Our Penn-Marydel Hound: True Our Penn-Marydel Hound: A Historical Anthology • by H. L. Todd Addis, MFH • Published 2012 by Mastof Press
The etymology of the word “Penn-Marydel” Penn: prefi x referencing Pennsylvania Mary: the root, meaning Maryland Del: the suffi x, referencing Delaware
Without a doubt, just as it serves as the root
for “Penn-Marydel,” Maryland occupies center stage in this delightful compilation about the origins of the Penn-Marydel Foxhounds. Written by the great breeder of Penn-
Marydels, Master and huntsman H. L. Todd Addis, VMD (often called “Doc” or “Doc Ad- dis”), this book is the fi rst defi nitive history of the breed of foxhounds known for their deep, throaty voice, their tenacity, their biddability and their legendary shyness. Originally known as the “Eastern Shore Hound” (and alterna- tively as “Marylan’ dawgs”), Penn-Marydel (a.k.a. “PM”) became the standard term upon the formal organization of the Penn-Marydel Association, Inc. in 1934. Despite their rich history and pervasiveness in American hunt- ing, the breed has been long looked at askance by those who pride themselves in their “pure” breeding of English, American and Crossbred packs. In his preface, the executive director of the Masters of the Foxhounds Association ac- knowledges the overt bias of the organization: “In 2008, kicking, shoving and shouting, the PM hunters’ infl uence and PM popularity con- vinced the MFHA Board of Directors to enter PM into the MFHA Stud Book as a separate breed. Prior to that, PMs were simply listed as American hounds. Adding them was no easy task, but a task well deserved and [it] appears to be working.” And thus launches a delightful romp through the history! For those who prefer a linear organization of their historical information, via a bloodline chart, this book will disappoint and frustrate. Doc approaches his research the way a hunts- man approaches a day of hunting with hounds, approaching a covert, making his draw, following the line, and casting again if he loses his line until he once again fi nds it. And he follows the line wherever it takes him! Once that line has played out, he will draw anew and follow that line. To fully enjoy this book, settle in with a cup
of coff ee or a glass of port and watch as this Master and huntsman dips back into history, back to the Norman Conquest of 1066, back to the French Gascon hound and the Old Eng- lish Harrier, and then draws the line forward to today’s Penn-Marydel. T is line runs from the “old world” to the colonies directly through Maryland. And while there were many splits from there, with lines running to Virginia and Pennsylvania and from there throughout “the new world,” our hunted line stays in our terri-
32 | THE EQUIERY | DECEMBER 2012
tory, circling and looping around, so that even when it leaves our humble colony, it inevitably loops back into the Free State. T us, Doc Addis’ book is not only a history of hounds and hunting in the eventual United States, it is a history of hounds and hunting in Maryland, and is thus a must-have for any Mary- land foxhunter, regardless of pack preference. What also makes reading Doc Addis so en-
joyable is his appreciation for hounds and sport regardless of formalities. He cares not whether the hounds be hunted by a gentleman farmer or a tenant farmer, or whether hounds are followed from the back of a horse or the back of a truck. A good hound is a good hound; good sport is good sport. Equal glee is given to the description of our Eastern Shore’s long history of truck hunters (and truck hunters are certainly included in our statewide organization, Maryland As- sociation for Wildlife Conservation). In pursuit of PM blood, you will hunt along with Uncle Mose and the Woodcote Club on the Potomac River, with Baltimore lawyer Robert Crain’s 15,000 which stretched from the Wicomico to the Potomac in Charles County, David Raley and the De La Brooke W Hounds, Frederick Gusta- vus Skinner and the Washington Hunt (screaming in full cry through Con- gress in session), the Pine Tree Fox- hunting Club in Queen Anne’s Coun- ty, Joe Quimby and his “Maryland dawgs” on the Eastern Shore, a visit with Howard County breeders at the turn of the 20th century, then off with Eastern Shore transplant Walter Hill hunting Eastern Shore Hounds for Pennsylvania’s Eagle Farm. Next you are with the great Tennessean hunts- man Bart Mueller, who cut his teeth hunting hounds for the Wythemore Hounds in Elkridge (formed from the remains of the eponymous pack upon their merger with Harford), later becoming fi rst whipper-in for Dal- las Leith and the merged pack; back down to Mount Victoria, where the author found a bride and new hunt- ing territory, then back up to Howard County for a blazing joint meet at Doughregan Manor with huntsman Johnny Bill Linton and Albert Cros-
son. T en back down to another with Marlbor- ough and De La Brooke, huntsmen Todd Ad- dis and David Riley (respectively), and so on, hunting here, there and everywhere, with the hallowed names of hunting as well as the hid- den wonders not recorded in any Stud Book. But with so many Penn-Marydel hunts de-
picted, not just in Maryland but also Pennsyl- vania, Virginia, New York and New Jersey, how is it that all these hunt and hounds can possibly tie in with a breed that was largely ignored by the MFHA until recently? When our hunts- man and author devotes a lengthy chapter on Redmond C. Stewart, founder of the famed
Along T e Chesapeake - by Ann H. Addis, mother of author H. L. Todd Addis and featured in Our Penn-Marydel Hound.
For hunting along the Chesapeake Began so long ago
I’d have to back the calendar T ree hundred years or so.
Plantation large or fi shing shack, Each claimed a spotted dog
To hunt a ‘possum, boar or fox Or spiney-sharp hedge-hog.
Folks didn’t have one dog for fox Yet another one for hare –
Old yaller had to do his stuff Be it turkey, grouse or bear.
As time moved on and the riverfolk Chopped out the hinterland More kin from far across the sea Marked their footsteps on the sand.
If Blue Boy’s got a trailin’ nose And Bugle’s got a voice
T ere’s born a pack and a betting man. A hunter’s got no choice.
T ere’s a tree to fell and a roof to patch From down to the close of day. But the stars on high, in a twilight sky Coax out the hound-dog’s bay.
A bay from the ridge, deep throat from the glen Each hound adds a note to the song Begging the Boys ‘long the Chesapeake To “deaf-ear” their “eve-sup” gong!
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