It's What you Hear and See, The Hunters Horn, Sept. 1959
The Hunter's Horn
September, 1959
Page Fifty
It's What you Hear and See
Being human, I am flattered to receive letters of approval from such hunters as Hinkel Shillings,
Center, Tex., who wrote me a complimentary letter on my recent article, "Speed Is the Culprit." He is
nationally known, and his hounds have a reputation far and wide. In fact we have some of his stock
here in this community. George Hardy Jr. has one of Mr. Shillings' hounds, and some puppies from that
dog. Mr. Hardy likes this hound and so do I.
And communications also from Dr. D. B. Rice, Rock Island, Tenn., of race horse fame, and who wrote a
timely and informative article some time ago on breeding.
Hearing approvingly from such men as these makes me feel good, and perhaps gives a little hope that
some less experienced hunter may find something helpful in what I have written. But the purpose of
this communication is to commend The Horn for its recent editorial with reference to the all-night
hunter looking down, so to speak, on the hunter who cannot remain with his hounds all night. I happen
to be one of those hunters who cannot stay out all night long with his hounds.
I just cannot stay up all night, then meet the public and my family the next day with a smile. There is a
limit to my endurance, and I am fortunate, I think, that I know my limitations. I would regret being ruled
out as a hunter simply because I cannot stay with the pack all night. I know a little about some of these
all night hunters. They may stay in the bushes more hours than I do, but many of them never hear their
hounds run as many hours as I listen to mine.
Have you ever read an article in your magazine that read something like this: "Two of my hunting
buddies drove into my yard just as I finished supper. We loaded my four hounds in their pickup and
headed for the old apple orchard. We turned old Speck, Rambler and Tom loose to make the strike.
Soon they had a fox going and the rest of the pack fell in. They were driving hard when they went out
of hearing to the west. We sat around for a couple of hours when one of the boys heard the pack
coming in from the northwest. Henry cranked up his truck, all of us piled in and dashed off up the road
to meet them when they crossed old man Johnson's field. But the pack turned before we arrived and
went due north. This time they were gone for a little over an hour when we heard the pack coming
down Little Bottom Creek, in full cry. They passed near the fire, but whipped over the mountain and
were soon out of hearing."
So on and so on, until the sun was coming up the next morning when all hounds were caught off the
track, except Williams' old Blue, and he came in the next night. Sounds familiar does it not?
I went on a hunt like that once in West Virginia. We heard just about as much of their pack running as I
hear of our hounds before ten o'clock at night.
We stay with our hounds. Our hunting territory is such that we have many public roads, even more farm
roads. We can stay on the pack from the time they jump until the fox holes or we decide to go home for
the night. Our listening, watching the pack cross roads, fields, and openings, is continuous--no waiting
for one hour, two hours or longer for the pack to come back into hearing. It is seldom our hounds run
out of our hearing, except on deer.
Now who is in the better position to judge his hounds--the man who has to sit and wait by the hour for
his dogs to come into hearing, a kind of hit-and-miss fashion, or the hunter who follows his hounds
from seven o'clock, right after supper, until twelve or one o'clock and then goes home? Hardly a break,
seeing his hounds often, able to follow in his car for miles around, always in good hearing and knowing
what his hounds are doign, if that is possible in night hunting.
I do not think any hunter can ever know all he should know about the individual hounds, if he hunts
only at night. I have been hunting 50 years, and to judge a hound wisely and well, give me the day-time
hunt, when I can see almost every move that hound makes. My work is such I seldom hunt in the
daytime, therefore I cannot really and truly judge any hound I own. I think I have some good ones, and I
have sense enough to know that a hound could do a lot of sinning, at night, and I would never know
about it.
Is that favorite hound of yours actually running the fox, or is he running with the pack? If it were
daytime I could soon tell you. At night I cannot be certain, with more hounds. That mellow mouthed
hound, for instance. You cannot distinguish his mouth in the pack at night, but you see him
occasionally crossing a field. What is he doing after they pass through the field? You can't see him, you
have to guess, the same as I do. Some hounds are so outstanding that you can get a pretty good idea
from running them at night, but how about the average hound you hunt?
I have a hound, my stud hound, whose puppies are in great demand. One man who purchased a puppy
from me came back and purchased the entire subsequent litter. He also brought one of his bitches and
bred her to him. Another hunter who purchased a puppy came back for half of the present litter. I
mention these facts because they are pertinent to what I am going to say. I have run this hound in the
daytime, and I know what he can do. He is an exceptionally good hunter, a hard, fast runner, will not
babble, and asks no odds from any hound.
On the basis of what I have seen and know of him hunting in the daytime, I consider him a valuable
hound. He has a strong, heavy voice, but mellow, and cannot be heard above the pack. If I had to judge
this hound only on the basis of what I heard running him at night, I certainly would not be able to tell
you much about him, except that I see him running with the pack crossing roads or fields. If I could run
him regularly in the daytime, I might think even more of him, and it is also possible I might think less of
him.
I do not give a hound anything except food, a clean place to sleep and kindness. If he is any good he
will have to prove it. I am not going to assume that he is a fine hound, worthy of my admiration. Your
best friends are men who have proven themselves to be friends. The only hounds in my kennel that I
classify as good are the hounds that have proven their worth.
I have always been fair with my fellow man in all of my business with him. I am fair with my hounds. All I
ask of them is to be fair with me--and prove their goodness. I do not think it fair to a hound to judge
him solely on the basis of running him at night. That is why I always find time to hunt some during the
daytime, when I can see and not assume what he is doing.
I have no hounds and no puppies for sale. I mention this particular hound of mine because I know this
hound, and he is a good illustration of the point I tried to make. Judged soley on his running at night, I
would not breed him, because I just cannot judge him honestly and cannot possibly see the things I
must see and hear to be honest with the hound. But, by running him some during daylight hours, when
I can see him, hear him at close range, and observe his work under a critical eye, we breed him, and
make no apologies for so doing.
Referring again to the editorial on the all-night hunter vs. the man who leaves the pack and goes home
at midnight, let me say this, in all humbleness of spirit: I would be reluctant to classify a hunter on the
basis of whether he hunted all night, or just until midnight. I would want to know how much experience
he has had as a real fox hunter, and whether or not he was a man of good judgment. Experience is said
to be a good teacher, but it teaches some of us very little. So the real test, it seems to me, is the quality
of his judgment.
A hunter of poor judgment sometimes will select a good hound but a hunter of good judgment will
never pick a poor one.
J. G. Dickerson
Amelia, Va