THE MASSACRE OF ST. BARTHOLOMEW. 303 



out of shot, and it went back. In the hopes of getting 

 it we turned back once more, and this time the dog 

 made a capital point on a brambly bank. Out flew 

 my friend with the leg down, and I followed up a 

 bad miss with a clean kill with the left barrel. 

 Almost before it touched ground the dog retrieved it. 



Even German sportsmen are beginning to acknow- 

 ledge that retrieving pointers are a mistake. Over 

 and over again I have said, " I want to see the dog 

 who will wait for the word to retrieve/' and the only 

 answer has been a laugh or a shrug of the shoulders. 

 Even the good dogs invariably run in when a bird 

 drops, with the natural result that for one man to kill 

 four or five birds out of a covey is impossible. You 

 may get your first brace, but the dog takes care that 

 that chance is your last for the time at any rate. 



The retrieving of hares, especially of wounded 

 hares, is also greatly responsible for bad dogs. Even 

 a good sportsman is tempted, when he sees a hare roll 

 over and then go slowly away, to let go his retriever, 

 forgetting that he will expect the same dog to stand 

 stock still in five minutes, while another hare, perhaps 

 shot at and missed, goes away. Ten to one there is 

 another chase and a thrashing to follow. But as I have 

 said, in this respect only the Germans are beginning to 

 see that we are right. The craze for English pointers 

 was the thin end of the wedge. In a few years the 

 retrieving pointer will only be found among the 

 peasant-sportsmen (Bauer njager) and a few conserva- 

 tives of the old school. 



I look upon it as a great step made that we have 



