320 WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WAYS CHAP. 



in twenty-nine years there may have been a change that has driven 

 the animals away. 



About fouror five miles from Ism id there wasacapital snipe-marsh, 

 and the wild-rose thickets u\ton the border were full of woodcocks. 

 The Greeks were professional chasseurs for the supply of Constanti- 

 nople, as the daily steamer conveyed the birds to market in ten or 

 eleven hours. These fellows used pointers, trained expressly ; each 

 dog wore a bell upon its collar, therefore when there was a cessation 

 of jingling, the master knew that his dog was on a point. It is 

 my opinion that the best companions for a person who is fond of 

 sport in general are a brace of first-class clumber spaniels thoroughly 

 broken not to chase, and never to hunt more than 20 yards in 

 advance of the gun. Such dogs will discover a quantity of game, 

 which would never be moved by a person unprovided with such 

 assistants. It is a common occurrence that people disbelieve in the 

 existence of game simply because they do not see it ; hares, wood- 

 cocks, partridges, and several other creatures, especially quails, will 

 sometimes allow themselves to be almost trodden upon before they 

 can be induced to move. 



A good dog is always a useful companion in a forest, as it will 

 detect the presence of an animal long before it would be perceived 

 by the unassisted eye. Upon one occasion at Sabanja I had hired 

 a Turkish sportsman, who possessed a little nondescript dog with 

 only a stump of 2 inches to represent a tail. We were passing 

 through thick rose jungle, when we suddenly missed the cur; a 

 minute later, we heard vigorous barking within 150 yards of our 

 position. Upon arrival at the spot, there was a very large wild 

 boar standing at bay, with the little dog before it in a frantic state 

 of excitement, but far too sensible to risk a close approach. I had 

 been expecting woodcocks, but, knowing the uncertainty of the 

 forest, I fortunately had a bullet in the left-hand barrel ; a shot 

 through the shoulder dropped the boar upon the spot, to the intense 

 delight of the little dog, which immediately seized it by the snout, 

 and endeavoured to shake the body twenty times heavier than itself. 

 This was a low-born cur, but a jolly little dog, that must, upon 

 the principle of heredity, have had some unknown but heroic 

 ancestor. If any person wishes to shoot wild boar, a single dog of 

 small size is better than a great number, as the boar, or even a sow, 

 will certainly not condescend to run far before a puny antagonist. 



In the course of a long experience I have naturally adapted my 

 tastes to the various portions of the world in which I have been 

 situated ; in many places where boars are shot, and are considered 

 dangerous, I have not dared to relate or even to touch upon the 



