xv jjj INTRODUCTORY. 



tain it. But progress and a high grade of sportsmanship 

 have sounded the death knell of the old order of things, 

 and dissipated the false opinions and prejudices of society. 

 The first field trial in America was run near Memphis, 

 Tenn., in 1874, under the auspices of the Tennessee Sports- 

 man's Association, and had ten starters. For four or five 

 years thereafter, the trials grew slowly; but gradually their 

 advantages became known and served to awaken the inter- 

 est of sportsmen. The inauguration of field trials brought 

 the expert trainers to the front, and the competition and 

 ample opportunities for comparison of methods caused gen- 

 eral improvement. The importation of blue bloods from 

 England was followed by the keenest of competitions, which 

 resulted in the permanent supremacy of the imported dog 

 over the native. The win of a dog in a public competition 

 gave him an acknowledged meritorious reputation and 

 greatly increased his monetary value and that of his related 

 blood. To own dogs which were winners or had the super- 

 iority of a winning strain, was the strong desire of all pro- 

 gressive sportsmen. The spirit of rivalry or emulation 

 which competition engendered created an active and wide- 

 spread demand for better dogs. This in turn resulted in a 

 large number of breeders to supply the demand. Many 

 dogs were imported in addition to those native bred, and val- 

 ues constantly increased. The enlargement in the dog world 

 served to permanently engage the entire time and attention 

 of a class of expert trainers who adopted training as a pro- 

 fession, and as a higher grade of ability was required, the 

 typical old-time trainer either became a market shooter 

 pure and simple or was lost in the struggle for supremacy. 

 It required several years, however, for the expert field trial 

 trainers to outgrow the prejudices and antipathies, a legacy 

 inherited from their predecessors. 



The competition settled many controversial points in 



