Norman Fine - Foxhunting Adventures: Chasing the Story

Foxhunting: How to Watch and Listen by Hugh Robards, 2006

Each chapter takes the reader on the same hunt over the same country from the points of view of each of the participants: huntsman, whipper-in, Field Master, hounds, and fox.

Foxhunting in North America by Alexander Mackay-Smith, 1985

A comprehensive guide to foxhunting in the United States and Canada.

The American Foxhound: 17471967 by Alexander Mackay-Smith, 1968

The bible for every breeder and student of the American foxhound.

Gone Away by Mason Houghland, 1949

A charming, beautifully written guide to all aspects of foxhunting.

Hounds and Hunting Through the Ages by Joseph B. Thomas, 1928

The first comprehensive book on hunting with hounds written by an American.

Riding to Hounds in North America by William P. Wadsworth

Small booklet containing sound hunting information and advice on attire and etiquette; available from the MFHA and The Chronicle of the Horse.

Thoughts on Hunting by Peter Beckford, 1781

The bible of foxhunting; the first how-to book ever published on the subject; still relevant.

The Voice of Bugle Ann by MacKinlay Kantor, 1935

A small novel about a Missouri night hunter and his hound by a Pulitzer Prizewinning American author.

The Daughter of Bugle Ann by MacKinlay Kantor, 1953

The sequel to the first.

The Silver Horn by Gordon Grand, 1932

A collection of some of the authors best-loved stories.

Some Experiences of an Irish R.M. by Somerville and Ross, 1899

The most thoroughly hilarious and entertaining book about fox-hunting ever written.

Further Experiences of an Irish R.M. by Somerville and Ross

More of the same.

Mr. Carteret by David Gray, 1899

After numerous readings, I still cannot read the title story without breaking into uncontrollable laughter.

This short list of suggested reading will surely and justifiably be criticized for omitting countless excellent, humorous, informative, and entertaining favorites. My only defense is that a longer comprehensive reading list might be intimidating, and I firmly believe that readers who delve into any of these will quickly find their own way to other wonderful titles.

THE DERRYDALE PRESS

Published by The Derrydale Press

An imprint of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706
http://www.rlpgtrade.com

Estover Road, Plymouth PL6 7PY, United Kingdom

Distributed by National Book Network and Millwood House, Ltd.,
www.foxhuntingadventures.com

Copyright 2010 by Norman Fine

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Fine, Norman M.

Foxhunting adventures : chasing the story / Norman Fine.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-56416-212-0 (cloth : alk. paper)

1. Fox huntingAnecdotes. I. Title.

SK285.F56 2010

799.2'59775dc22

2010013602

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Printed in the United States of America

I wish to thank the team of friends who helped me with this book.

First-Friend is my wife, Joan, who is my sounding board and reliable dispenser of good judgment. Although she is my toughest editor, she is at the same time my heartiest supporteralwaysin every venture. Joan was partner and witness to all of the early hunting adventures described here, and when she contracted the incurable retriever field trial bug I was sorry to lose her from the hunting field.

James L. Young has made enormous contributions to the sport of foxhunting as MFH of the renowned Orange County Hunt in Virginia, as a director and ultimately president of the Masters of Foxhounds Association, as president of the Virginia Foxhound Club, and as a member of the Advisory Board of the Museum of Hounds and Hunting. I am deeply honored that Jimmy agreed to write the fore-word to this book.

If I possess one talent, its recognizing a good idea when I hear it. Author-editor Steven Price in New York City has long been my secret weapon of creative ideas. Steve read every story, did a first-pass copy edit, and, true to form, dispensed valuable and welcome ideas.

Jed Lyons, president of the Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, is another friend who deserves not only my thanks but the thanks of all foxhunters. By maintaining The Derrydale Press imprintprobably the smallest and certainly the least profitable of all Rowman & Littlefield imprintshe is keeping alive the most illustrious publishing name in North American foxhunting literature.

I have long admired the work of Piper Wallis, Director of Design at Rowman & Littlefield, and I was thrilled to learn that she would personally create the cover design for this book.

In the time I have been associated with Rowman & Littlefield, Stephen Driver has risen from Assistant Editor to Vice President of Production Services. He is an efficient project manager and a pleasure to work with. Once a completed package is in Stephens hands, I relax in the knowledge that all details will be handled, and the schedule will be met.

I rely on foxhunter Anne Moe from Maryland any time I need a copy-editor. She polished Covertside magazine for me for years. How anyone can know which compound words should be hyphenated, which should not, which should be put together as one word, and which should be separated into two words, I cannot begin to imagine.

I am sincerely grateful to those talented photographersall of whom I have worked with on other projectswho generously allowed me to reproduce their images. What is a book on foxhunting without a Jim Meads photo? There are four of them here. There are two photos each from Jim Duggan, who captured an amazing shot of coyote and hounds; from Noel Mullins, a talented writer and photographer from Ireland; and from Garth Thompson, whose brilliant images of African wildlife have been published around the world. Other photographs are reproduced through the courtesy of Bella Vita Fotografie, Jake Carle, Evelyn C. Cowles, Susan Edwards, Martin Engel, Catherine French, William Gamble, Gamecock, Karen L. Myers, Ray Orth, David Pollock, Curtis Robb, Kathy Tourney, and Debbie Turner. Finally, a personal tribute to the late Akhtar Hussein, whose scenic photograph of the white cliffs bordering War Eagle Creek in the Arkansas Ozarks is included here. The artistry of this distinguished feature photographer was internationally recognized, and the sport of foxhunting was fortunate to have fired his imagination and lured him to the field.