Very naturally, however, men who have passed
their lives as fox-hunters grow to regard the chase and the object of
it alike with superstitious veneration. They attribute almost mythical
characters to the animal. I know some of my good Virginian friends, for
instance, who seriously believe that the Virginia red fox is a beast
quite unparalleled for speed and endurance no less than for cunning.
This is of course a mistake. Compared with a wolf, an antelope, or even
a deer, the fox's speed and endurance do not stand very high. A good
pack of hounds starting him close would speedily run into him in the
open. The reason that the hunts last so long in some cases is because
of the nature of the ground which favors the fox at the expense of the
dogs, because of his having the advantage in the start, and because
of his cunning in turning to account everything which will tell in his
favor and against his pursuers. In the same way I know plenty of English
friends who speak with bated breath of fox-hunting but look down upon
riding to drag-hounds.
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