WALKING UP 159 



and still more limited experience of good retrievers, 

 hopelessly floundering in a turnip field in charge of a 

 raw though keen and well-bred dog after a strong 

 running bird. He does not lead the dog to the spot 

 where the bird first struck the ground, for this he has 

 not been trained to mark accurately himself ; he has 

 no notion of giving him the wind or making a cast ; 

 he calls at him and not to him every few seconds ; he 

 tries to get him back by whistle and curse should he 

 at last hit off the scent and carry it to the end of the 

 field ; he has no apparent notion of the direction 

 the bird is likely to take in running, and his prevail- 

 ing feeling appears to be that of a man who has set a 

 power in motion which he is incapable of checking, 

 and of which he does not know the elementary prin- 

 ciples. The dog, often born with a magnificent nose, 

 high spirit, and tender mouth, an invaluable com- 

 bination when trained to perfection, has by this time 

 only two strong characteristics, a desire to see the bird 

 instead of scenting it, and an ineradicable fear of his 

 master ; fatal conditions, making it absolutely impos- 

 sible for the latter to extract any value from the 

 splendid qualities of scent, perseverance, and attach- 

 ment which Nature has bestowed upon the retriever. 



It is difficult to suggest a remedy for this, except- 

 ing in the directions I have indicated. If your under- 



