The Badminton Library – Shooting Field and Covert – Lord Walshingham and Sir Ralph Payne-Gallwey – 1886
Pg 262: For all these reasons, then, we recommend spaniels for use with the gun; and now the question arises, which of all the breeds is best? The most popular and almost the commonest is the ‘Clumber,’ a lemon and white variety, too well known to need description. Very good, no doubt, Clumbers are – very steady, but apt to be sulky, and carefully bred to be mute. For many purposes, such as working for snipe or partridges – and there is no prettier sport in all the world than shooting partridges in high turnips with a couple of guns and a team of Clumbers – this is an immense advantage. Many sportsmen affirm that the mute spaniel is even more ‘killing’ than his noisy brother,….. (contributed by Q Gilmore Dec 2012)
Spaniels their breaking for sport and field trials – H. W. Carlton – 1915
Note in the opening chapter the author explains breaking as training and not breaking per say.
Pg 14: Discusses Cocker, Springer, Sussex spaniel etc… The Clumber was for many years confined to the kennels of owners living in the neighbourhood of the estate from which its names is taken, and so may presumably have specially adapted to the character of the ground in and around the Dukeries. …
The reader may justly complain that the above notes are not very helpful; truth tell, my own experience does not point to any breed being specially adapted to any particular character of ground, though with regard to the Clumber I have found that it never goes so well as when hunting short standing bracken.
Pg 15: There are good and bad specimens of every breed, but I think that none will gainsay the general conclusions that the Clumber is the easiest of all to break, and that the Springer is probably the most difficult; that, although in the early days of Field Trials a Clumber carried all before her, the Clumber of show-bench type and the old-fashioned Field are too ponderous and slow and easily tire; … (contributed by Q Gilmore Dec 2012)
The Modern Shooter – J. Wentworth Day – 1952
Pg 106: To return to the question of showing pheasants. In thick woodland or where there are great clumps of rhododendrons, it is a good plan for the head-keeper and one or two under-keepers to be accompanied by several slow-working, steady retrievers or spaniels, which can be relied on to work the really dense brakes and hunt out the squatting pheasants and the woodcock who will run like rats. Clumbers are excellent as they are slow, plodding and conscientious. The late King George V, one of the best shots that ever lived, always used a team of Clumbers to hunt out the acres and acres of rhododendrons which are massed in the woods, and along the drives, at Sandringham. It is useless employing dogs which will chase fur or range ahead of the beaters… (contributed by Q Gilmore Dec 2012)
Rough Shooting – Roderick Willett & Gurney A. Gratton – 1957
Pg 74:As gun dogs spaniels have much to commend them: …… Of all the English sporting breeds, spaniels appear to be the oldest. Several distinct types have been evolved of which the best known are probably represented by the clumber, cocker and springer.
The clumber is so called because it was first bred by the Duke of Newcastle at Clumber Castle. It is a heavily built lemon and white dog. The breed is biddable and easily trained. Clumbers are excellent and thorough workers in thick cover, but not so well suited to more open country. A characteristic which some consider an asset is that they hunt mute. However, for the rough shooter, when his dog is hunting out of sight in thick cover, it can be an advantage if it speaks to a line, so that he knows when it is on game. The sturdy build of the clumber enables it to burst through cover impenetrable to a lesser dog, but it also means they tire rather quickly. It is therefore normal to use them in teams of two or more. They are splendid dogs for hunting woodcock and pheasants out of really dense cover, such a laurels and rhododendrons where birds often seek shelter in bitter cold weather….
Pg 104: (facing) picture (caption) 11. A clumber spaniel out picking up, a somewhat unusual role for this breed. (contributed by Q Gilmore Dec 2012)
Gun Dogs – John Monk – 1969
Pg: 20 (contributed by Q Gilmore Dec 2012)
Gundogs for field or trial – Roy Burnell – 1972
Pg: 128 (contributed by Q Gilmore Dec 2012)