The earliest Welsh hounds known appear to have been kept at Margam, and were the property of Sir Thomas Mansel, who, records tell, gave them to Mr. Jenkins, of Gelly, and these were more or less rough or wiry-haired. A correspondent
a famous Welsh fox hunter, informs me that these old Gelly hounds were for the most part black and tan in colour, varying in height from 17 to 21 inches; excelling in legs and feet. Their heads and ears more inclined to the
bloodhound type, than do those of the modern strains, having considerable peak, and ears hanging well down and pendulous. Their necks, backs, and loins were good. Their voices were exceptionally fine, one old sportsman likening the 
music of the Gelly pack when in full cry to the tones of an old church organ. It must not be forgotten, these far-reaching notes were of great importance in hunting this rough and in those days sparsely populated country. 
The present 
squire of Gelly still retains some few of the old strain.

There are many packs of hounds in Wales which are actually only Welsh in name, and much confusion has been caused by the inference conveyed by many writers that all foxhounds and harriers in the Principality are of the old
wiry-haired or hard-coated strain. Such is far from being the case, and it is doubtful whether even the hounds of Squire Talbot, which, to the glory of the pure Welsh hounds, are credited with an extraordinary run from Margam 
to Llanelly, were quite free from "foreign" strain.

Not very long ago a hunting correspondent of the Field was astonished to find a so-called pack of Welsh hounds the common foxhounds of the shires and elsewhere; and so recently as last year the writer went over to Aldridge's
to see 
pack of Welsh hounds which had been sent up, from the neighbourhood of Aberystwith, for sale. These, too, were English foxhounds, many of them of fashionable blood, and none of them had an atom of "wire-haired" coat to denote 
that they were originally descended from the native hound of the Principality. This was Mr. Vaughan Davies' pack.

At the time the Gelly hounds were in their prime, there was another noted Welsh pack kept by the late Squire Jenkins, Lanharran (uncle of the present squire), but they differed greatly from the "Gelly" in colour, for they were 
mostly white - lemon and white sometimes turning to darker colours, such as red and a grizzled black and tan, but white predominating - being the favourite colour of the Squire. Here they had smooth as well as rough hounds, and 
particular attention was paid to their music. I have heard it stated by old hunters who knew these hounds well, that of all the packs they had ever hunted with, they never saw or heard one that excelled the Lanharran. After the 
death of Mr. Jenkins, they were handed over to the late Mr. W. Morgan, Tremains, who carried them on until his death. They were later on removed to Braich-y-Cymmer, in the Ogmore Valley, where, after a few years, they found their 
way back again to Llan-harron. From thence Col. Blandy Jenkins drafted them to different packs now hunting in Glamorganshire - principally to the Ystrad. There was another pack of Welsh hounds, viz., the "Croes-cade," kept by one of 
the best sportsmen and finest judges of Welsh hounds that Wales ever possessed - the late Mr. William Perkins, of Croes-cade. These were similar hounds to the Lanharran, both in make and shape, but their voices were not so fine.
I believe in the present day a good deal of this blood found its way into the kennels of Lord Tredegar and the Llangibby.

I should rather fancy that the pack of hounds which contains the greatest amount of "pure Welsh blood" is that of the Ynysfor, hunting round about Penrhyn Deudraeth, Merionethshire, and of which Mr. John Jones is the master. This
is a smallish pack of thirteen couples, which hunts pretty much all the year round, after the season for fox being over, otter hunting being successfully followed. The country is perhaps as rough as any in the United Kingdom, and 
Mr. Jones finds the Welsh wire haired hounds, of which about half his pack is constituted, the best animals for his purpose. They have been in his family for three generations, which extend in this case over one hundred years. The 
father of the present master bred from the hounds of old Mr. Rumsey Williams, of Penrhos, who kept a pack, mostly of Welsh blood, near Carnarvon at the beginning of the century, and in a great measure the present Ynysfor hounds are
largely descended from them. Fresh blood has from time to time been obtained from various districts in South Wales, where the rough haired hound is generally believed to have been originally produced, or, at any rate, two or three 
generations back, it was more easily to be found there than elsewhere.

--------------------------------------

Welsh Hounds. Part 2
More recently, Mr. Jones secured new crosses from the kennels of the late Colonel Pryse, of Peittyll, near Aberystwith, and from other hunts in the southern portions of the Principality; whilst in a few cases he has crossed with
well-bred English foxhounds. The hard, wiry coats, however, remain in most instances, as well as the peculiar character and excellences common to the Welsh harrier. As is the custom with most hounds which hunt a rough country,
the meets are in early morning, and foxes are found by hounds questing and hunting the drag until their game is put away, then the run is generally over terribly rough country, in which, of course, hounds are at times left very much
to themselves. For this purpose nothing can excel the Welsh "wire hairs," even if they have a remote bar sinister on their escutcheon. These Ynysfor hounds are from 20 inches (bitches) to 22 inches (dogs) in height, and vary in 
colour, some being black and tan, others wholly tan, whilst the remainder are the ordinary hound colours.

Of course, what has been written here, and appears later on in the chapter, more or less indicates that the really pure Welsh hounds, absolutely without any intermingling of foxhound or harrier blood, are most difficult to obtain, 
but that such are still highly valued in some quarters may, I think, be taken for granted.

There are other packs containing more or less Welsh blood still existing in the Lanwonno, Ystrad, Tyn y Cymmer, Treharris, Merthyr Old Court, and the Pentyrch; the latter are black and tans, and it is said they originally came from 
the Gelly. When living in Glamorganshire the present master of the Pembroke and Carmarthen Otter Hounds hunted them for both fox and hare. The last named pack possess two wonderful Welsh hounds of the Lan-harran strain, Langer, and 
Gaylass. They are lemon and white in colour, and have hard coats, good voices, and no day is too long for them. They were originally purchased from the Llangibby Otter Hounds.

At the present time there is a certain demand for these Welsh wire-haired, hard-coated hounds; for, however opinions may differ as to their qualifications when placed alongside the modern foxhound, there do not appear to be two
opinions as to their suitability for otter hunting. Masters of hounds fortunate enough to possess a couple or so, speak of them most eulogistically, especially so far as their hard, crisp, water-resisting coats are concerned; 
arguing that a coat of this character is more readily dried than the rougher one of the true otter hound; moreover, it is not so much in the way when swimming, and their constitutions are good. I do not think there is anywhere in 
the Principality or elsewhere an entire pack of the pure Welsh hound, either of harrier or of foxhound stamp (for there are two varieties), with the wire-haired, crisp coat. The colours are various, a few being black and tan, whilst
ordinary hound markings, and such as are of a dark grizzled red and white, appear to be most in favour.

In going through the annual hunt table published in the Field on Oct. 17, 1896, I found there were some twenty-four packs of hounds kennelled in Wales, but only one is alluded to as Welsh, and this is the Merthyr Old Court pack, 
which are Welsh harriers, but their height is not given. They hunt from near Merthyr Tydvil. There are Welsh hounds in the Llangibby and also in the Pembrokeshire and Carmarthen. As already said, masters of otter hounds value the 
strain or variety highly. Mr. T. P. Lewes, who hunts from Ffosrhydgaled, Llanfarian, near Aberystwith, has a few couples of pure bred wire-haired Welsh foxhounds; and in the Ynysfor, whose kennels are at Ynysfor, Merionethshire,
the variety may be found as already alluded to. Mr. J. H. Jefferson, Cocker-mouth, secretary of the West Cumberland Hunt, tells me that they have one or two Welsh hounds, which are valued highly, and they would breed more of them 
were they able to find suitable material.

The Hon. H. C. Wynn, at Rug, near Corwen, and Mr. E. Buckley, at Newtown, Montgomeryshire, both appreciate this variety, and to these two gentlemen I am very much indebted for being able to produce the illustration which precedes
this chapter. Here are two types of the Welsh hound, the one the Hon. H. C. Wynn's bitch Lively, an unmistakable harrier; the other Mr. Buckley's Landmark, quite the foxhound in character. The latter is undoubtedly one of the finest
hounds I ever saw, straight in front, with beautiful shoulders, lovely neck, perfect feet, and as sound now as when in his prime, although he must be six years old, and has done a big share of hard work during his time. With loins 
and hind quarters equally perfect, he is as level and as symmetrically made as any dog I ever saw. In colour he is red-grizzle and white, and his coat is hard, crisp, and as thoroughly water and weather resisting as that found on any
hound; his height is 24½ inches at the shoulder, and he scales 841b. when in nice working condition. It will be seen that his ears are rounded. He, with a similar hound, came from Mr. Reginald Herbert, master of the Monmouthshire;
they had no pedigree, but were said to be pure Welsh foxhounds - a description which is, doubtless, thoroughly correct. Lively is much the same colour as Landmark, but perhaps the grizzle red is rather more tawny than that of the 
dog; she measures 20 inches in height at the shoulders, is 541b. in weight, and is likewise an old hound without pedigree. Mr. Wynn bought her with a similar hound in Ireland, whither she had been sent from Glamorganshire; her kennel 
companion was killed in the kennels at Rug. Lively is an excellent hound in work, and as a brood bitch has proved most successful. Unfortunately, she has always been mated with a smooth-coated English harrier, the puppies being very 
often all wire coated, some of them possessing more coat than their dam, who is a pretty bitch, with considerable character about her.

These hounds are excellent types of their family, and Mr. Wardle's drawing conveys better than words can, what an old-fashioned, wire-haired, Welsh hound is like. Mr. Buckley says he finds his couple or so "useful for otter hunting,
as they take the water well, and do not seem to feel the cold so much as otter hounds, because their coats dry sooner than the longer ones of the latter when coming out of the water. They show extreme delicacy of nose in picking up 
and working out a cold drag; but their voices are very poor and their note quite commonplace as compared with the melodious otter hound."

--------------------------------------

Welsh Hounds. Part 3
The Hon. H. C. Wynn speaks in similarly eulogistic terms of the Welsh breed, and of his good bitch Lively in particular. She has produced him the very best hounds he has in his pack - a workmanlike lot, who can hunt hare and fox and
otter, as occasion requires, and do this three or four days a week and turn out fresh and frisky at the end. One of the stud hounds in the pack is Curfew, a son of Lively's, who, although sired by an English hound, has as much, or 
more, coat than his dam. He is a fine fellow, about 21 inches in height, and can drive hare or otter as well as any hound. Of the Welsh hounds, Mr. Wynn says "they excel in working without assistance, and are seldom at a loss, even 
when the huntsman is not with them, when they overrun the line. When such is the case, they will spread out like a fan, individually try here, there, and everywhere, with the inevitable result that some hound or another hits the 
missing line, speaks to it, and other hounds, galloping up, do likewise. Then they are away as brisk as ever; there is no sitting down and waiting about for assistance." As a matter of fairness, I must state that all owners of Welsh 
hounds do not speak in a similar strain. A well known master, who owns a few couples, says that where "there is one good hound there are fifty bad ones - noisy, riotous, ugly, ill-conditioned brutes," and this he ascribes to
in-breeding. Most of the finest hounds have, he says, degenerated in the matter of bone and substance, and after three seasons' work they are inclined to hang on the line of a fox and become noisy. The latter fault he finds not 
only with the pure Welsh hound, but with the foxhound cross.

Some time ago a hunting correspondent in the Field took exception to some Welsh or half bred Welsh hounds he saw, accusing them of "babbling" and other heinous offences. They were not, however, long without having their cause 
thoroughly championed by those who knew a great deal more about hounds than did the fault rinding writer in the first instance. I do not think I can do better than reproduce the letters of, at any rate, the two writers who first 
came to the rescue of the strangely vilified hounds.

"Linehunter" wrote: "I venture to think that your correspondent is not in possession of sufficient data regarding the Welsh foxhound to warrant the conclusion he appears, judging from his letter, to have arrived at. He speaks of the 
Welsh hound as being so 'shy' as to require to be 'coaxed over a road if horses are standing in it.' He also describes him as being so free with his tongue as to throw it continually 'when casting for the line.' Further he asserts 
that he will not 'stand the whip.'

"With regard to shyness, it is quite possible to find some trencher-fed packs, many of whose members would trot off home if they had a severe cut with a thong, the reason really being that such packs have next to no kennel 
discipline; and, when collected together for a day's sport, extremely resent chastisement for hare or rabbit hunting, and accordingly go home to Molly the milkmaid, or whoever has been the best friend of their infancy, for comfort 
to their wounded feelings. I have occasionally seen a hound go home in this way, but very seldom. In all my experience of Welsh and Welsh crossed hounds, I have never seen such an occurrence as 'coaxing hounds across a road' because 
they were in abject fear of horses standing in it. Occasionally a puppy or two may not relish a crowd of horses, but, 'given a decent scent,' as the venerable master of the Llangibby observed to me, 'they would go through a regiment 
of soldiers.'

"Such shyness as I have noticed in Welsh or crossed Welsh hounds has been due rather to defect of discipline than to defect of character. If a hound be kept at a farm and only brought to kennel for hunting he will not stand the 
amount of whip and rating that a kennelled hound will readily endure. The master of the Llangibby, Mr. John Lawrence, whose unrivalled experience of Welsh hounds entitles his opinion to the greatest consideration, assures me that
he considers the charge of shyness as against the Welsh hounds devoid of all foundation.

"There is a point in their character that I must not fail to notice, and that is their curious and sturdy independence. Doubtless many hound men would dislike this trait extremely. We do not. We cherish it as most precious, a quality
second to none in the animal's composition. Without it we should not kill half the wild stout foxes that we do. I do not know that I can explain this quality better than in the words of a gentleman who saw the Llangibby account 
for a fox in a difficult country, and said, 'Lawrence, your hounds don't hunt like hounds, but just as if they were wild dogs.' This conveys my meaning. They hunt as a wild animal pursues his prey, to kill and have its blood, paying 
as much attention to the game they have in hand and as little to their huntsman as they conveniently can. At a check, when an unjumpable ravine or a dingle that must be circumvented intervenes between them and their huntsman, you do
not see them standing still shaking their sterns, and looking wistfully for their human friends to come and tell them where to try. No; they spread here and there, all over the place, busy as spaniels, crossing and traversing, till
presently one hits it off, and away they go to cry. This very independent nature of theirs makes them a trifle more headstrong in their work than some men might like. For instance, you have to stop them about six times before you 
can get them off a fox's line, and they will break away and rush at a covert through all the whips that ever rode and holloaed. But did not Whyte Melville write of his typical hound that Rating and whipcord he treated with scorn ?

Independent, wilful, determined they are, and not the sort to be 'tufters' staghunting, and stand still politely at the crack of a thong. Shy they are not. If shyness were one of their weak points, would they stand the crowds out 
otter hunting, or would those two bitches by Llangibby Danger and Sultan, to borrow 'Brooksby's' words, 'in fair weather and foul, on a cold scent or a hot one,' have gone to the front with the Pytchley? No, they would have come
home post haste to Wales to recount how those terrible 'fields' of the shires rode over their sensitive sterns.