THE DOG—INTRODUCTION. 327 
The St. Bernard has been imported to England, and is now very 
purely bred in both the smooth and rough varieties, though not such a 
general favorite as the mastiff or Newfoundland. 
The colly is probably more intelligent and highly educated than any 
other dog. By constant association with his master and daily participation 
in his labors he develops an amount of special knowledge and general 
intelligence almost inconceivable. No other dog is so intimately connected 
with his master’s daily life, and without his aid sheep-tending upon the 
moors would be practically impossible. The well authenticated reports of 
the duties performed by collies read like romances, and certainly show in 
the strongest possible light the elevating influence which association with 
man exerts upon the brute creation. 
The terriers and toys are practically pets and house dogs. Many of 
them are highly intelligent, sharp and useful in their stations, while others 
simply serve to gratify their master’s fancy, 
DOGS IN AMERICA. 
In this country field sports are matters of comparatively recent date. 
Only afew years since a gentleman could not indulge in such pursuits 
without loss of business and social standing; but with the increase of wealth 
and consequently greater leisure, the love for sport natural to the Anglo- 
Saxon race has asserted itself, and proficiency in the field is now deemed a 
gentlemanly accomplishment. There is no country under the sun which 
affords more varied or better natural sporting facilities than our own. 
With an immense territorial area, crossed in every direction by railroads, 
with every variety of surface, from semi-wooded to prairie, mountain and 
forest, game of all kinds, from the snipe, woodcock, quail and grouse, 
to the deer, elk, buffalo and bear, are at the command of all who care to 
seek them. State associations and local sporting clubs foster the love for 
the field, and the desire for dogs worthy of such a country has led to the im- 
portation of the best specimens, and to competition in public at shows and 
trials. A few years since our dogs were, as a class, far inferior to those of 
England, owing to the greater care gentlemen there had taken to keep 
up their strains. The last decade, however, has seen a revolution wrought 
in kennel matters, and we can confidently expect to have in the near future 
as fine dogs as any in the world. 
There are reasons why field sports will never be carried to the extent 
they are practiced abroad, and for the scant foothold which some of them 
will gain in popular favor. In the first place, they are here open to all, and 
as rich men are everywhere the exception, it follows that comparatively 
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