60 BIRD-LIFE OF THE BORDERS. 



soft spotted quills of their nestling plumage, and acquired 

 the strong black primaries of winter, together with a large 

 proportion of the adult dark-red plumage. Only a streak of 

 the yellow-barred nest plumage remains along the centre of 

 the breast, dividing the newly-acquired dark feathers on 

 either flank. At that stage, in a species so bold and in- 

 tractable as Tetrao scoticus, it is not reasonable to expect 

 close point-shots, at any rate at the first rise. They must 

 be followed again and again, out-mano3uvred, broken, and 

 " dominated." 



But this leads me to the second part of my text the bad 

 scent question ; and here may I say that these remarks are 

 not addressed to " masters of the art," but are written with 

 a desire to be of some assistance, however slight, to the many 

 who have not opportunities to master the subtleties and the 

 minutice of successful grouse-shooting, to some of whom the 

 " Twelfth " oft-times brings only vexation and the chagrin 

 of fallen pride. Assuredly walking about a moor with a gun 

 does not constitute grouse-shooting. Well, then, bad scent 

 I write from frequent observation often means bad dogs. 

 Not but that there are days when scent is bad, sometimes 

 almost nil ; but, in a general way, scent is best to the dogs 

 which best understand their business, and have been taught 

 how to avail themselves of what scent there is, and vice versa. 

 It is a fairly safe rule to lay down that a good man will have a 

 good dog, simply because they appreciate one another ; and 

 in proportion to the extent of their mutual confidence, the 

 directing power of the mind of one is able to bring out and 

 develop the instinctive faculties of the other. The writer 

 claims to be no authority on dogs, quite the reverse ; but, in 

 shooting regularly over them, one cannot but see that there 

 are dogs and dogs. There is one class of dog very 

 numerous which appears to regard a hunt on the moors as 

 an institution especially arranged for their sole and particular 

 delectation. They travel far and fast; they persist in 

 hunting one hillside while their owner is helplessly endea- 

 vouring to work another, perhaps hundreds of yards away. 

 For his wishes his canine assistants (?) care nothing. The 

 keeper, with stentorian lungs and an ear-piercing whistle, 



