FINISHING TOUCHES 
135 
The banker bought the stone. 
“Why was it,” he asked of the jeweler, “that you 
were able to sell me that stone after your clerk had 
failed?” 
“Because,” the jeweler replied quietly, “while my 
clerk understands diamonds, I love them ” 
I have quoted the foregoing anecdote com¬ 
pletely verbatim, for the reason that it gives 
expression, I believe, better than I could do 
it, to the one great fundamental in breaking 
a bird dog, which it has been my desire and 
my hope to drive home in this book. Instead 
of a diamond, the subject might just as well 
have been a dog—and the concluding ques¬ 
tion and statement changed merely to some¬ 
thing such as the following: 
“'Why was it,” he asked, “that you were 
able to break that dog after your trainer had 
failed?” 
“Because,” the master replied quietly, 
“while my trainer understands dogs, I love 
them” 
Perhaps I have said enough. I believe I 
have. Let us, therefore, merely sum up the 
definite duties of the broken bird dog. 
1. He must have the hunting instinct and 
