The Raider Hounds
Frank Reese
Taylorsville, NC
The Chase, March, 1973 Page Sixteen

"O, Ratler, chief of all the clan
Of fancy dogs - revered by man.
Thou well deserv'st my lay;
The pride and boast of fancy' grace,
And hero of the canine race,
Surpasses allour praise."  Boxiana

"A Big Stride _Tena bitch bred to John Walker's Hub Dawson produced raider Dawson, a hound that won on the bench
everywhere and won the Kentucky State Derby, winning first in every class.  He was the sire of May Raider and Ray Raider.
 Ray Raider has bred on in good style.  He is the sire of a great many winners such as Red Love, winner of the Chase
Futurity, Tom Crowe and many others of note."

When S. L. Wooldridge wrote the note on Raider Dawson the foxhunting fraternity knew that the greatest honor that could
come to a sire was to say, "He was the sire of May Raider and Ray Raider."

While flat on my back in 1936 with advanced Tuberculosis S. L. Wooldridge and Nat Taylor came to visit me.  Wooldridge
had just taken Ray Raider out of the stud.  There was  a rumor out as the public is ever ready to kick the goodones.  When
Nat brought the subject up we discussed the Raider hounds in detail.  They were well known by this time for extreme speed
and gameness.  Wooldridge told us that Biffle would not renew his contract.  At no time did we mention teh color of the
Raiders.  Nat and Sam would have been the last in the world to discriminate against a hound due to his color.

While judging a field trial with J. R. Love in the early thirties he gave me a picture of his great hound Hannah with her
litter by Ray Raider.  This was a large litter made up of Tom Crowe and other noted stud dogs.  Her pups came in various
colors.  Hannah was by the great White Rowdy, a son of Big Stride.

Raider Dawson was a big black hound, just the type to throw off--color on certain type bitches.  He was a tyical Wooldridge
bred hound, bred along the same lines as the Pride family.  He was bred almost identical to Steel's Judith Branham, that
produced so many good hounds for us and Alex Parrish's Ch. Alleen.  Big King was from some of the same lines and
produced off-color hounds.  Hodo may have had some influence.  Judith Branham bred to Billie Ruff Coate and Billie Bristol
produced several hounds of a peculiar color.  Champ Clark threw off-color hounds which carrie on through Ch. Jack and
others.  Many of them came with black heads, which is not common in Walker hounds.  It would be hard to trace the
off-color tenedency in the Raider hounds.

Strangely most blue or fawn colored hounds are blanketed or have a full color with very little white.  Factors which affect
the skin pigment determine the color of the coat.  Lemon, cream, chestnut, liver, chocolate and the various shades of blue
and gray coats are due to a lack of black pigment; it not only shows in the skin but in the eyes, nose and pads.  These lack
of pigmentation tendencies may be developed by selective breeding.  These shades may crop out in the best of breeding
circles.  The various shades are acceptable as true hound colors.

A recessive factor, whether it be color, deformity or faultiness of any kind, can lay dormant for generations and then crop
up apparently out of nowhere.  When a factor does crop up it is apt to continue in a big way.  This was true in the off-color in
the Raider hounds.

Dr. Fred Long was a great booster of the Raider hounds.  By contract with friends in Tennessee he was able to get Joe
Raider, Buster Dawson, Ada and White Rose (Big Page-May Raider) Buster Dawson was by Rex Raider.  Both Ada and
White Rose crossed well on the Statesville hounds.  White Rose bred to Big Coaster produced a large litter of big strong
white and lemon hounds.  On paper they were the best bred hounds in America, but they were not in the class with Joe
Raider or Buster Dawson.  We made the mistake of going to the Big Coaster hounds instead of Joe Raider.  One  of our
hounds made such a good cross on Joe Raider blood that from year to year at the National five or six of the top hounds carry
this blood.

Lookout Dam area in Alexander and Iredell County was one of the greatest and best known country to run red fox.  Ross
Alexander, Rom and Solon Moose grew up in this area.  The Dysons, Chapmans and the Dagenharts all hunted here until
the deer ran us out.  The greatest hounds ran here such as Flying Ebony, Lula, Alberta Ruth, Billie Bristol and company.  It
is fast and open country and the red fox is at home here.  Dr. Fred Long hunted the Catawba side and Joe Raider would
swim the big Catawab River and join the all night races.  He would take his place up fron t and the longer the race the better
he like it.  No one ever knew how he got back home.  The Moose's kept bitchs and looked for a fast hound.  Solon Moose
said of Joe Raider, "He runs and gives tongue just like a bitch".  We never knew of another hound to swim the big river to
join a chase.

Comparisons are odious, and with an age differential, the battle of comparison can be won only with words, not in
competition between the great hounds of yesterday and those of today.  Let the great in each era stand out in memory and
let none detract from the feats performed in time separated by years.  No one who saw the Raiders run can blot the memory
and think of a comparison with the greatest of any age.  The blood that produced these hounds will continue to mold a
certain character in the American Foxhound.

"God give me grace to own a hound so fast, that even I, in talking of it afterwards will never need to lie."
Dan Meeks
                                                                        The Chase Magazine
                                                               December, 1972 - January, 1973

                                                                    THE RAIDER HOUNDS
                                                                               (continued)
                                                                          L. Jack Criswell
                                                              Rt. 5, Hwy 104, Trenton, Tn.  38382

The night Br. Biffle lay a corpse in his home there were a large group of foxhunters there.  I won't attempt to name
them except one man, Harry (Bill) Pace of Newbern, Tenn.  Bill at one time drove Mr. Biffle's hound truck for him most
everywhere he went hunting.  That night Bill told of the following hunt.

Bill said one day about lunch time Mr. Biffle called him and asked what he was going to be doing that particular
afternoon and tomorrow.  Bill told him nothing in particular so Mr. Biffle asked him to come over and they would go to
Penson and run with Dan Shaw and the Meriweather boys, who tell us they have an all nighter over there.  

Right after lunch Bill went to Mr. Biffle's, backed the Model A Ford truck out of the garage, filled it up with gas,
checked the oil, loaded all the hunting equipment and had started loading the hound when Mr. Biffle came out of the
house saying "Ah - Bill, wait a minute.  I expect you had better let me load them for they say that they take a big sharp
knife with them when they go hunting and everytime a hound comes in before the race is over they cut his throat.  Mr.
Biffle loaded two males and two females.  I remember distinctly that Bill said the males were Ned Raider and Zev
Raider.  I don't remember for sure what the two females were, but I believe he said they were Dot Raider and Don
Raider, both by Flying Cloud out of Fly Raider.  Zev by Big Page out of May Raider and Ned by Ray Raider out of
Little Nett Parker, by Bob Redditt by Big Stride.

Bill said they arrived well before midnight, set up camp and Mr. Shaw fixed supper as he always would.  About sundown
the hounds were cast and sure enough they did have the all night fox there.  The fox would run around and around in a
big circle close by them for about an hour and sometime for about two hours.  Then they would go out of hearing east for
some 15 to 30 minutes, come back and make the same circle as before, then go out of hearing west for about the same
length of time.

Bill said a little after midnight hounds began to drop out and come in to camp and lie down until about two o'clock there
were some 10 to 12 hounds lying around camp.  Mr. Biffle got up off his little stool and walked around camp, counted
the number of hounds that had quit and said, "Ah, Dan, aren't you boys getting behind with your killing?"  Soon after
that Mr. Shaw went into his trailer to take a nap, as he did a lot of times when he got real tired.

The hounds went out of hearing west about 30 minutes before daylight and when they returned the sun was peeking
over the eastern horizon turning the sky to a beautiful red glow.  Now the four Raider hounds had the race all to
themselves.  They were several more hounds trying to stay with them, but could only get up close enough to open once
in a while.  All four of the Raider hounds were giving mouth as steady as a clock ticking and were running just as strong
as they were at sundown when the fox was first jumped.

Mr. Biffle got up off his little canvas stool, walked up to Mr. Shaw's trailer and went to beating on the side of it with his
fist and calling -Ah Dan-Ah Dan- Mr. Shaw answered, "Yes, Mr. Biffle."  Mr. Biffle said "Get up from there and come
out here and listen to my four hounds run that fox."

Bill Pace said the fox ran about 30 more minutes and went in.
                                                                                         *********

Ray Raider influenced our present day hounds mostly through two sons, Wildwood Jo Jo and Tom Crowe.  Wildwood Jo
Jo died in the kennels of R. L. (Red) Taylor and Reeves Hughes of Germantown, Tenn., known as the Wildwood Farm
Kennels.

The most prominent hounds sired by these two sons were National field champion Master Jo (Wildwood Jo Jo-Puddin)
and Big Jester (Tom Crowe-Kit Gentry).  Now, let me say right here that both Mast Jo and Big Jester were out of
outstanding bitches.  I also say that both Wildwood Jo Jo and Tom Crowe sired some outstanding hounds out of bitches
other than these two, but the records show that Master Jo and Big Jester were bred to more extensively than any of the
other descendants of Tom Crowe and wildwood Jo Jo.

Another Ray Raider hound that would have made a great record as a sire had he not hung in a fence and died young,
was Okemah John Raider.  I believe John Raider was owned by a foxhunter by the name of Cotton who lived in
Missouri somewhere near the Lake of the Ozarks.  When I was serving as Master of Hounds at the South Central
Missouri Foxhunters Association in the late 40's I observed several nice strong buckskin tan hounds that were doing an
outstanding job in the field and all of these were sired by Okemah John Raider.  Okemah John Raider is by Ray Raider
out of Okemah Branham.  The late Harry H. Kersey told me, without a doubt, if John Raider had not died young he
would have been one of the outstanding sires of his time.  You will see Okemah John Rider in some pedigrees today and
anyone having a hound with Okemah John Raider in its pedigree can point with pride to this fact.

Wildwood Jo Jo was one of the greatest field trial hounds of all times.  He hunted like a bird dog, was a good trailer with
just enough speed to be in the pack and a nose good enough to follow the fox and would get a lot of pick ups when the
front hound would run over.  He was a dead game hound, but there were a large number of foxhunters in Jo Jo's day
that would bet you 10 to 1 that Wildwood Jo Jo would be in or near the road where he could be picked up in less than 10
minutes after the hunt was blown off.

Wildwood Jo Jo was run in field trials well past the age that most hounds would have been retired from the hunt, even at
home.

In looking through some of my old records and pedigrees I see where Cora Raider was bred to Dollie Bristol and
produced Cora Bristol.  Cora Bristol bred to Zev Raider produced Craig's Ann Raider that in my estimation was a
mediocre foxhound, as was most of the crosses made mating first cousins in the Raider family of hounds.

Then Craig's Ann Raider bred to D. D. Shaw's Kentuck (Napoleon K.-Flossie Flirt), produced Craig's Carnation that
was an outstanding foxhound.

Willie Gibson, who now lives in the old Biffle home, at one time had a big buckskin tan bitch that he called Ann, that was
an outstanding foxhound.  She was a product of first cousins.  I am not sure about this, but I believe she was by Zev
Raider (Big Page-May Raider) and out of Nell Raider (Billie Bristol-Fly Raider).

There certainly could have been others, but this Ann of Willie Bigson's was only outstanding foxhound from mating first
cousins in the family of Raider hounds--all the others I was familiar with were mediocre.  Let me say right here that I
never knew of a single time that these products of first cousins when crossed out on some other family of Walker
hounds failed to produce outstanding hounds.

One of these was a white and lemon bitch owned by the late R. E. Jones of Dyersburg, Tenn., called Preacher.  She was
sired by Wilson's Homer Rowdy 11637 out of Nan Raider (Ned Raider 14120-Don Raider 13393).  Preacher was one of
a few hounds that could run with my old stepper bitch, a half Walker-half Goodman.  By Fuller's Scout out of Bessie
Goodman, Stepper was the fastest hound I ever owned or ever heard run a fox, but she did not have the bottom like the
Raider hounds.

Another outstanding foxhound from one of these first cousin Raider hounds was Red Raider.  Ted Raider had Ray
Raider and May Raider in the third generation and Ray again in the fourth.

Ted Raider was sired by Fuller's Jefsie, he by Dan Shaw's Al Capone, Glee II and Jane's Old Red out of Fuller's Lindy.
 Fuller's Scout and Ruth Raider by Ray Raider.  The dam of Ted Raider was Mag Raider 15223.  By Ned Raider ex
Ann Raider, Mag Raider was in my estimation a mediocre hound.  Mag Raider won the firs bench show ever held in
Dyersburg, Tenn.  It was held in connection with the Cotton Carnival at that time.  Mag also won Best Opposite Sex at
the Second Bench Show held at Dyersburg, Tenn.  It was at this meeting that the great Southern States Foxhunters
Association was organized.
    
Ted Raider was a small white and lemon or light red hound, about 22 1/2 inches at the shoulders.  He was bred and
raised by my good friend and close neighbor the late R. E. Jones.  Mr. Jones petted and pampered Ted all through his
puppy hood which in my opinion was one reason that Ted was a long time starting to run.  After Mr. Jones started to
taking him hunting when he was about 8 to 9 months old, he hunted twice a week and Ted was always there.  Ted would
cast with the hounds for about 150 to 200 yards and then come bouncing back to Mr. Jones and would just play around
the rest of the time and not show any interest in the other hounds.  This went on for several months then one night Mr.
Jones was on the Ohion River bluff at a place we used to call "the big gate."  He had a fire as it was late in the fall.  
(Bear in mind that he had been taking Ted hunting since spring.)

The hounds had been running back south in a creek bottom and rolling hills.  Now Mr. Jones had his fire built right on
top of the bluff which was a very steep one.  Mr. Jones had a bitch by Ned Raider he called Tex and by the way she was
a real good one.  After the fox they were running had gone in, Tex came by the fire.  Ted jumped up and went to playing
with Tex and Tex dropped right over the bluff, fell right on to a red hot fox trail.  Ted took off with her carrying that trail
like a veteran and from that time on he was an outstanding foxhound in every respect, hunting, trailing, speed and
driving and endurance.

Mr. Jones told me he needed some money so would sell Ted Raider and another young hound he had.  I told him that I
thought I knew who would buy them if they could hear them run.  So I took them to Trenton, Tenn., and went hunting
with W. D. Hickman and the late Walter Linville.  We had a good fox race right on the same running grounds where
Dee Hickman and I hunt now.  So Walter and Dee bought Ted Raider and Waterloo, the other young hound that was by
Mr. Shaw's Kentuck out of one of Charles Chapman's of Munsford, Tenn., bitches and I believe it was Windemere
Emily by Flying Heels ex Windemere Kate.

Guy Ward of Trenton, who hunted with Dee and Walter had a brother, L. Ward, who taught school in Calvin, Okla.  He
came to visit his brother and when he heard Ted Raider run began to try to buy him and finally did buy Ted for a very
long price.  L. Ward said Ted Raider was not only the best fox and wolf hound that he ever owned, but was the best
hound that he had ever heard run.  Anyone having a hound today with Ted Raider showing up in his pedigree can point
with pride to same.

The year that Master Jo won the National field championship I believe his sire, Wildwood Jo Jo, placed second in the
same hunt.  If I am wrong I stand to be corrected.

I was told by Will E. Shaw of Ashland City, Tenn., that the late Dr. Fred Vaught (before Fred ever owned any hounds)
was at a field trial in Tennessee when the fox came up to the road which had a fence on both sides, making a lane and
this fox turned down beside the fence and never did get into the road.  Every hound in this pack crossed the road going
over both fences except old Ray Raider nd he turned right where the fox did, hardly missing a note.  Dr. Vaught made
the remark that if he ever owned any foxhounds he wanted some of the blood of old Ray Raider.

Dr. Vaught did own lots of foxhounds and did have Ray Raider breeding in his pack.  I will mention two -- Big Joe Sam
21910 (Wildwood Jo Jo - Topsy Heels), she by big Sam W. ex Skesic.

Big Joe Sam was the winner of 2nd place in the 1942 Chase Futurity, placing 6th on the bench.  I quote Fred Vaught, "a
perfect hunting hound that always finds his fox and then runs him.  He stays on top of hte pack whether it is a ten
minutes gray or an all night red.  He has a very outstanding loud, heavy chop mouth that makes goose bumps on your
neck- a truly going hound."

The other hound Stormy Buzzard 22768 by Buzzard Wing out of Lady Raider Vaught that won the 1943 Chase Futurity.  
Dr. Vaught had this to say about Lady Raider Vaught.  She is the best bitch I ever owned. She hasn't done the wrong
thing yet that I remember.  Dr. Paul Tipton one time asked Dr. Vaught "Fred, if you were going foxhunting tonight
where you were expecting to have a long, hard knockdown, dragout, red hot, fox race, which one of your hounds would
you take?"  Dr. Vaught said, "I would take both of them, Big Joe Sam and Stormy Buzzard."  Dr. Tipton rephrased his
question and told him that a hunter could only take one hound, so which would it be.  I believe it was Tubby Summers
who spoke up and said he knew which one he would take and he does too, he would take Big Joe Sam and  Dr. Vaught
said, "Yes, he's right, I would take Big Joe Sam."


Jo Boy Burton by Wildwood Jo Jo out of June Burton was another outstanding foxhound and a good producer.  Mr. D.
D. Shaw that owned Jo Burton had this to say - "Jo Burton is as good as I have ever owned."

When I was a boy I heard by Daddy and a neighbor Mr. Marshall Ashridge who hunted with Daddy, often speak of
Fuller and Biffle, as they hunted their pack together.  To try to separate Fuller and Biffle, as they hunted their pack
together.  To try to separate Fuller and biffle or Biffle and Fuller would be like trying to separate Karo from syrup.

I have mentioned earlier in these notes about Mr. Will Fuller and son, Clarence.  Clarence doesn't hunt any more, but
lives with some of his children in California.
                                                                   ****************************

The winter of 1917 and 1918 when I was a boy 11 to 12 years old, was one of the most severe winters ever in this part of
the country and I will never forget that winter if I live to be 200.  

There came a big snow, about 18 to 20 inches deep and my Daddy waded through this snow about three miles to Lenox,
Tenn., and caught the train.  He went to Dyersburg, spent the night in a hotel, bought some overshoes for my brother
and me to wear to school, caught the train back to Lenox the next day and waded the snow back home.  That night there
came a freezing rain and sleet on top of the snow, so thick that it would hold a horse up.  Well, my brother and I wore
our new overshoes to school the next day and it was a good day for skating and that sleet with the frozen rain just made
it rough enough to cut the rubber bottoms out of our overshoses and when we got home that afternoon mine were barely
hanging on my feet.  I never saw my Daddy so hurt in his life.  He didn't say much, but went to the woods to cut him
some switches.  Now my Dad was the best in the world to select good switches, I still cannot understand how he could
get switches that would never break, the long kind that would wrap and re-wrap every time he hit you with it.  To this
day, every time my foot slips on ice I'm reminded of the winter of 17 and 18 and it seems I can feel that keen switch
stinging my legs and back.  Let me say right here while I'm off the line--this old world would be a better place if we had
more parents today like my Daddy.

It was during this winter, Mr. T. Doss, known to all in West Tennessee as Uncle T., had just moved to West Tennessee
from Middle Tennessee.  Uncle T. told me that when the sleet and ice was on top of the snow Fuller's Old Buster had
brought two young hounds out in the hills near Old Prospect Methodist Church near where Uncle T. lived and for three
nights straight old Buster and the two young hounds would wake him up several times each night running a fox and they
would pass right by his barnyard fence and every morning when he went to the barn to feed his stock he would see blood
on the ice everwhere their feet hit the ice.  Some farmer in this community saw them lying up in his haystack in the day
time and knew they belonged to Fuller or Biffle so he called Mr. Fuller and he put iceshoes on his horse and came down
and got them.

Now I know the question on your mind--What was Old Buster and does his line of breeding influence our present day
hounds.  YES -- however, I only know of one line of Walker hounds that comes down from Old Buster and that's Sigman
Dan and Dr. Fred Long breeding.  Old Buster was by Jack Drain out of Truda.  Jack Drain by Credit out of Fly.  Fly by
Big Strive out of Fleetfoot, a Trigg bitch.  Fly was 12 years old when she died and before May Raider's time.  Mr. Biffle
had this to say about Fly "the greatest foxhound I ever owned -- no race too long and always near the fox."

Truda was by Big Strive out of Lula.  She by Dexter ex Fleetfoot which gave Old Buster a double cross of Trigg.

Fuller's queen bred to Old Buster produced a great litter of hounds.  Queen was by Tom James out of Truda.  Tom
James was by Ch. Bill Burgis out of Ch. Lott.

One of this litter was Shelley Doss's Slick.  I hunted with Shelly quite a bit during the time he had Slick and it's my
opinion that Slick was the best foxhound Shelly ever ow and I have told him so lots of times.  He has owned some good
ones.  Slick was an outstanding hunter, a good fast trailer, always at the front with the best clear tenor horn note that he
would cut short once in a while.  Shelley and me were hunting at the Ben Whitson place in the Ohion County hills.  We
cast the hounds about dark and Slick struck about one mile north of us toward a place we  called Wolf Ridge, a place
with long narrow ridges, steep hills and thickets.  Other hounds I recall in the hunt was Doss's Billie, Ratler, Harry,
Carrie and another young hound or two I can't recall the names of.

The fox just didn't want to run.  The hounds trailed an hour or longer when for some 10 minutes or more we didn't hear
Slick.  Shelly had said several times that he wondered what was the matter with Slick, as he had never known him to
quit a trail or a race before. Although it wasn't more than 10 or 12 minutes it seemed like an hour when Slick opened
again.  He was in one fourth mile of us and right on top of that fox.

The other hounds pulled right to Slick joining in the race one and two at a time.  After they had been running for about
an hour they went out of hearing northeast of the Wolf Ridge Territory toward The Hurricane.

Mr. Rawleigh Pigg, another foxhunter, lived near The Hurricane.  When the hounds came back in hearing we heard a
new mouth in the pack and Shelly said one of the Rawl Pigg's hounds is with them.  Then he said it was Ada.  Ada was a
young hound at that time and as good as ever ran a fox.  The hounds went back out of hearing the second time in the
same direction and were gone longer this time.  

When they came back Shelly said another one of Rawl Pigg's hounds are with them.  I said, "No, that's your Billie."  
He assured me that Billie had a fine mouth and that hound has a coarse mouth.  I told him still that it was Billie-Slick
and Ada just pushed him so hard he has gotten hoarse.

Now Billie was a fast front end hound and a good one, but any time any hound hooked up with Slick and Ada or any
hounds of their bloodline, they certainly had their work cut out for them.

Clarence Fuller had a mate to Slick he called Little Buster or Buster II.  You may see it in a pedigree either way.  Little
Buster was very outstanding.  In fact, Clarence refused $250.00 for him and this was in the early 20's, Little Buster
being whelped May 1920, bred by Clarence Fuller.

Buster was a Tan and Red ringneck white points hound.  This was the color that Mr. Biffle liked.  He told me he liked
the Walker hound in a Trigg uniform, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was not because Old Fly was this color.

Rawleigh Pigg's Ada was by Fuller's Little Buster out of Pigg's Dixie.  Dixie by Tom James II (Tom James-Fleet Foot
II); Dixie out of White Face (CH. Hustler (F)-Ch. Rose).  Ch. Rose was of Shaver bloodlines.

Mr. Pigg bred Ada to Rex Raider twice and all were outstanding foxhounds.  I do not know what became of them, but I
do know what became of Ada after Mr. Pigg's death and also Jim McHaney.  Someone got both Joe Raider and Ada
and sent them to Dr. Long in North Carolina.  Dr. Long crossed Ada on Joe Raider and got Long's Raider and Raider's
Ada.   Long's Raider crossed on Beulah Branham produced the great Sigman Dan.

My good friend, Frank Reese of Taylorsville, N.C., wrote an article on Beulah Branham.

At the 1971 National, John Laney and Luther Sigman shared a hotel room with me one night and Luther Sigman, who
was the owner of Sigman Dan and we talked until late in the night with Luther mostly talking about the many races he
had with Dan and how he was always in the right place all the time.

Sigman Dan crossed on Maggie Long (T.Ross-Raider's Ada) produced Dr. Fred Long.  Albert Setzer told me one time
that Dr. Fred Long was the fastest hound he ever heard run a fox.

Garland Alexander had this to say about Dr. Fred Long.  He was in the same class with Billie Bristol when it came to
running a wide running red fox.  Very few hounds could run with him.

Two crosses of Joe Raider and Old Ada through Sigman Dan and Dr. Fred Long is the only way I know of today that
you can get back to the fount head of the old Ada line of supreme foxhounds of the 1920's owned by S. I. Biffle, Will
Fuller and Clarence Fuller of Dyer County, Tenn.

Great men -- Great foxhunters -- and great hounds.