THE HUNTING DOG 



277 



well to decide, if possible, according to the 

 number yon have, about how much running 

 you will expect each one to do. Then com- 

 mence gradually and give each one what he 

 can do, without becoming tired or "stale," 

 until you have them in form to do what you 

 require of them. A good dog should be able 

 to do three hours a day four days in the 

 week, and do fast wide-ranging and brilliant 

 work on game. He may do much more, but 

 as you add to the amount of work you must 

 detract from the quality and character of 

 that which is done. 



I have been thinking so far of the dogs 

 that are used for quail shooting in the South. 

 It is quite another proposition when we con- 

 sider what is required for partridge and 

 woodcock shooting in thick covers, North. 

 Very little preparation is needed for the dog 

 that is to do his work at home. A certain 

 amount of exercise is of course necessary, 

 and he should not be in too high flesh ; but 

 if he has been broken in cover, and has 

 learned to keep in sight of his handler, and 

 to slow down when ordered, he does not 

 cover in a day the ground that a good quail 

 dog would cover in two hours on the wide 

 fields in the South. Consequently it does not 

 require nearly as much care or trouble to 

 get your dog "fit" for this sort of work as 

 for quail shooting, South. In fact, if he is 

 properly cared for during the close season, 

 and given a fair amount of exercise, well 

 fed, but not overfed, taken out each day for 

 a run and if possible allowed to extend him- 

 self either in a race across the fields or fol- 

 lowing your wagon, you will find that he can 

 do all that you will require of him in the 

 early part of the season, when close and care- 

 ful work is necessary. And by the time that 

 Jack Frost has got in his work on the fo- 

 liage of the white birches, alders and chest- 

 nuts, he can be allowed to go further, with- 

 out the restraint that was necessary early in 

 the season, when the leaves prevented you 

 from knowing what he was up to, if he was 

 thirty yards away. This is the time when his 

 experience and knowledge or "bird sense" 

 will add to the pleasure of your sport. If 

 he is a natural partridge dog, it is not nec- 

 essary for him to be a close ranger or slow. 

 If he has a real good nose and the right 

 kind of judgment, you need not restrict him 

 in his range. If he is of the right sort, give 

 him his head, and only check him when he 

 does wrong. If you follow this plan, and he 

 Is, as I said, "the right sort," you will find 

 that he will soon gain confidence in himself 

 and show you some work each time you take 

 him out, about which you will want to tell 

 your friends when you return at night. 



It may perhaps seem unnecessary to add 

 that the care and attention given the hard- 

 worked companion of your outing, when you 

 return, is of great importance. And it is 

 Well to attend to his comfort yourself rather 



than to leave it to some one who docs not 

 appreciate the amount of pleasure you have 

 derived from his faithful performance of bis 

 duties, and the hard part he has taken in the 

 day's work. If it has been a day in the bot- 

 toms of North or South Carolina, his coat 

 may be full of cockle-burrs and some may be 

 imbedded between his toes, or under his 

 flanks, causing great discomfort. See that 

 they are carefully removed. If he has worked 

 on the rocky hillsides of New England, and 

 been up against green briar thickets, or per- 

 haps a barbed-wire fence, see that the cuts 

 and scratches are made clean and kept soft 

 by applying vaseline or something of that 

 nature. 



Then see that he is properly fed — if plenty 

 of scraps from the table are not forthcoming, 

 some raw or cooked meat should be procured, 

 and he should be allowed a generous portion. 

 After this, see that he has a quiet, comfort- 

 able place with a quantity of hay or straw 

 in which to rest undisturbed until the next 

 day. 



Your feet may be wet, your face and hands 

 scratched by briars — you may feel that you 

 have worked too hard for the sport that you 

 have had; but attend to the dog— then take 

 care of yourself, and in the morning you will 

 be ready for another trip, and your faithful 

 companion will also be fit and ready when 

 you are. 



A TENDERFOOT'S EXPERIENCE. 

 BY ETTA KENT. 



Rabbits play amid the clover 

 And you cannot spoil their fun, 



Meadow larks sit up and whistle 

 When you haven't got your gun ; 



Get your gun and go a-hunting, 

 Not a rabbit can you find, 



Larks will flit at your approaching 

 And they leave you far behind. 



Oh, the change, it is surprising! 



Rabbits shy, and birds all flown, 

 Makes you very, very tired, 



And the gun has heavy grown. 



Kilidees, dancing 'round each puddle, 

 Let you lift your gun, and then 



With a wink, a flirt, a flitter 

 Tell you they will come again. 



Leave your gun, and game in plenty 

 Rises up each turn you take, 



And the best shots of the season 

 Are the shots you didn't make. 



