From the opinions and experiences quoted, it is evident that the Basset may be turned to account in many branches of sport; and, notwithstanding some slight discrepancies in the statements, the whole speaks well for the utility of the breed. Only one more quotation on this head is needed, and it is from the article by Mr. Krehl in "Stonehenge's" book. "Deer and hares," says this eminently practical follower of the chase, "will actually play before the little hounds, stopping to listen to them coming." The games the deer and hares play on these agreeable occasions are, perhaps discreetly, not declared. There is no beast of chase that does not use its ears in endeavouring to escape, no matter what the nature of the pursuer.

I have already referred to Mr. Everett Millais' essay on "Bassets: their Use and Breeding," which he subsequently followed up with "Rational Breeding." Mr. Millais has collected a mass of facts, and has so marshalled them as to show, almost to a demonstration, the results certain to follow the mating of Bassets, in certain proportions of blood, of the strains of these hounds then possessed in England. The book is not an inviting one on first dipping into it, but well repays digestion. On first reading it, it will probably appear an enigma; but a closer reading will disclose its sound common sense. The fact is, Mr. Millais has written for those who are supposed to know, and perfectly comprehend every allusion to, the types of hounds he speaks of; but there he is in error: he should have defined his types, in order to make his arguments clear to the uninitiated in Basset mysteries.

In a correspondence Mr. Millais declared that "type cannot be defined more than fashion." "But fashion," replied Mr. Hugh Dalziel, "can be defined; even a male creature, without being a milliner, can define and describe the difference between the type of ladies' head-gear that used to be called a ' cosy,' and that irreverently named the 'coal-scuttle,' up the long cavern of which those who would osculate had to venture as into a railway tunnel." Mr. Millais says: "Type is as changeable as fashion; were it not so, the Foxhound of to-day would be a very similar animal to what it was 100 years ago, which it is not." On the question of what constitutes type there is a great diversity of opinion. Mr. Millais preferred a Basset tricoloured, with tan head and black-and-white body; but that is not type : the type - that is to say, the generic characters - of the Basset, as of the Greyhound, was accurately, and with very considerable detail, described nearly 2,000 years ago, and remains essentially the same. As to our English hounds, the type has not been altered, but special developments, amounting merely to variations to meet altered methods of using the hounds, and the difference in the enjoyment sought to be derived from them, have been cultivated. Our Foxhounds of to-day were formed by selection 100 years ago, to meet new requirements, but the modifications made did not interfere with the essential character of them as hounds. Those only who set up imaginary types to suit their taste as fanciers, of whatever breed, imitate, and may, therefore, be compared to the rulers of fashion in dress and other trivialities.

Mr. Millais was, however, good enough to contribute to an earlier edition of this work his views of the three divisions of Bassets existing in England - namely, the Couteulx, or Fino de Paris; the Masson, or Termino; and the Lane - holding the term Couteulx Hound, as applied to all our Bassets, to be a most erroneous nomenclature. It is right, therefore, to present his views here, especially as they supply the great want in his essay, and should always be read, in conjunction with his remarks on breeding, by those interested in Bassets. Mr. Millais wrote: -

"When asked, some seven years ago, to write a small article on the Basset for ' British Dogs,' this hound could scarcely be called a British dog, the breed having only just begun to have a footing in England. Since then it has largely increased, and may now safely be classed as a British production.

Bassets may be classed in three divisions : -

Of the first two varieties we have many examples at present; of the third, only one, to my knowledge, has been exhibited in England - namely, Ramoneau - though the type is common enough at Continental shows. To go into minute particulars of how the Basset has had its origin, or how it has thriven in this country, is not the object of these notes; though it will be necessary, in dealing with the Couteulx Hounds, to show how the two subdivisions, into which they must now be classed, have come about.

In the first place, before proceeding farther, it must be clearly understood what the terms 'Couteulx' and 'Lane' mean. When Bassets first began to be imported into England - I refer, of course, to our present stock, dating back to 1874 - our hounds were imported from the kennels of Comte Couteulx le Cantalan, of Etrepagny. After a lapse of a few years a new kind of Basset made its appearance on the show-bench, exhibited by Mons. Louis Lane, of Francqueville, near Rouen.

So far, then, the terms 'Couteulx' and 'Lane' were applied to hounds emanating from the kennels of these two gentlemen. Fresh importations, however, arriving, and no new name occurring to breeders' minds for these hounds, the term 'Couteulx' has gradually come to mean any hound (smooth-coated) which is not a Lane, though, in truth, our smooth-coated Bassets might, with far greater advantages, be divided into the -

I will, however, only speak of them as two varieties, the Couteulx and Lane; the former with two subdivisions.