File:The American sportsman- (1885) (14752937134).jpg

Identifier: americansportsma02lewi (find matches)
Title: The American sportsman:
Year: 1885 (1880s)
Authors: Lewis, Elisha Jarrett, 1820-1877. (from old catalog) Burges, Arnold, (from old catalog) ed
Subjects: Shooting Game and game-birds Firearms Hunting
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott & co.
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: Sloan Foundation

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depending upon the in-fluence of past instruction to keep him under control and up to hiswork. Dogs are as cunning and wilful as other animals, and needas constant restraint. The best broken ones will try to get theirown way, and if they find their masters do not appreciate and cor-rect their wrong actions, they quickly come to despise the authoritywhich is not enforced, and apparently forget all that their breakershave taught them. To hunt a dog properly implies, then, knowingwhat he should do and making him do it, and when the ability forthis is present, the man is capable of breaking for himself. In their first field essays men will of course know no more ofworking than of breaking dogs, but if such will go out a few timeswith experienced friends, watch how they work their dogs, and thengetting a well-bred, promising puppy, apply their observations tohis instruction, they will be surprised at their own improvement inknowledge and their success in teaching their pupils. We do not72
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BREAKING. 73 hesitate to say sportsmen will find much greater pleasure in owningdogs broken by themselves than in those professionally broken. Aman would find but little pleasure in hiring a professional to shootfor him, and the same principle will apply to professional breaking.The possession of personal skill is all that gives attraction to fieldsports, and the greater and more general this is, the greater propor-tionally will be the enjoyment derived from it. The man whobreaks his own dogs finds in their performance a reward for hislabor, and in their perfection a proof of his own ability, which isflattering, yet a legitimate cause for satisfaction. Every man de-lights in the skilful work of his own hands, and feels for such anaffection he will never feel for that which he pays for. For a nobledog every true man has this affection, but when that nobility is de-veloped by the man himself, the sympathy between man and brute,which has existed from time immemorial, is tenfold strengthe

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