BOB WHITE. 161 



ing, tramp -like manner; he may not even give so many 

 points, but an hour with such a dog is worth a week over 

 the other. The Zulu savage and the Indian buck prize 

 their wives largely for their capacity for manual labor and 

 their coarser physical powers, but the educated man of 

 to-day wishes something more than a mere beast of burden 

 for his household companion. Civilization has developed 

 his greed and egotism until he thinks himself worthy of 

 that which is noblest on earth a beautiful, refined, and 

 educated woman. So the true sportsman should be with 

 his dog. This kind of dog is difficult to obtain, but by 

 careful selection it is obtainable. 



Look well to the qualities of your dog's ancestors, as 

 they exhibited them in the field. Probably you can not 

 see many of them yourself; look, then, to the records of 

 our field trials, which have done more to develop the good 

 qualities of our bird-dogs than any other one thing; 

 but don't look to the bench-show records, for there you 

 will get but little information which is useful, and much 

 that is worse than useless. If you can do so, breed and 

 train your dog yourself he will then be more a part 

 and parcel of you ; but if you can not, procure him from 

 some breeder of reputation and reliability, and have him 

 well and thoroughly trained; then keep him so. Care- 

 fully correct every sin, whether of omission or commis- 

 sion, with gentle but positive firmness. Don't get into a 

 tempest of passion, and be guilty of brutally mistreating 

 your dog, but correct all faults until the habit of obedi- 

 ence gets firmly fixed. Give your dog all the experience 

 possible, as without it, no matter how fine his natural 

 qualities, and how thoroughly he may have been drilled 

 in the yard, he will not be a first-class field-dog. See, too, 

 that his physical condition is perfect. Nothing irks the 

 true sportsman more than to see some ignoramus expect- 

 ing first-class work of a good dog, which is either in bad 

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