whence they rose, where there is sure to be a scent, encourage him to find it, and then drop to it: he will by such treatment very soon learn what is required from him; although well-bred dogs will not create much trouble in this way-instinct teaches them a great portion of their duties, and the animals are not worth the trouble of breaking unless they naturally evince those propensities, or have been injured by injudicious treatment.

Some years since, a circumstance occurred to me which proves how much treatment alters the behaviour of dogs. I had a black-andtan setter which I had worked three seasons; but, declining shooting for a season, I gave him away to a friend, who kept three or four brace of dogs and a keeper who had the entire management of them; and they were in constant work. About the end of the second season after I gave them away, passing by a neighbouring farm-house, the occupant came out, and asked me if I should like to have my old dog Don again. I replied, "Yes, I should very much. How did he come into your possession ?" He informed me, the gentleman to whom I had given the setter handed the dog over to him because he chased hares; that he had used him during that season, and that he found the same fault, and, as the hares were very numerous on the land over which he shot, the dog was of no use to him, for he sometimes absented himself, enjoying his own pleasure in the futile chase for nearly half-a-day, and upon being flogged, either sulked and would not work, or went away home. I accepted the offer, being rejoiced at having my old servant again, intending, if he would not abstain from his evil propensities, to have him destroyed rather than be subjected to continual flagellations. I soon after took him out with me, as a horse-breaker would say, with the lounging tackle—that is, a cord to his collar-found some hares in their forms, and immediately upon his breaking off to chase them, restrained him; but I never beat him or hurt him; I simply remonstrated with him, making him drop, and exclaiming, "Don! ware hare, you old fool, ware hare." I took him out three or four days in succession with the cord, having a lad to assist me, and subsequently worked him without that restraint; but he never attempted to chase with me, except perhaps on one or two occasions he might have run to the first fence, but never offered to break through it, and when spoken to, appeared to be very properly ashamed of it. Had I used him otherwise, he would no doubt have been valueless: as it was, I kept him two or three seasons afterwards, until his age rendered him no longer serviceable.

Now, to account for this, I subsequently ascertained that the keeper, employed by the gentleman to whom I gave him, took him out with some young dogs: they all set off to chase the hares. Poor old Don was flogged unmercifully, at which he was highly indignant; he sulked, slipped away, and getting into parts where the hares were very thick, took to hunting and chasing them on his own account; he got a bad name, and the sequitur is well known; he was consequently condemned, and being transferred to other hands where he received similar treatment, became as I have described him.

Young dogs may be taught a great deal before they are taken into the field, such as backing each other, and dropping to charge; these

lessons are much better given in a yard or small enclosure, where the excitement being so much less, they are more forcibly inculcated. This custom will save a vast deal of confusion at the early part of the season; whereas if it is deferred till they are taken out to have game killed over them, many shots will be lost; indeed, as soon as a puppy begins to know his name his education ought to commence. The language made use of, and the tone in which a dog is addressed, should at all times accord with the intention of what he is required to do. The human voice has great influence over all animals; but it is the manner of expression by which a dog is encouraged or deterred from performing any particular act, not the word made use of, which produces the effect. For example, when you require him to beat a field, if you were to use him to do it at the word toho, by expressing it in a tone of encouragement, and accompanied by a wave of the hand, he might be taught to obey the mandate; on the other hand, he might be broke to drop, on making use of the words hold up, and checking him at the first lessons: such would of course be highly inconsistent, and the remarks are simply introduced to illustrate the necessity for a proper manner of exclamation. At this period young dogs should be taught to drop, on holding up the hand. It prevents much noise in the field, and consequently diminishes the probabilities of flushing birds; I consider a dog thoroughly broke to drop to the hand worth twice as much as one accustomed only to the voice.

One of the first acts of obedience which ought to be inculcated in a pointer or setter is that of not breaking fence, and this can be done more effectually with the cord than by any other means: if a dog be very perverse and stupid in his lessons on that head, a short stick tied across the middle, at the end of the cord, is useful, as it is sure to hang in the fence, and check the animal's career: a few of these admonitions, accompanied by a rate of "ware fence," and a moderate use of the whip with a determined offender, will soon bring him to a sense of his duty.

When breaking for game, many persons consider it essential to work up-wind; but I am not altogether prepared to acquiesce in the plan. It is evidently preferable to beating down the wind, on two accounts: in the first place, the game is less easily winded in that direction than any other; in the second, birds will more readily hear the dogs and yourself approach. A side wind appears to be the most desirable; it affords you an opportunity of working on both tacks, as a sailor would express himself; independent of which, I consider the scent more likely to be caught by the dogs; it is, if I can so explain myself, more expansive in that direction, and I almost fancy birds will lie better to be found under those circumstances; and if you are to confine yourself to always beating up-wind, much ground must be travelled over to obtain that position. But after all, a good and experienced dog will quarter his ground in such a direction as to serve himself in this particular. The practice which some persons adopt of constantly calling to their dogs to induce them to beat in some particular line contrary to the animals' inclination is frequently very inconsistent; it takes the dogs' attention, and disturbs the game. I recollect some years ago occasionally shooting in company with

an elder relative of the old school, who always fancied himself endowed with far more knowledge than he was inclined to award to his dogs through the agency of nature's bountiful gift in the faculty of instinct, but who seldom brought much game to bag, and was commonly joked by the female branches of the family for not being a more liberal contributor to the feast, when his excuse was almost invariably the same- "Why I went to such and such a turnip field, and I knew where the birds were, and called to my stupid dogs to beat in that direction, but they would not obey me, and the birds were so wild I could not get a shot at them;" the natural result of the noise which he made in order to control their operation to his views. There is no kind of covert more favourable for partridges to be found in, during the early part of the season, than aftermath clover; they generally lie close in it, and dogs find them better than in any other situations; long grass in meadows is also equally propitious, also fern, and all similar kinds of rough covert; but in these days of refined agriculture such sports are not so numerous as they were formerly.

The practice of ridging turnips which prevails in many of the most improved agricultural districts is one that creates many difficulties for dogs, especially when the wind blows across the ridges, for the birds will get between them, and frequently run along them in a manner that puzzles even the best dogs amazingly; besides which, when on their legs they are almost certain to rise beyond range of the gun. No other plan appears to afford so good a chance as to encourage the dogs to beat somewhat diagonally across the ridges, at the same time not to carry the mode of inducement to that extent as to flush the birds, or so to control the dogs as to spoil their style of ranging. When it is evident that the birds are on the run, it may be practicable on some occasions, by taking a sweep, to head them, so as to get them between your dog and yourself; but the animal must be very steady and well trained to enable you to do this, moreover birds will frequently go too fast for you: it is a manœuvre that reads better on paper than is applicable in practice, at the same time it is very well under certain circumstances to try it, and it may be looked upon as a specimen of skill and good fortune when it does succeed.

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Some little tact is necessary on small manors, or on the outskirts of large ones, to put coveys up in such a direction that there may be an opportunity of getting a second shot at them; a knowledge of the country and the flight they usually take is the best monitor on these occasions. This is a practice perfectly justifiable, reasonable, and consistent; but when once off the beat nothing ought to induce gentleman to trespass on the property or privilege of another, even if it be without the gun, to endeavour to drive the birds back to the land from whence they came, there to have another shot at them. The utmost punctiliousness should on all accounts prevail; when the disagreeable, unfriendly, and often frivolous animosities which are too commonly established would be avoided, and the no less unpleasant jealousies emanating from such causes which so frequently stand forth to mar the conviviality and enjoyments of a country life would never arise.

THE PAST RACING SEASON.

BY CASTOR.

According to the axiom that "after a storm there comes a calm," the turf history of' forty-five ought assuredly to be chronicled as something of a respectable and well-conducted "divarshun;" and, in fact, the events of the last six or seven months do, as a whole, bear an even if not altogether an unobjectionable appearance, that may tend to increase our confidence in proverbial sagacity. In comparison with almost any year's sport "within the memory of the oldest inhabitant," the one just over, as far as judicious arrangement and abundance of material extend, would suffer but little; whilst on the score of "good behaviour" alone it has a striking advantage over its two or three immediate predecessors. Indeed, the few black spots on the sun of this summer have been more of a personal than general nature, and their detection consequently of very small importance to the sport as a sport. Of all these robberies and bobberies, one that might be well termed "an unfortunate family," have by long odds enjoyed the lion's share; and even the most to be lamented, if not the blackest of these eruptions, must figure in the annals of the season as merely the second or closing scene to a drama, which, "five years being supposed to elapse between the acts," traces its origin much further back. Involving, and ultimately destroying, as this particular affair did, the prospects of a man high hitherto in character, and unquestionably great in ability, I repeat its effects were much to be lamented, if not, considering all things unnecessarily severe. Making only due allowance for the perturbation of spirit the offender must have been in at the time of his conceiving, and the impossibility of his ever taking any real benefit from so insane an attack-with all proper reverence, I still think their worships might have drawn it a little milder. I do not, however, quite despair of once more seeing young John Day an ornament instead of a disgrace to his profession; and having thus at starting called attention to a matter whose notice in its proper date could only interfere with the legitimate objects of the scason. I turn at once to them.

If, as far as the efforts of mortal man were concerned, the opening promised unusually well, the severity and continuance of father Frost when he did come, furnished a serious drawback as unavoidable as unexpected. The consequence of this "very peculiar” oddity in our proverbially whimsical climate did not merely rest with its marring the common kind of commencement. Deterring the representatives of many a string, from showing at the provincial spring gatherings was by no means the worst or the end of it; for even down to the Derby day there were plenty of horses to be seen anything but well in (or out), who laid their unfitness to the obstacles against an early and thorough preparation. Still from this general discomfiture we find a stable or so, one especially, owing its success mainly to that cause on which nearly all others, good, bad, and indifferent,

grounded their disappointments. The three first meetings on the listfor Liverpool, now compounds between the whole hog and "the running jump," all felt in full force the season of the year; Coventry alone having the luck to nick in on a bye-day-though, like the Aintree adventurers who braved it out, and the Warwickshire lads who fought shy-with a result unworthy of any further consideration. The first assembly, in short, of any character, either as regarded horses or men, was again destined to be at Northampton, where a new stand gave a visible sign of the spirit last season infused into the natives, and the pluck with which they intend carrying out the resuscitation. The chief and deserved object of admiration was, the high form in which, in utter defiance of wind and weather, the Goodwood horses were brought out; Discord beyond all others, here and at Croxton Park, playing first fiddle to a tune far more melodious than customary. This nag, once, as a late noted speculator was wont to designate himself, "about the most unluckiest beggar alive," owes the change, in my opinion, more to very excellent placing than anything else at the moment, however, the secret of training and trying horses in hard frosts was made to account for this run of luck with which Lord George began; and artificial or tan gallops, rather than any natural advantage in Goodwood Park, said to be the grand cause of the tanning his Lordship contrived to administer.

From a variety of causes, the Newmarket Craven turned out much below par, both in expectation and reality; the principal of these objections, in either respect, being a want of interest on the Derby. There were, to be sure, Derby horses to run; but then that was nearly the full extent of it, for there was nothing to meet them. As regarded Kedger, and the then handy first favourite Idas, this supposition turned out correct enough; while a second sight at the Cobweb Colt, and a second trial with Winchelsea, found him more unfit than ever! The last named of these four formed in his own proper person one of the wonders of the time-coming out day after day, and winning his three races, Monday and Tuesday's Riddlesworths and the Column, all in a canter, and yet at the end of the week varying between thirty and forty to one; the point of all this too being that nothing in the stable received any extraordinary lift by those certainly not despicable performances, though such results of themselves gave a tolerably true estimate of the state of "things in general" just then at Newmarket. The only decided novelty of the week was another mild imitation of the October great handicaps, which has to give thanks for any signs of future prosperity more to a super-excellent allotment of weights and measures than even the hundred pounds' worth of assistance volunteered 'twixt Town and Club. This, with an interesting match or two, and a rather sporting race for the Claret, in which the Cure had the fortune to hit on an opponent with even a smaller allowance of honesty than himself, made up the material for a meeting that may be termed passable, and no more.

At Bath, now progressing once again under the most favourable circumstances, something like an idea may be supposed to have got abroad as to the strength of Wadlow's stable-a name by the way * A grand sweep without precedent.