It might raise a considerable amount of discussion to assert that the
foxhound had a longer line of ancestry than other breeds brought under
the fostering care of Englishmen, but this much can be said, that when
public opinion was turning towards the correct methods for the
attainment of animal perfection, interest was taken in foxhounds similar
to that taken in the racehorse, the shorthorn, or the red Devon. Could
such a date be accepted at about 1730?—which was nearly a quarter of a
century before Eclipse was foaled. The newly formed Ormesby stock of
shorthorns was then about to be removed to Ketton, near Darlington, and
the Davys and Quartlys had not commenced their improvements on the
Devons. But there is evidence that foxhounds were beginning to be
thought of at the time, and by 1750 a great many noblemen and gentlemen
were very intent on hound breeding.
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