A Gun-dog B, who is a most competent trainer of
gun-dogs, warned me from a distance that the pup was nothing but a fool, and the young Labrador seemed determined to live up to the descrip- tion, for he came diagonally across the road to meet me, fell over his feet and got up again with something like a smile on his face. His master ordered him to keep down, and he rose on his back legs and covered me with mud. I gave him no en- couragement, for B dislikes his dogs being fussed. The fool got under our feet and tumbled again, and when a cat crossed the road he was off in pursuit. 'I'll sell him for a pound,' said B, as he hurried off to recover his pup. In a few months the pup will not be for sale for twenty pounds, for by then B will. have a sort of investment in patience and care in him and he will be a good gun-dog. I remembered how hard I tried with my black spaniel. He turned out a good gun-dog, but could have been better had I had that special patience a good trainer needs.
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