The Dogs tbey Prefer 195 



same time is hunting them not for his own amuse- 

 ment but to the gun, is the most effective. Of 

 course, the term " wide-ranging " is a comparative 

 one here, because, while our fields are quite large, 

 they are not like the prairies in Manitoba, where 

 there is no underbrush and a dog can be seen at 

 a great distance. The quail section of this coun- 

 try is comprised of wheat stubble and corn-fields, 

 with considerable bush land to which the birds 

 invariably fly on being flushed, and a dog that 

 ranges so widely as to be constantly out of sight 

 and out of hand is certainly a disadvantage, 

 whereas the same dog might be quite satisfactory 

 on prairie land. 



We also have considerable partridge shooting. 

 My opinion about a partridge dog is quite con- 

 trary to the popular idea. I think the best par- 

 tridge dog should be quite fast if he has the 

 requisite nose and bird sense to back up his speed. 

 I have usually found that when a dog is recom- 

 mended as being particularly killing on partridge, 

 he is generally a very slow, pottering sort of fel- 

 low. I have had considerable experience in par- 

 tridge shooting with all kinds of dogs, and I think 

 the best dog I ever saw was quite fast. It is 

 astonishing, considering the speed with which 

 she moved in cover, how few birds she flushed. 

 On the other hand, she would find very many 

 more than any slow dog I have ever seen. This 



