FIELD-SPORTS. 249 



there was the greatest hope of relief. In this he has not 

 been disappointed, but has been able to perform much 

 more mental labor than when he spent the whole day 

 over his writing-desk. Two hours per day, from five to 

 seven P. M., in the summer season, spent in this manner, 

 with a good pointer, will give all the exercise which mid- 

 dle-aged men, of ordinary constitutions, require. During 

 this time, the exhilaration of the mind, and the motions 

 of the muscles, are constant ; not a little of the interest 

 arising from the wonderful instinct and sagacity which a 

 well-bred pointer dog exhibits in the field, and which the 

 lover of rural sports, however often he has witnessed it, 

 never sees with indifference. The admirer of nature, who 

 for the first time beholds the phenomena which these 

 animals exhibit, when " beating the field," and " standing 

 at a point," w r ill not only be intensely interested, but 

 often struck with astonishment at what he sees. The dog 

 runs backward and forward, a little before his master, 

 with his nose elevated above the grass or bushes, until he 

 scents the bird (which is always on the ground), when he 

 walks slowly, and carefully, to within a rod or -two of it, 

 and then stands perfectly still, with his nose pointing to 

 the exact spot where the game lies. The sportsman pro- 

 ceeding to the spot, sends the dog forward to "flush" the 

 bird, and shoots it as it flies, the dog again standing until 

 the game falls, when he bring it and lays it at his mas- 

 ter's feet. 



784. In these dogs the pointing is a natural property, 

 or perhaps an acquired instinct, and may be seen in young 

 animals of good blood, without the least training. The 

 training, therefore, does not consist in learning the animal 

 to point, but only to obey the commands of his master, 

 with respect to the moment of flushing the game, of 

 bringing it, and of keeping within a certain distance from 

 him, &c. 



785. And now who can account for the reason why 

 this extraordinary property was conferred on this animal, 

 unless it was intended by the Giver to be employed by 

 man in the manner we have described ; for in no other 

 respect can it be of the least use to the dog or his master. 

 We cannot but believe, therefore, that there was design in 



