AND AMERICAN RURAL SPORTS. 
163 
atmosphere, sometimes spreading over a considerable sur- 
face: therefore, when a Dog by ranging with a high head, 
enters the area of this effluvium, his olfactory nerves detect 
the course whence it proceeds, and then his sphere of 
ranging contracts gradually, until it becomes a gentle, 
straight-forward trot, and by a final stop marks the spot 
where the game lies concealed. Effluvium, like smoke, 
ascends rapidly or skims the surface of the ground, accord- 
ing to the density or rarity of the air, and should the wind 
be blowing gently on damp and lowering days, or when 
the atmosphere is dense, a Dog that ranges with his nose 
well up, will smell or receive this effluvium at a most asto- 
nishing distance: and this explains the great difference 
which is manifested frequently by the same Dog. There- 
fore, the advantage of this description of Dogs over the for- 
mer, is so great, that it is worth every experiment to make 
a Dog hunt with his nose well up. And to effect this, it is 
necessary that whenever your Dog shows a disposition to 
put his nose to the ground, he should be spoken to sharply, 
“ hold up,” and repeated angrily every time he acts in this 
way. This will make him uneasy, and generally break 
him from a sneaking walk or trot into a handsome canter, 
and frequent repetition of this scolding will generally pro- 
duce the desired effect. But should simple means, like 
these, prove unavailing, after a fair and patient trial, the 
sportsman must resort to a more severe measure; and this 
will be the application of the “puzzle-peg,” or more pro- 
perly, the “ muzzle-peg.”* The advantage of this instru- 
ment is, to prevent the Dog from putting his nose to the 
ground, and when hunting in high grass or stubble, by rea- 
son of its continually catching the weeds, &c., creates so 
much uneasiness to the Dog, that he will be obliged to keep 
his head high, in order to avoid these troublesome objects; 
and a few hours, on several days, will give him a habit of 
ranging with his nose up, and if, while in this position, he 
should be brought to scent and stand game, his instinct will 
soon point out the superior manner of the two, and he will 
most likely ever after follow it, for most of the sagacious 
traits in Dogs are the effect of experience. 
* The “ muzzle-peg” is a piece of pine wood, in 
shape like the figure, of about three fourths of an 
inch in thickness, and two and a half inches broad 
at one end, to taper down to about one and a half 
inches to the other end, and of sufficient length to 
pass from the Dog's throat, under his jaw, eight 
inches beyond his nose. The broad end should 
be fastened to a strap, in order to buckle round 
bis neck; and the smaller end fastend inside or 
behind his lower tusks/by means of a buckskin 
cord. This instrument wili put the Dog to much 
inconvenience, at first, and he will try his best to 
rid himself of it; but finding his efforts unavailing, 
will follow quietly after you for some lime, but 
will soon become accustomed to it, and then rang 
It should always be the sportsman’s peculiar care, to 
keep his Dog steady at his work, and never suffer him to 
loiter about, or stand gazing at the other Dogs. But to 
effect this, it is necessary that the sportsman himself be 
active and persevering; for if the master will loiter and idle 
his time by sitting on a stump or fence, it is natural to sup- 
pose that in the early stages of training, the Dog will follow 
his example, either by resting in the field or at his master’s 
feet, or stand gazing at him or the other Dogs: therefore 
give force to your precepts by examples of industry, and 
whenever your Dog shows a disposition to lag, or smell the 
ground for small birds or ground mice, speak out to him 
sharply — “holdup!” “take care, sirrah!” This will be 
sufficient to answer every purpose. I. 
(To be continued.)* 
FINAL ANSWER TO I. T. S. 
Gentlemen, 
I will not occupy much of your space in replying to the 
last communication of I. T. S. The subject of contro- 
versy between us can never, I apprehend, be satisfactorily 
decided by rules of philosophy, or correctly illustrated by 
diagram. The practice of the sportsman must, in the end, 
determine him, and his deliberation and judgment alone, 
render him proficient in the art. If, in my argument in a 
former number, with reference to the diagram of I. T. S., 
I adopted a mode of reasoning which he supposes irrelevant 
to the case, I regret it as sincerely as himself; as it was not 
my wish to misapprehend him. Upon a review, however, 
of that argument, and applying it to his late illustration of 
the subject, I find so little reason for retraction, that I am 
willing to go with him from his own starting place, and let 
his principle commence at the precise point of time he 
wishes. It is in the latitude of time which your corres- 
pondent allows for the passage of the contents of the gun 
to its object, that his great mistake lies; and when he takes 
as his ground-work, the same time for the effect of the shot 
on passing from the muzzle, as for the flight of the bird in 
87 feet, he cannot expect to build upon it a system of rea- 
soning convincing or satisfactory to your readers. The 
precise period of time consumed in the passage of the con- 
tents of a gun to the object, cannot be correctly determined; 
but admitting, as I. T. S. does, in practical shooting, that 
six inches allowance is necessary for a duck in his ordinary 
flight, at sixty yards distance, and supposing the duck to 
fly at the rate of 87 feet in the second; it follows that but 
the 174th part of a second would elapse for the effect of the 
shot, from the first touch of the trigger. And supposing, 
