SOMERVILLE, WILLIAM

born Sept. 2, 1675, Colwich, Staffordshire, Eng. died July 17, 1742, Henley-in-Arden, Warwickshire Somerville also spelled Somervile British writer who, after studies directed toward a career at law, lived the life of a country gentleman, indulging in the field sports that were to make up the subject matter of his best-known poems, especially The Chace (1735). That poem traces the history of hunting up to the Norman Conquest of England (1066) and gives incidental information on kennel design, hare hunting, stag hunting, otter hunting, the breeding and training of dogs, and dog diseases and bites. Among the many digressions is one on Oriental hunting.