POINTERS AND SETTERS. 267 



strange dog, and has already learnt to beat his ground properly, 

 as explained in my previous remarks, he is steady and well broken 

 as he can be without the gun, and may be thrown by until a 

 fortnight before the shooting season, when he ought to be taken 

 out again for two or three days, as in the interval he will gener- 

 ally have lost some of his steadiness. Still he will only require 

 tcork to restore it, as he knows what he ought to do ; and with 

 patience, joined if necessary with a little punishment, he soon 

 re-acquires all that he had forgotten. Many masters now fancy 

 that all is done towards " making the pointer : " but, on the con- 

 trary, they find that after birds are killed the puppy which was 

 previously steady becomes wild and ungovernable, and spoils the 

 day's shooting by all sorts of bad behaviour. Hence it is that 

 breakers so often are blamed without cause ; but when it is found 

 by experience that such conduct is the rule, and not the exception, 

 young dogs are left by their owners to be shot over by a keeper 

 for a few days, or even longer, before they are taken into the 

 field. Another reason for this Avildness may be assigned ; namely, 

 the dogs are often hunted in the commencement of the season 

 by almost perfect strangers, two or tliree guns together ; whereas, 

 if their breaker had the management, they would be under much 

 more control, and esjoecially if he went out quietly by himself. 

 Here again is another reason for gentlemen breaking their own 

 dogs, or, at all events, finishing their education by giving their 

 dogs and themselves a few lessons together. 



Dozen charge, as already described, ought to be taught from 

 a very early period, the dog being made to droj) at the word 



