46 FEATHERED GAME 
play in the day’s sport; who only wants a low 
whistle or a wave of the hand for guidance, 
needing no spoken command. I lay great stress 
upon silence, believing that most wild creatures 
are less afraid of the report of a gun than of the 
human voice. The successful grouse dog is the 
most finished product of the dog trainer’s art, 
making glad the heart of his master. If your 
four-footed friend excels in his work on ruffed 
grouse be satisfied that he is a good performer 
on any game bird, and will never cause his mas- 
ter to blush for him in any company. ‘‘A mar- 
vel,’? you say? My dear sir, the only marvel 
is that we will not take the pains to bring our 
dogs to this pitch of perfection. 
The good grouse dog is rare. Not every 
puppy can be trained to the requirements. It 
almost seems that the good one on ruffed 
grouse, like a poet, ‘‘is born, not made.’’ Cer- 
tainly poets are the heavier and less valuable 
crop. Training will do much for the dog, but 
all too often this branch of his education is con- 
fined to his first experience, when with all a 
puppy’s life pulsing through his veins, his cup 
of joy bubbling over, he comes suddenly upon a 
covey of ruffed grouse. That divine scent 
