gentleman cannot in person attend to such minutiæ. To this I can only answer, that I see nothing derogatory to the character of a gentleman in so doing; and he may rest assured that his stud will never look the worse for it; and where he is not blessed with an ex perienced groom, it is absolutely necessary that he should do so. For my own part, I never could think that my time was ill disposed of for a few minutes after the more substantial part of the repast has been concluded, and I am left in the company of my own sex, in bestowing a personal inspection upon the noble animal to whose exertions I have been indebted for the pleasures of the day. And, even supposing there is nothing which requires attention, there is always something, to my mind, descriptive of substantial comfort in a hunter properly done up for the night, which is in itself pleasing. Many, no doubt, there are who would say, with the charity-schoolboy when taught his letters, "Scarcely worth going through so much to gain so little;" nor, indeed, is it for those who only hunt for the sake of appearance; but with the gennine sportsman it must ever be far different; and what I have endeavoured to prove is, that hunting is not necessarily attended with the enormous expenses so frequently lavished upon it. To show what used to be done in times gone by, I cannot conclude better than by quoting a few lines from Daniel's "Rural Sports," giving a short description of a fox-hunter of former years : "In the old but now ruinous mansion of Berwick Hall, in the East Riding of Yorkshire, once lived the well-known William Draper, Esq., who bred, fed, and hunted the staunchest pack of foxhounds in Europe. Upon an income of only £700 per annum, he brought up creditably eleven sons and daughters, kept a stable of excellent hunters, a kennel of true-bred foxhounds, besides a carriage and horses suitable for the convenience of my lady and her daughters. In his humour he was very facetious, always having some pleasant story, both in the field and the hall; so that his company was much sought after by persons of good condition, and which was of great use to him in the subsequent advancement of his own children. His stables and kennels were kept in such order that sportsmen observed them as schools for huntsmen and grooms, who were glad to come there merely to learn their business when they had obtained proper instruction, he then recommended them to other gentlemen, who wished for no better character than Squire Draper's recommendation. He was always up, during the hunting season, at four in the morning, mounted on one of his nags at five o'clock, himself bringing forth his hounds, who knew every note of their old master's voice. In the field he rode with judgment, avoiding what was unnecessary, and helping his hounds when they were at fault. At the age of eighty this gentleman died, as he chiefly lived, for he died on horseback!"' |