INTRODUCTION
In the beginning, snoveling was a practice preformed only by those dedicated to the love or admiration of the art and not by those inclined on gain or profit. It was - and will always be - dominated by the amateur. Indeed, the advent of the professional snovelor was and continues to be a very recent and possibly transient phenomenon, fueled by the exponential increase in galactic-wide consumption for snarf-related products. It is, therefore, a terribly unfortunate arrogant point of view that many hold to claim and question the need and use for the amateur in today's world.
Is the amateur needed?
The answer, of course, is YES. Amateurs are needed now more than ever. For it is the amateur who raises the prestigious stock and holds the roots of the longest lines of continuous snarf breeds. It is the amateur who cultivates the best characteristics of the breed and weeds out the traits less desirable to the species. It is the amateur who carries on his back the burden of providing for his local community when the professional supplies are few in number and great in cost.
Professional snovelors must by necessity answer to the whims and dictates of the market and quench its insatiable appetite. They produce vast amounts of low quality liter through inflated and wholly artificial means. They make no assurances of the value of their stock, the nature of their output - the tough cuts of snarf, the furs that wilt before their time, the hides that fail to warm after their first wear, these are more likely than not to be the product of a professional. An amateur takes too much pride in the quality of his work to allow such defective merchandise to leave his premises. Many a snovelor would never even contemplate the idea of selling their precious livestock, preferring to do the work of his ancestors for its own sake.
The manual provides both an introduction and an explanation of what snoveling is and how it is preformed. It takes the reader through the modern snovel by introducing its various parts and functions. It covers how to start a snovel, what to look for in potential breeding snarves and most importantly, how to breed snarves. Statistical formulae and the aspects of various laws are also discussed.
This work is part of the USLO's aim to standardize the practices of snoveling the galaxy over, so that the same level of quality can be reproduced from place to place. It is my hope, as it is that of my colleagues at the CLG, that this guide sheds light on this very ancient and very important practice. It is our pleasure to be helpful.
Dr. Niles Erwin
Chair of the CLG