BIPEDS AND QUADRUPEDS. 87 



to make him do that which is not natural to him, 

 solely and simply to conduce to the avarice of a 

 keeper, or the amusement and vanity of his master. 

 It is a beautiful sight, I allow, to see a brace or two 

 of highly-disciplined pointers go through all the 

 niceties of their business; but it is a sight that seldom 

 is, or has been seen, without a very great amount of 

 suffering being inflicted ; and as it mostly is the case 

 where any animals are placed under the hands of 

 men of coarse and low minds, what ought to be 

 done by patience and contrivance, is done by un- 

 warrantable, frequently unjust, and quite as often 

 ignorant severity, and where such severity answers 

 no purpose, from its cause not being within the range 

 of the instinct of the animal. Ignorance of how 

 far instinct serves the dumb animal, is one of the 

 leading causes of much useless suffering to them. 

 Where blind ignorance exists, the animal is not given 

 credit for half the sense, and, if I may be allowed 

 the expression, half the mental attributes he has, 

 while on other points it is expected that he should 

 be capable of what would amount to reasoning 



