Chantilly, a small village set in deeply forested countryside 25 miles north of Paris, is an idyllic site for one of the world's most aristocratic divertisements: riding to hounds in pursuit of deer. The classic chasse à courre, which once flourished under the royal enthusiasm of pre-Revolution monarchs, is a tradition sustained in France today through the private sponsorship of a few titled elite--the counts, dukes, marquis and barons who still have a passion, and the francs, for the hunt. A recent witness to this exclusive and exciting sport was Playboy's impressionist man-about-the-world, LeRoy Neiman, who was invited to the Château de Chantilly to view a hunt held under the auspices of the Marquis de Rouälle, Grand Veneur, or huntmaster, of the Rallye Pique-Avant. Reports Neiman: "I was struck immediately by the totally unself-conscious--and therefore somehow inoffensive--snobisme of all concerned, from the impeccably attired men in traditional hunting garb to their elegant ladies, to the attendant piqueurs, the class-conscious grooms and dog handlers. An aura of time-honored protocol infuses the proceedings, a sense of ceremony which is conveyed with typical French flair. The hunt itself is a tremendously exhilarating affair, enacted against landscapes of unmatched rustic beauty, and punctuated by the cry of the pack and the brassy blasts of the circular hunting horns which sound as the hounds pick up the scent, when the game is sighted, and following the kill. As the ringing tones echo through the woods they seem to go back through time in search of similar sounds long since lost--the effect is that of a charming fairy tale, made poignantly nostalgic in its re-enactment."
