BREAKING AND HANDLING. 193 



CHAPTER XI. 



RANGING. 



Ranging is the act of beating out the ground in a more 

 or less irregular and informal manner, the dog in a great 

 measure exercising his own judgment in conducting it. 



It is a noticeable fact, and one frequently commented on 

 by sportsmen, that the half broken country dogs, as a class, 

 are wonderfully intelligent in working ground to the best 

 advantage, and are also successful finders of game. This 

 is not, as many suppose, from natural superiority; it is due 

 to the natural and better manner in which they acquire an 

 education. Their owners, in most cases, neither know nor 

 profess to know anything of expert training. If the. dog 

 will point sufficiently long to afford his handler a shot, he 

 does all that is expected or required, and in respect to rang- 

 ing he is left free to suit himself, consequently he works 

 almost entirely on his own judgment. Usually he- is very 

 quick to take advantage of all kinds of working opportuni- 

 ties. From unhindered experience, he learns to seek for the 

 haunts of birds; and by cultivation his judgment becomes 

 so excellent that he can tell a promising corner with as 

 much precision as hi$ master. Little sheltered nooks and 

 thickets, which the comparatively inexperienced city dog 

 would pass by unnoticed, he diligently searches; he-knows 

 all the wiles of the birds and how to circumvent them, tak- 

 ing advantage of favorable conditions of ground, wind and 

 cover, with masterly skill. He learns the daily habits of 



