JOURNEY.—Journeys are, from various motives, very differently undertaken, and by different degrees of people, according to their various situations, or peculiar avocations, as actuated by the state of their private concerns; whether influenced by a love of pleasure, the pursuit of novelty, prompted by business, or urged by necessity. Amidst which infinity of travellers, there are thousands, particularly in the metropolis, who know nothing of the management of the very valuable and useful companion, upon whose health andsafety the pleasure and success of the journey must principally depend. Horses, in general, are so cruelly treated, and so inconsiderately neglected by those who are entire strangers to the attentions they require, and the comforts they stand in need of, that a few general hints cannot be considered inapplicable; at least to such as wish to improve their judgment, and acquire knowledge, from practical experience.
.—Journeys are, from various motives, very differently undertaken, and by different degrees of people, according to their various situations, or peculiar avocations, as actuated by the state of their private concerns; whether influenced by a love of pleasure, the pursuit of novelty, prompted by business, or urged by necessity. Amidst which infinity of travellers, there are thousands, particularly in the metropolis, who know nothing of the management of the very valuable and useful companion, upon whose health andsafety the pleasure and success of the journey must principally depend. Horses, in general, are so cruelly treated, and so inconsiderately neglected by those who are entire strangers to the attentions they require, and the comforts they stand in need of, that a few general hints cannot be considered inapplicable; at least to such as wish to improve their judgment, and acquire knowledge, from practical experience.
The prudent traveller will never commence a journey of length, without every necessary precaution that can be adopted for general safety during the whole; he will insure to a certainty, by personal examination, the shape, make, fixing, and firmness of his horse's shoes, as the most indispensible prelude to the success of his progress, it being one great step to the prevention of trouble and disquietude. He will observe that every part of his apparatus is sufficiently strong and durable for the purpose, that he may not be likely to encounter the mortification ofrepairsupon the road; as well as that hisBRIDLEis properly adapted to theMOUTH, and theSADDLEto theBACKof the horse. A sore back, or lacerated lips, are sad concomitants in a tedious or a dreary journey. He will also remember at setting off, that the animal he bestrides is formed of materials by no means dissimilar to his own; that he is composed of fibres, nerves, tendons, muscles, flesh, blood and bone;that these are all perishable commodities, liable to accident, sickness, and dissolution; that he has also his passions, his sensations, his appetites, his wants, his pains, and his pleasures. Not possessed of the pleasing powers of communication by speech, it is a duty incumbent upon the rider, not only to speak for, but to take care of (in the strictest meaning of the words) an object so little capable of taking care of itself.
Having all these things in humane recollection, he will advert to the state of the roads, and the season of the year: the mode of treatment, and manner of travelling proper in one, might be improper in the other. Observation should be made upon the constitutional stamen, and innate properties, of the horse, in respect to power and action, that his paces and progress should be regulated in proportion. One may with ease travelEIGHTEENorTWENTYmiles at a stage, with strength and vigour less diminished, than another maytwelve; and this it is the more necessary to know and observe, because a horse overworked, or overfatigued, in theearlypart, very frequently never recovers himself during the whole of a journey. It is a judicious maxim, and should be rigidly adhered to, never to ride or drive horses at an immoderate or unreasonable pace at first setting off in a morning; the carcase being full, brisk action occasions much uneasiness, if not pain; and a horsenever goes with comfort to himself till relieved by frequent evacuation. Those who are properly attentive to their own interest in the preservation of their horse, will regulate their pace (as well as the length of their stage) by theHEATof theWEATHERinSUMMER, or theDEPTHof theROADin theWINTER, each having equal and distinct effects upon the strength, and exertion of power, in the horse, as the other.
Much of management at inns depends upon the state a horse is in upon his arrival; none, but fools or madmen, bring them to the termination of a stage in a stream of perspiration; if so, proper attention and treatment cannot be expected, where there are so many to be served beside themselves. Leading a horse about tocoolin theWINTER, washing the dirt off by plunging him into a pond, or washing his legs in a stable-yard, are equally destructive, and produce a combination of ills, in colds, bad eyes, swelled legs, cracked heels, and other inconveniences, productive of repentance, when repentance comes too late. Whether the date of perspiration he is in bemuchorlittle, the mode of treatment should be proportionally the same. After being permitted tostale, the head and fore quarters should first undergo the ceremony of brisk wisping, or rough dressing, with good clean sweet straw; then turning his head to the rack, (where some sweet hay has been previously deposited,)the hind-quarters and legs experience the same operation; at which time, and not before, the saddle should be taken off, and the general dressing of the carcase and legs should be completed, admitting or excluding external air, according to the season of the year, by which all conditional circumstances must be regulated of course. The examination of theSHOES, the state of theFEET,WARBLES, bowel galls, or injuries by unequal pressure from, or friction of, the saddle, are contingencies too necessary, and too sublime, for the head of an ostler; he leaves possibilities of that kind to be discovered by those whom it more materially concerns; and the principal must therefore look to itHIMSELF, if he expects to be unequivocally satisfied upon those points.FeedingandWATERINGdepend also upon time, circumstances, and the season; it being the duty of the owner to know whether the horse will eat his corn ifhe has it; for it is not in the indispensible department of theOSTLERto give a horse an ill name, by proclaiming hima bad feeder. Under which combination of contingencies, dependent upon travelling, it is no bad plan toSEEthe horse have hisCORN, as well as toKNOWwhether heEATSit; for no man can travel with so much judgment and satisfaction, as he who knows the internal support his horse has to work upon.
Horses jaded, and completely fatigued, with long and dirty journies, in dull, dreary, and sometimes tempestuous, weather, are so entirely debilitated, that they preferRESTtoFOOD, and can hardly be kept upon their legs, to go through the necessary comforts ofdressingandcleaningas an unavoidable prelude to the more substantial relief of the night. In such state they require a little extra attention; an invigoratingCORDIAL BALL, so soon as it can possibly be obtained;was a horse of much temporary note a mash of ground malt, and bran equal parts; in want of the malt, a mash of bran and oats, made of boiling water, and six ounces, or half a pound, of honey, may be introduced as a substantial substitute. The water should not be from the pump, but soft, as from a rainy reservoir, or the river, with the chill taken off: if in the winter, the clothing should be warm; the bed plentiful, high, clean, and dry; as well as all such crevices closely stopped as admit currents of air; by which precaution, not only temporary ills, but dangerous diseases, are frequently prevented.
ITCHING.—Horses are sometimes observed to labor under a severe itching, or internal irritation, which keeps them in a kind of perpetual disquietude; biting such parts as they can get at with the mouth, and rubbing those more remote against such parts of the stall as are most convenient, by which the hair is frequently rubbed off, and the skin excoriated.In cases of this description, the blood does not possess a proper or just equalization of the component parts indispensibly necessary to the standard of health. It mostly arises from a deficiency of crassamentum, or adhesive property of the blood, by which it becomes more or less impoverished, and abounds with a redundancy ofSERUM; this, for want of its natural corrector, acquiresACRIMONY, and soon begins to display its mischievous power and tendency to cutaneous morbidity in the way described. Permitted to continue and increase, without salutary counteraction, it extends its progress from a simple itching, in the first instance, to scurfy eruptions, scaly exfoliations, or partial loss of hair; bearing the external appearance of surfeit, degenerating, by degrees, to inveterateMANGE, or confirmedFARCY. To prevent which, the system should be improved, and the circulation enlivened, by an invigoration of the frame: the property of the blood should be enriched by anADDITIONto theQUANTITY, and anALTERATIONin theQUALITYof the food. A great deal of substantial dressing should be adopted in the stable, and regular gentle exercise out; as a collateral aid to which, a course ofANTIMONIAL ALTERATIVE POWDERSshould be brought into use, till every symptom of disquietude has disappeared.
.—Horses are sometimes observed to labor under a severe itching, or internal irritation, which keeps them in a kind of perpetual disquietude; biting such parts as they can get at with the mouth, and rubbing those more remote against such parts of the stall as are most convenient, by which the hair is frequently rubbed off, and the skin excoriated.In cases of this description, the blood does not possess a proper or just equalization of the component parts indispensibly necessary to the standard of health. It mostly arises from a deficiency of crassamentum, or adhesive property of the blood, by which it becomes more or less impoverished, and abounds with a redundancy ofSERUM; this, for want of its natural corrector, acquiresACRIMONY, and soon begins to display its mischievous power and tendency to cutaneous morbidity in the way described. Permitted to continue and increase, without salutary counteraction, it extends its progress from a simple itching, in the first instance, to scurfy eruptions, scaly exfoliations, or partial loss of hair; bearing the external appearance of surfeit, degenerating, by degrees, to inveterateMANGE, or confirmedFARCY. To prevent which, the system should be improved, and the circulation enlivened, by an invigoration of the frame: the property of the blood should be enriched by anADDITIONto theQUANTITY, and anALTERATIONin theQUALITYof the food. A great deal of substantial dressing should be adopted in the stable, and regular gentle exercise out; as a collateral aid to which, a course ofANTIMONIAL ALTERATIVE POWDERSshould be brought into use, till every symptom of disquietude has disappeared.
JUGGED—is a professional or technical term with the horse-dealing and stabularian fraternity;and implies a horse's having tumefactions, indurated or inflammatory, under the jaws. But when used in a more serious and emphatic sense among themselves, it is to convey an idea, that the horse said to bejugged, is infected with theGLANDERS.
—is a professional or technical term with the horse-dealing and stabularian fraternity;and implies a horse's having tumefactions, indurated or inflammatory, under the jaws. But when used in a more serious and emphatic sense among themselves, it is to convey an idea, that the horse said to bejugged, is infected with theGLANDERS.
JUSTICE—was a horse of considerable note both as aRUNNERand aSTALLION: he was bred by the lateLord Grosvenor; was foaled in 1774; got byHerod, out ofCuriosity, (who was got bySnap,) her dam byRegulus, and grand-dam by Bartlet'sChilders. Without obtaining any distinguished celebrity, he for many years maintained his ground as a stallion above mediocrity, and produced some tolerable racers: amongst the best of which wereÆacus,Mentor,Minos,Rhadamanthus,Dedalus, andMidnight.
—was a horse of considerable note both as aRUNNERand aSTALLION: he was bred by the lateLord Grosvenor; was foaled in 1774; got byHerod, out ofCuriosity, (who was got bySnap,) her dam byRegulus, and grand-dam by Bartlet'sChilders. Without obtaining any distinguished celebrity, he for many years maintained his ground as a stallion above mediocrity, and produced some tolerable racers: amongst the best of which wereÆacus,Mentor,Minos,Rhadamanthus,Dedalus, andMidnight.
KEEPERS—are of different kinds, acting under different appointments, as servants of the Crown, or of individuals. There areFOREST-keepers,PARK-keepers, andGAME-keepers, whose employments are distinct and separate from each other. Itis the province of the first to protect and superintend theDEERin any one of his Majesty's forests, to which he is appointed, and to become a principal instrument of enforcing the laws enacted for its preservation, against depredators of every description.Park-keepers are retained in the service ofNOBLEMENandGENTLEMENwho have parks stocked with deer, having the same perquisites and privileges as those employed in the service of the Crown; their employment is principally to superintend, preserve, and regulate the stock, as well as to killBUCKS,DOES, andFAWNS, according to the season, when required for the table; which can never be done by anyPARK-keeper of theCrown, without the receipt of a properWARRANTpreviously issued from superior authority for that purpose.Game-keepers are employed in various forests, parks, chases, free-warrens, and manors, the property of the Crown, to furnish a constant supply of game for his Majesty's table and household, under such regulations as prevent the possibility of too great an influx at one time, and too short a supply at another. EveryLORDorLADYpossessing a manor within any part of the kingdom, has the power of appointing a person, under the denomination of aGAME-keeper, to protect, preserve, orKILLany kind ofGAMEupon the particularMANORfor which he is appointed; and to execute and enforce all such other manorial rights and privileges within the department, as may be submitted to hisdelegation; he first conforming to theLEGALprescription, before he can be confirmed, or qualified to act in the office to which he has been deputed.—SeeGame-Laws, andGame-Keepers.
—are of different kinds, acting under different appointments, as servants of the Crown, or of individuals. There areFOREST-keepers,PARK-keepers, andGAME-keepers, whose employments are distinct and separate from each other. Itis the province of the first to protect and superintend theDEERin any one of his Majesty's forests, to which he is appointed, and to become a principal instrument of enforcing the laws enacted for its preservation, against depredators of every description.Park-keepers are retained in the service ofNOBLEMENandGENTLEMENwho have parks stocked with deer, having the same perquisites and privileges as those employed in the service of the Crown; their employment is principally to superintend, preserve, and regulate the stock, as well as to killBUCKS,DOES, andFAWNS, according to the season, when required for the table; which can never be done by anyPARK-keeper of theCrown, without the receipt of a properWARRANTpreviously issued from superior authority for that purpose.Game-keepers are employed in various forests, parks, chases, free-warrens, and manors, the property of the Crown, to furnish a constant supply of game for his Majesty's table and household, under such regulations as prevent the possibility of too great an influx at one time, and too short a supply at another. EveryLORDorLADYpossessing a manor within any part of the kingdom, has the power of appointing a person, under the denomination of aGAME-keeper, to protect, preserve, orKILLany kind ofGAMEupon the particularMANORfor which he is appointed; and to execute and enforce all such other manorial rights and privileges within the department, as may be submitted to hisdelegation; he first conforming to theLEGALprescription, before he can be confirmed, or qualified to act in the office to which he has been deputed.—SeeGame-Laws, andGame-Keepers.
KENNEL—is the place where hounds are kept; upon the judicious construction of which, their health, safety, and preservation, are known greatly to depend. Those who take to, or become possessed of,KENNELSready built, frequently continue them in the form they fall into their hands; but such as encounter the expence of new erections, cannot do better than take a previous survey of the most approved plans; amongst which theDukeofBedford's, at Wooburn Abby; theDukeofRichmond's, at Goodwood, in Sussex; andSir William Rowley's, at Tendring Hall, Suffolk, are supposed, for extent and convenience, to take the lead of most others in the kingdom.TasteandFASHIONmay go a great way in the external glare of such establishments; butHEALTHandCONVENIENCEshould always prove the most predominant considerations. It is universally admitted, by all who have a practical knowledge of this subject, that in large and regularly-hunted packs, two kennels are indispensibly necessary to the success and well-doing of the whole. When there is but one, it can in the winter season be but seldom cleaned; and even then the hounds are in a comfortless state, from the dampness of the situation solong as it remains. Cleanliness is so essentially necessary in everyAPARTMENTandDEPARTMENTof a kennel, that no continuance of health in the hounds, or excellence in the field, can be expected without it. They are individually innately clean; and will never, if they can avoid it,dungnear where theylie. Air, fresh straw, and ample room for the occasional expansion of their weary limbs, are requisite for the invigoration of the frame, and the preservation of health. Hounds confined in a body, are more liable to disease, than the same animal single, and in a state of unrestrained liberty; hence the necessity for counteraction, by every means the most prudent precaution can adopt. Hounds thus subject to, and constantly attacked with disease, and even madness, under the best and most judicious management, must be evidently much more so if surrounded withfilthandnastiness.
—is the place where hounds are kept; upon the judicious construction of which, their health, safety, and preservation, are known greatly to depend. Those who take to, or become possessed of,KENNELSready built, frequently continue them in the form they fall into their hands; but such as encounter the expence of new erections, cannot do better than take a previous survey of the most approved plans; amongst which theDukeofBedford's, at Wooburn Abby; theDukeofRichmond's, at Goodwood, in Sussex; andSir William Rowley's, at Tendring Hall, Suffolk, are supposed, for extent and convenience, to take the lead of most others in the kingdom.TasteandFASHIONmay go a great way in the external glare of such establishments; butHEALTHandCONVENIENCEshould always prove the most predominant considerations. It is universally admitted, by all who have a practical knowledge of this subject, that in large and regularly-hunted packs, two kennels are indispensibly necessary to the success and well-doing of the whole. When there is but one, it can in the winter season be but seldom cleaned; and even then the hounds are in a comfortless state, from the dampness of the situation solong as it remains. Cleanliness is so essentially necessary in everyAPARTMENTandDEPARTMENTof a kennel, that no continuance of health in the hounds, or excellence in the field, can be expected without it. They are individually innately clean; and will never, if they can avoid it,dungnear where theylie. Air, fresh straw, and ample room for the occasional expansion of their weary limbs, are requisite for the invigoration of the frame, and the preservation of health. Hounds confined in a body, are more liable to disease, than the same animal single, and in a state of unrestrained liberty; hence the necessity for counteraction, by every means the most prudent precaution can adopt. Hounds thus subject to, and constantly attacked with disease, and even madness, under the best and most judicious management, must be evidently much more so if surrounded withfilthandnastiness.
That some idea may be formed of the grandeur of the buildings, and the liberal scale, of the most celebrated hunting establishments, it is only necessary to introduce a few explanatory remarks upon the kennels of eminence already mentioned. The superb edifice of the Duke of Richmond is said (and probably with great truth) to have cost 10,000l.in its erection; to which his Grace contributed no small proportion of personal assistance. He is reported to have been his own architect and builder; to have dug his own flints, burnt his ownlime, made his own bricks, and framed the woodwork in his own shops. TheDOG KENNEL, abstracted from all other buildings, stands alone, in such part of the park as to form a grand and striking object from the principal rooms of the mansion; the materials are flints, finished at all the angles by a light grey brick, like the Lymington white-stock.
The distribution of the building is into five compartments; two of them 36 feet by 15, and three more 30 by 15; these are calledKENNELS, to which are annexed two feeding-rooms, 28 by 15. In each of these are openings at top, for the admission of external air, when necessary; and stoves to qualify the air when too cold. There are supplies of water, and drains into what is termed a stank, a considerable depth below, full of rain-water, from the surface of which to the rise of the arch is eleven feet; so that no inconvenience arises from smell; and the whole can be occasionally cleared off by drains to more dependent depths, and dung-pits, where it becomes contributary to the purposes of agriculture. Round the whole building is a pavement five feet wide; airing-yards, places for breeding, and other conveniences, making a part of each wing. To constitute a uniformity of elegance, neatness, and perfection, theHUNTSMANandWHIPPER-INhaveeacha parlour, kitchen, and sleeping-room, appropriated to their own particular purpose.
TheDuke of Bedford'sis an immense establishment, upon a scale of too much extent for particular description, as it includesTENNIS-COURT,RIDING-HOUSE, &c. &c. in one stone-fronted building, of 266 feet in length; with two wings of stables, containing stalls for 36 hunters; and eleven loose houses, for horses sick or lame. As theDOG-KENNEL, however, is the only part entitled to notice under this head, it will create no surprise that the richest subject should possess the most complete in England. It is in length 405 feet, having the boiling-house in the centre, with feeding rooms adjoining, and a granary behind. On the right of the centre are apartments for twoKENNEL-KEEPERS, two long lodging rooms for the hunting hounds, with flues running along the walls, to preserve an equal temperature in the severity of the winter season; spacious yards to each, furnished with a fountain in the middle, for the dogs to drink at; and water-cocks fixed at proper distances, to cleanse the pavement, when it may be required: adjoining to these, are seven hospitals for sick and lame hounds, with yards to each. On the left are divisions for litter, straw, &c. eleven apartments for bitches and puppies, with yards to each; eleven ditto for bitches in pup, with yards also; and a large division for bitches at heat. In the front is a large reservoir of water, which supplies the fountains, and different cocks in the several yards within. Behind the whole is a large airing-ground,flesh-house, and all requisite conveniencies. The huntsman's dwelling-house is a handsome building adjoining. The number of hunting hounds kept in the kennel are usually from sixty to seventy couple.
The kennel ofSir Willim Rowleyis by no means equal to the external grandeur of the two already described, but replete with every internal convenience that an establishment upon a somewhat smaller scale can possibly require: it is situate about half a mile from the family mansion, from the garden of which it constitutes a picturesque appearance. It is erected in a valley of the park, a spot well adapted to the purpose, being equally defended from the cutting easterly winds, and the heat of the sun in its meridian, by a thick skirting of park and forest trees. Not having the advantage of a rivulet to water the courts, that want is amply supplied by a pump, which, by means of different cocks, turns the water to every part of the premises; consisting of theHUNTING-KENNEL, or principal lodging-room, which is 20 feet by 18 in the clear, 18 feet high, and paved with flag-stones. The beds, or benches, which cover almost the whole area, are of original and most admirable contrivance, being lathed like some bedsteads, and all made to fold up with joints, for the convenience of washing the floor beneath them. This room, by means of a flue of peculiar construction, is heatedto any required temperature; and the hounds, after severe chases, and in wet weather, are rendered dry and comfortable in a much less time than they could be by any other means.
There is also a kennel, or lodging-room, for the young hounds, of the same dimensions as the former, and possessing the same conveniencies, except the flue, which here would have been superfluous. Several small kennels for bitches in a state of gestation; as well as a proportional number for those with puppies. A paved court to the hunting-kennel. A feeding-house; one half of which is open, the other under cover. A paved court to the kennel for the young hounds. A pump, and stone water cisterns. A large grass-yard for airing the hounds belonging to the hunting-kennel, containing about an acre and three quarters; in which are a variety of lime, chesnut, and other trees, forming an excellent shade for the hounds during the summer season. The young hounds have a similar convenience. To these are annexed twelve small kennels for puppies, well constructed for the purpose. The hunting-hounds generally consist of aboutTHIRTY-SIX COUPLE; and the establishment is conducted in such a style of punctuality, order, and excellence, that it is universally acknowledged equal to any, and inferior to none, upon a similar scale, from one extremity of the kingdom to the other.
Next to the choice of a proper spot for, and a judicious, as well as a convenient, construction of theKENNEL, the management of the hounds,when there, becomes a matter of serious consideration, and requires aFEEDERof strict sobriety, indefatigable industry, invariable punctuality, great humanity, personal fidelity to his employer, and a constant attention to the business in which he is engaged; as upon him in a great degree depends the health and preservation of the hounds.Mr. Beckfordobserves (in great proof of his practical knowledge and personal experience) that no part of a hunting establishment goes onso well, as when theMASTERbecomes an occasionalSUPERINTENDANTof his own concerns. He says, as the sport in the field depends on the exquisite sense of smelling so peculiar to the hound, so care should be taken to preserve it; and cleanliness is the surest means. The keeping of the kennelsweetandclean, cannot, therefore, be too strongly inculcated, and impressed upon the mind of theFEEDER; if he seems habitually disposed to deviate from which, he is not at all calculated for the office he has undertaken.
The preparation for feeding, as boiling the meat, mixing the meal, and getting it ready at the hours agreed on, is a matter that theHUNTSMANwill of course take care (on his part) never to have neglected; but there are other considerations, equally important, which become entitled to attention.Hounds cannot be properly fed by asingleperson; two are (for a variety of reasons) unavoidably necessary; and those two should be theFEEDERand theHUNTSMAN; as hounds should be drafted and fed according to their state of flesh and condition. Some are much more voracious than others, and will require a greater portion of food; others look and work well, with half the quantity: the eye of the huntsman should discriminate between the opposite descriptions; in want of which attention, the pack will never be of equal appearance. When any of the hounds are observed to be low in flesh, off their appetites, bad feeders, or kept under by the old and master hounds, it will be matter of advantage to draft them, and let them feed under less restraint. Young and impatient feeders, fall into the very common fault of feeding hounds with their meattoo hot: it is both a prevalent and injurious error, that should be totally abolished.
Mr. Beckfordis of opinion, that hounds poorer than the rest should be fed again, and that they cannot be fed too often; as well as that those hounds which become too fat,if any, should be drafted off, and not permitted to fill themselves. All hounds (particularly young ones) should be often called over in kennel; their names become more familiar to them; and it teaches them obedience; this lesson is practised, or should be, at the time of feeding. Hounds should all be let out intothe airing ground, to empty them themselves after feeding, to prevent an unnecessary accumulation of filth, and consequent effluvia, in the kennel. It may be a custom with some, to shut up the hounds for two or three hours after they return from huntingbeforethey areFED; if so, it is more entitled to contempt than imitation; no plea can justify the practice; they should have their meat ready for feeding immediately on their return; once gratified, they enjoy their restundisturbed, the best and most natural foundation for a renovation of strength. Plenty of vegetables, boiled in the copper meat, once a week, is a custom in most kennels; as it is also to throw in a pound or two of sulphur, (in proportion to the number,) particularly in the summer season, when there is a greater tendency in the blood to morbidity, particularly to cutaneous diseases.
During the hot months, when hounds do not work, they require but a small proportion of substantial food, compared to what is necessary in the severity of theHUNTING SEASON; flesh may then be given very sparingly; the less it is used in the summer, the less likelihood there will be of seeing that malignant and unwelcome visitor, theMANGE, amongst them. Various opinions have been promulgated upon the best, cheapest, and most nutritious, food for the support of hounds in general; but experience seems to have justified the consistencyof occasional changes, according to the different seasons, and the different degrees of work; without adhering too closely to one particular mode, unassisted by such deviations as circumstances may render not only prudent and proper, but sometimes unavoidable. Horse flesh, sheep's trotters, raspings, greaves, bullock's paunches, (in a scarcity of flesh,) oat-meal, and barley-meal, constitute the principal articles upon which hounds are known to subsist; although they are differently prepared, and differently administered, according to the judgment, experience, whim, or caprice, of the parties concerned. It is, however, universally admitted, after a number of fair and impartial trials, that in respect to the two meals, they act much more profitably and advantageously, when used in a mixed state of nearly equal proportions, than when either is given alone.
Mr. Beckfordsays, his feeder, who was a good one, and of much experience, mixed the meal inequalquantities; that the oatmeal he boiled for half an hour; and then put out the fire, adding the barley-meal, and mixing both together: his reason for boiling one, and not the other, was, that boiling made the oat-mealTHICK, and the barley-mealthin; and that when he fed with the barley-mealonly, it should not be put into the copper, but mixed up with the scalding liquor, in a proper tub, or hogshead, kept for the purpose. There aremany little things within the department of theFEEDER, which, if neglected, become of serious consequence. Nice observation should be made upon the state of theBITCHESat all times; upon the least indication of their going toHEAT, they should beinstantlyremoved; a few hours delay may be the destruction of some of the best hounds in the kennel. After their return on a hunting day, he should observe whether there are any hounds who have sustained injuries in the feet by thorns, flints, &c. in which case a fomentation of warm pot-liquor, (or bran and water,) followed by a washing with cold vinegar, or salt and water, will generally effect a speedy cure. Hounds seriouslyLAME, or palpablySICK, should be separated from the rest, and placed where they can be more at ease, and have better attention.
KENNEL—is a sporting term for the spot in which aFOXdeposits himself after his nocturnal depredations, and to which he retires about the dawn of day: being found by the hounds in drawing covert, he is then said to beunkennelled, and the chase begins. When safe in someburrow, orhole, below the surface, he is then said to lie atEARTH.
—is a sporting term for the spot in which aFOXdeposits himself after his nocturnal depredations, and to which he retires about the dawn of day: being found by the hounds in drawing covert, he is then said to beunkennelled, and the chase begins. When safe in someburrow, orhole, below the surface, he is then said to lie atEARTH.
KIBES,—in horses, are thecrackswhich appear in theHEELSduring the severity of the winter season, and are much more the consequence ofneglect, or a want of knowledge in the stable discipline,than the effect produced by changes in the weather; which may in general be counteracted by the means in constant practice with those who proceed systematically, and take the same care of their horses, as prudence prompts them to take of themselves. They proceed mostly from being left withwetlegs, which, in veryCOLDorFROSTYweather, occasions such a tightness and rigidity of the skin, that, when brought into sudden and brisk action, it bursts asunder, (in a greater or less degree,) according to the texture of the skin, or the constitutional irritability of the horse. These soon become exceedingly painful; and if the weather should repeatedly vary from shortfroststo alternatethaws, and the horse continue in use, the constant insinuation of the sharp particles of small gravel and sand of the dirty roads, is productive of such excruciating sensations, that the subject refuses food, and does not lay down for many days and nights in succession: when evengentlycompelled to move, he lifts up the limb in so much misery, that it is with the greatest reluctance he brings it again to the ground; on the contrary, keeps it so long suspended, that it is expected he must inevitably fall over in his stall. If worked in this state, he comes out of the stable as if completely crippled; and every day's delay in the attempt at relief, must be a culpable protraction of cure: palliatives (with work) will provedeceptive; rest should be adopted, and cure obtained. This can only be effected by poultices made ofLINSEED POWDER, milk, and a little olive oil, applied immediately after comfortable softenings with warm gruel, and a small sponge: anALTERATIVE POWDERin a mash nightly, and the use of camphoratedSPERMA-CÆTI LINIMENT, night and morning, when the poultices are left off, will be found greatly to assist the general intent.
,—in horses, are thecrackswhich appear in theHEELSduring the severity of the winter season, and are much more the consequence ofneglect, or a want of knowledge in the stable discipline,than the effect produced by changes in the weather; which may in general be counteracted by the means in constant practice with those who proceed systematically, and take the same care of their horses, as prudence prompts them to take of themselves. They proceed mostly from being left withwetlegs, which, in veryCOLDorFROSTYweather, occasions such a tightness and rigidity of the skin, that, when brought into sudden and brisk action, it bursts asunder, (in a greater or less degree,) according to the texture of the skin, or the constitutional irritability of the horse. These soon become exceedingly painful; and if the weather should repeatedly vary from shortfroststo alternatethaws, and the horse continue in use, the constant insinuation of the sharp particles of small gravel and sand of the dirty roads, is productive of such excruciating sensations, that the subject refuses food, and does not lay down for many days and nights in succession: when evengentlycompelled to move, he lifts up the limb in so much misery, that it is with the greatest reluctance he brings it again to the ground; on the contrary, keeps it so long suspended, that it is expected he must inevitably fall over in his stall. If worked in this state, he comes out of the stable as if completely crippled; and every day's delay in the attempt at relief, must be a culpable protraction of cure: palliatives (with work) will provedeceptive; rest should be adopted, and cure obtained. This can only be effected by poultices made ofLINSEED POWDER, milk, and a little olive oil, applied immediately after comfortable softenings with warm gruel, and a small sponge: anALTERATIVE POWDERin a mash nightly, and the use of camphoratedSPERMA-CÆTI LINIMENT, night and morning, when the poultices are left off, will be found greatly to assist the general intent.
KIDNEYS.—The horse is always liable to local injuries, as well as permanent disorders, of these parts. Inflammation and ulceration are also produced by different means: some proceed from external causes, asBRUISESandBLOWS; being too heavily laden with burdens, or drawing too heavy weights; both which should be equally attended to, and guarded against. The distinguishing symptoms of diseasedKIDNIES, are a palpable weakness of the hind part of thebackandloins, a painful sinking of those parts upon pressure, a difficulty of staling, which is generally voided partially in small quantities, and frequently with short groans of internal disquietude: in slight affections, the urine is white, but turbid; in severe cases, very high coloured, as if tinged with blood: there is mostly a heaviness of the eyes, debility of body, a loathing of food, and a tendency to symptomatic fever. From whatever cause an injury may arise, or from whatever state of the body a disease of the parts may proceed,BLEEDINGlargely is the first step to speedy relief, and the prevention of danger. ThequalityandquantityofMEDICINEmust be regulated by the shades, as well as the duration, of the disorder, according to consequences likely to ensue. Warm glysters of gruel and olive oil occasionally; mashes, made of ground malt and bran, for food; and thin gruel for drink, in whichGUM ARABICshould be dissolved, to lubricate the passages, and sheath any asperity with which the parts may be affected. Should the weakness of the loins increase, the difficulty of staling continue, the urine become more thick and fœtid, the strength more reduced, and the frame emaciated, one or both the kidneys may be considered in a state of ulceration, and cure cannot be expected.
.—The horse is always liable to local injuries, as well as permanent disorders, of these parts. Inflammation and ulceration are also produced by different means: some proceed from external causes, asBRUISESandBLOWS; being too heavily laden with burdens, or drawing too heavy weights; both which should be equally attended to, and guarded against. The distinguishing symptoms of diseasedKIDNIES, are a palpable weakness of the hind part of thebackandloins, a painful sinking of those parts upon pressure, a difficulty of staling, which is generally voided partially in small quantities, and frequently with short groans of internal disquietude: in slight affections, the urine is white, but turbid; in severe cases, very high coloured, as if tinged with blood: there is mostly a heaviness of the eyes, debility of body, a loathing of food, and a tendency to symptomatic fever. From whatever cause an injury may arise, or from whatever state of the body a disease of the parts may proceed,BLEEDINGlargely is the first step to speedy relief, and the prevention of danger. ThequalityandquantityofMEDICINEmust be regulated by the shades, as well as the duration, of the disorder, according to consequences likely to ensue. Warm glysters of gruel and olive oil occasionally; mashes, made of ground malt and bran, for food; and thin gruel for drink, in whichGUM ARABICshould be dissolved, to lubricate the passages, and sheath any asperity with which the parts may be affected. Should the weakness of the loins increase, the difficulty of staling continue, the urine become more thick and fœtid, the strength more reduced, and the frame emaciated, one or both the kidneys may be considered in a state of ulceration, and cure cannot be expected.
KILLING GAME.—The privilege ofKILLING GAME(in any way whatever) is now dependent upon a two-fold qualification; in want ofBOTHwhich, the transgressor renders himself liable to aDOUBLE, and in want ofeither, to asinglepenalty; which, divested of technical ambiguity, and the complicated abstrusity of theGAME LAWSin their present extended state, is reduced to the following state of simplification, adapted to every comprehension.
.—The privilege ofKILLING GAME(in any way whatever) is now dependent upon a two-fold qualification; in want ofBOTHwhich, the transgressor renders himself liable to aDOUBLE, and in want ofeither, to asinglepenalty; which, divested of technical ambiguity, and the complicated abstrusity of theGAME LAWSin their present extended state, is reduced to the following state of simplification, adapted to every comprehension.
In different Acts of Parliament during the reigns ofJamesthe First,Charlesthe Second, and QueenAnne, the landed possessions necessary to constitute a qualification to kill game, (exemptfrom pains and penalties,) have varied materially, in proportion to the gradual alteration in the value of money, which has continued to diminish in a corresponding degree. The landed qualification established by the 23d Charles the Second, c. xxv. and still adhered to, is the possession ofLANDS, TENEMENTS, or other estates of inheritance, of theCLEARyearly value ofONE HUNDRED POUNDS. Or, for term of life,A LEASEorLEASESfor ninety-nine years, or any longer term, of theCLEARyearly value ofONE HUNDREDandFIFTY POUNDS. Persons not so qualified, either killing, or going in pursuit of game with an intent to kill, and being convicted upon theOATHofonewitness, before a Justice of the Peace, forfeitsFIVE POUNDSfor each offence; half to the informer, and half to the poor of the parish where the offence is committed.
Thus far a line is drawn between theQUALIFIEDand theunqualified, in respect toLANDEDprivilege, upon former Acts of Parliament; clearly defining who possessed aLEGAL RIGHTto pursue andKILL GAMEunder such sanction, and who were the persons prohibited from so doing, and liable to the penalty before described. In addition to which distinction, it has been enacted by successive Acts in the present reign of George the Third, That every person who shall use anyDOG,GUN,NET, or other engine, for the taking or killing of game, (except a game-keeper acting under a deputation duly registered,)shall every year, previous to his using the same, deliver his name and place of abode to theClerkof thePeaceof the county where he shall reside, and take out an annualCERTIFICATE, or licence, bearing a stamp, for which three guineas are to be paid. This licence, when obtained, does not authorizeunqualifiedpersons to kill game, but leaves them still liable to thePENALTYofFIVE POUNDSfor each offence, as already described. The penalty for killing game without having procured theANNUAL CERTIFICATE, isTWENTY POUNDSto either the qualified or unqualified; so that theunqualified, prosecuted to conviction, is in a predicament of only five pounds worse than theQUALIFIED, the penalty being twenty pounds with one, and five-and-twenty with the other. Any person in pursuit of game, having his name and place of abode demanded by another, who is possessed of a certificate, and refusing to tell the same, is liable to a penalty ofFIFTY POUNDS. SeeGame-keepers, andGame Laws.
KINDLE.—A doe rabbit is said toKINDLEwhen she brings forth her young.
.—A doe rabbit is said toKINDLEwhen she brings forth her young.
KING FERGUS,—the name of a horse bred by the lateColonel O'Kelly; he was foaled in 1775; was got byEclipse, dam (Tuting's Polly) byBlack and all Black, grand-dam byTartar, great grand-dam byOld Starling. He was ofgreat celebrity, and continued for many years a stallion of the first eminence. He was the sire of a great number of good racers, amongst which were those celebrated runnersHambletonian,Overton,Beningbrough,Sir Solomon,Warter,Johnny(Durand's,)Garswood, &c. &c.
,—the name of a horse bred by the lateColonel O'Kelly; he was foaled in 1775; was got byEclipse, dam (Tuting's Polly) byBlack and all Black, grand-dam byTartar, great grand-dam byOld Starling. He was ofgreat celebrity, and continued for many years a stallion of the first eminence. He was the sire of a great number of good racers, amongst which were those celebrated runnersHambletonian,Overton,Beningbrough,Sir Solomon,Warter,Johnny(Durand's,)Garswood, &c. &c.
KING'S HOUNDS.—His Majesty'sSTAG HOUNDSpass under this denomination, as a part of the royal establishment continued in every successive reign without variation. The kennel in which they are kept is situate near theRACE COURSEuponAscot Heath; at the distance of two short miles from which isSwinley Lodge, the official residence of theMasterof theStag Hounds, an appointment seldom conferred but upon one of the peerage, and is considered an office of honor, with a salary of 2000l.per annum. The presence of the Master of the Stag Hounds in the field is not a matter of necessity, but choice, except when his Majesty hunts, and then his personal attendance is indispensible; his badge of office is a pair of gold dog couples, which hang suspended from a belt on his left side. TheHUNTSMANhas a handsome residence at the kennel, with a salary of 125l.a year; to whom there are six assistants, (calledYEOMEN PRICKERS,) each having a salary of 104l.with the royal livery richly ornamented, and an annual supply of saddles, bridles, horse-cloths, and the necessarystable appendages; but they find their own horses.
.—His Majesty'sSTAG HOUNDSpass under this denomination, as a part of the royal establishment continued in every successive reign without variation. The kennel in which they are kept is situate near theRACE COURSEuponAscot Heath; at the distance of two short miles from which isSwinley Lodge, the official residence of theMasterof theStag Hounds, an appointment seldom conferred but upon one of the peerage, and is considered an office of honor, with a salary of 2000l.per annum. The presence of the Master of the Stag Hounds in the field is not a matter of necessity, but choice, except when his Majesty hunts, and then his personal attendance is indispensible; his badge of office is a pair of gold dog couples, which hang suspended from a belt on his left side. TheHUNTSMANhas a handsome residence at the kennel, with a salary of 125l.a year; to whom there are six assistants, (calledYEOMEN PRICKERS,) each having a salary of 104l.with the royal livery richly ornamented, and an annual supply of saddles, bridles, horse-cloths, and the necessarystable appendages; but they find their own horses.
The hunting season commences onHolyrood-Day, the 25th of September, and continues every Tuesday and Saturday till the first week in May; with the exception of Christmas and Easter weeks, when they huntthreetimes ineach. Holyrood-Day, and Easter-Monday, are the two grand days of the year for company, when the field is exceedingly numerous. His Majesty has also aPACKofHARRIERS, which are kept at the Little Park Lodge near Windsor, and with these he hunts constantly in Windsor Great Park, and the surrounding neighbourhood; they are, however, a private concern of his Majesty's, and not included in the regular Crown establishment.
KING'S PLATE.—Those calledKing's Plates, are a free gift from his Majesty of 100 guineas each; and it is believed were originally granted as a means of exciting such a degree of emulation, as would probably tend to national advantage, by improving the breed of horses in general; as well as to afford an annual pecuniary advantage (by an additional influx of company) to suchCITIESandTOWNSas enjoy the royal favour.Newmarket, as the superior spot of sporting celebrity, is particularly honoured, having two in the firstSpring, and one in the firstOctobermeetings.King's Platesare also given at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Guildford, Winchester, Ipswich, Burford, Chelmsford, Nottingham, Lewes, Edinburgh, York, Canterbury, Warwick, Lichfield, Richmond, (Yorkshire,) Lincoln, Salisbury, Ayr, Carlisle, and Ascot Heath; the whole of which, except the last, are run for by horses or mares of different ages, carrying such weights as shall be appointed by theMasterof theHorse, or whoever he may delegate for that purpose.
.—Those calledKing's Plates, are a free gift from his Majesty of 100 guineas each; and it is believed were originally granted as a means of exciting such a degree of emulation, as would probably tend to national advantage, by improving the breed of horses in general; as well as to afford an annual pecuniary advantage (by an additional influx of company) to suchCITIESandTOWNSas enjoy the royal favour.Newmarket, as the superior spot of sporting celebrity, is particularly honoured, having two in the firstSpring, and one in the firstOctobermeetings.King's Platesare also given at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Guildford, Winchester, Ipswich, Burford, Chelmsford, Nottingham, Lewes, Edinburgh, York, Canterbury, Warwick, Lichfield, Richmond, (Yorkshire,) Lincoln, Salisbury, Ayr, Carlisle, and Ascot Heath; the whole of which, except the last, are run for by horses or mares of different ages, carrying such weights as shall be appointed by theMasterof theHorse, or whoever he may delegate for that purpose.
TheKing's Plateof 100 guineas, given atAscot, and always run for on the first day, (invariably Whit-Tuesday fortnight,) is only for horses which have regularly hunted with his Majesty'sSTAG HOUNDSthe preceding season, and must have been well up with the hounds, at their running up to, taking, or killing,TEN DEER, as an indispensible qualification, without having which they cannot be permitted to start. At the conclusion of the chase, when the deer is secured, those who intend to qualify for the plate apply to theHUNTSMAN, and a ticket is delivered to the rider, bearing the arms of the Master of the Stag Hounds, and the seal of the royal hunt; when which ten tickets are obtained, the horse has secured his qualification, may then be withdrawn from the field, and is not obliged to appear again till theDAYofENTRANCEat Sunning-Hill Wells, where and when the tickets must be produced, in confirmation of his being dulyqualified toSTART. For the accommodation of the sporting world at large, horses of all ages are permitted to run, carrying the following weights; four years old, 11st. 2lb. five years old, 11st. 9lb. six years old, 11st. 12lb. and aged, 12st. Mares allowed 4lb. The best of three four-mile heats.
The following Rules are, by hisMajesty's command, to be strictly observed by theOWNERSandRIDERSof all suchHORSES,MARES, orGELDINGS, as shall run for his Majesty's Plates at Newmarket.
Every person that putteth in a horse, mare, or gelding, for the said plate, is to shew such horse, mare, or gelding, with the marks, name, and name of theOWNER, to be entered at the King's stables in Newmarket the day before they run, and shall then produce a certificate under the hand of the breeder, specifying his exact age the grass before.
Every horse, mare, or gelding, that runneth, is to start between the hours of one and four in the afternoon; and to be allowed half an hour between each heat to rub.
Every horse, mare, or gelding, that runneth on the wrong side thePOSTSorFLAGS, or is distancedin any of theHEATS, shall have no share of the saidPLATE, nor be suffered to start again.
The horse, mare, or gelding, that winneth any two heats, winneth thePLATE; but if three several horses, mares, or geldings, winEACHof them aHEAT, then those three, and only they, to run a fourth; and the horse, mare, or gelding, that winneth the fourth heat, shall have the plate.
And each horse, mare, or gelding's place, as he or they come in by the ending-post each heat, as first, second, or third, &c. shall be determined by such judges as shall be appointed for that purpose by theMasterof theHorse. And in case any horse, mare, or gelding, shall be then, or after prove to be,abovethe ageCERTIFIEDthe grass before, the owner or owners of such horse, mare, or gelding, shall be rendered incapable of ever running for any of the King's Plates hereafter.
As many of theRIDERSas shallcross,jostle, orstrike, or use any other foul play, as shall be judged by such person or persons as shall be appointed by theMasterof theHorse, such rider shall be made incapable of ever riding any horse, mare, or gelding, for any of hisMajesty's Plateshereafter; and suchOWNERSshall have no benefit ofthatplate; but such owners may be permitted torun any horse, mare, or gelding, for any other of his Majesty's free Plates in future.
EveryRIDERshall, immediately after each heat is run, be obliged to come to theENDING-POSTwith his horse, mare, or gelding, then and there to alight, and not before, and there toWEIGHto the satisfaction of the judges appointed for that purpose.
And in case of neglect or refusal thereof, suchWINNERSandRIDERSshall be immediately declaredincapableofRUNNINGorRIDINGany more for this or any of hisMajesty's Platesin future.
And should any difference arise relating to their ages, or in their running, or to these hisMajesty's orders, the same to be determined by such person, or persons, as shall be appointed by theMasterof theHorse. And these Articles are to continue in force, unless altered byCOMMANDof hisMajesty.
For the better and more certain prevention of any fraud, or misapplication, the winner of aKing's Plateis to receive from theClerkof theCourse, a certificate signed by theStewardof theRacewhere such plate is won, countersigned by himself also, which being presented to theLord Lieutenantof theCounty, it obtains his signature likewise: when thus sanctioned, it becomespayable at sight toBEARER(if properly endorsed by the winner) at the office of theClerkof hisMajesty's Stables, in theKing's Mews, London. The Lord Lieutenant of a county being out of the kingdom, the signature of any person regularly deputed by him is sufficient. The certificate of winning thePLATEatAscotrequires only the signature of theMasterof hisMajesty's Stag Hounds, instead of the Lord Lieutenant of the County.