290 EMPLOYMENT OF THE DOG IN HUNTING, ETC. 



his highest speed for the longest time, and guarantees the reten- 

 tion of his spirit and courage, so as to induce him to exert it. 



Work for training purposes is effected in two ways : the 

 object being to get rid of the superfluous fat, which interferes 

 with muscular action, and with the free play of the lungs ; and 

 also to accustom the muscles, ligaments, and tendons to severe 

 and long-continued exertions. These two methods are often 

 combined ; and indeed, though the one by means of slipping is 

 efiectual by itself, yet the other, or horse- exercise alone, will 

 not develop the wind sufficiently, and, if it is adopted, it must 

 be aided by slipping the dogs as well. Horse-exercise is chiefly 

 confined to countries where the courses are very long and severe, 

 and where also much of the work can be given on turf, so that 

 it is only in down countries that it is very available, but there 

 it is almost essential to full success in training the grej'hound. 

 The amount of this kind of exercise which a greyhound of 

 stout blood will take with advantage is very great, and it is 

 sometimes more than one horse will be able to lead ; but this 

 is not often the case. Few grej'hounds will be the better for 

 more than fifteen miles every other day, and this is quite 

 within the compass of a horse's powers, especially when it is 

 considered that not more than two or three miles of this dis- 

 tance should be at the gallop. But the great object of horse- 

 exercise is not to produce a fast pace, so much as to insure a 

 sufficiency of slow work ; for there are few trainers who will 

 walk fifteen or sixteen miles a day on foot, and yet in order 

 to keep the dogs out for four hours they ought to do so. A 



