THE LURCHER. 299 
two, the Cur would manage better with the sheep than the sheep-dog would manage the 
household tasks. 
One principal reason of this, distinction is, that a thorough-going sheep-dog is 
accustomed only to one line of action, and fails to comprehend _ any thing that Nas no 
connexion with sheep, while the Cur has been constantly employed in all kinds of various 
tasks, and is, therefore, very quick at learning a new accomplishment. When the 
labourers are at their daily work they are often accustomed to take their dinners with 
them, in order to save themselves the trouble of returning home in the middle of the day. 
As, however, there are often lawless characters among the labourers, especially if many of 
them come from a distance, and are only hired for the work in hand, the services of the 
Cur Dog are brought into requisition. Mounting guard on his master’s coat, and defending 
with the utmost honesty his master’s little stock of provisions, he snarls defi fiance at every 
one who approaches the spot where he acts as sentinel, and refuses to deliver his charge 
into the hands of any but its owner. He then sits down, happy and proud of the caresses 
that await him, and perfectly contented to eat the fragments of that very meal which he 
might have consumed entirely had he not been restrained by his sense of honour. 
Mr. Hoge, the “ Ettrick Shepherd,” says that he has known one of these Dogs to mount 
guard night and day over a dairy full of milk and cream, and never so much as break the 
cream with the tip of its tongue, nor permit a cat, or rat, or any other creature, to touch 
the milk pans. 
The Cur Dog has—as all animals have—its little defects. It is sadly given to poaching 
on its own account, and is very destructive to the young game. lt is too fond of 
provoking a combat with any strange Dog, and if its antagonist should move away, 
as is generally the case with high- bred Dogs, when they feel themselves intruding upon 
territories not their ow n, takes adv antage of the supposed pusillanimity of the stranger, 
and annoys him to the best of its power; but if the stranger should not feel inclined to 
brook such treatment, and should turn upon its persecutor, the Cur is rather apt to invoke 
discretion instead of valour, and to seek the shelter of its own home, from whence it 
launches its angry yelpings as if it would tear its throat in pieces. 
PossEsstnc many of the elements of the sheep-dog, but employed for different pur- 
poses, the Lurcuer has fallen into great disrepute, being seldom seen as the companion 
of respectable persons. It is bred from the greyhound and sheep-dog, and is supposed 
to be most valuable when its parents are the rough Scotch greyhound and the Scotch 
colley. 
It is a matter of some reeret that the Dog should bear so bad a character, as it is a 
remarkably handsome animal, combining the best attributes of both parents, and being 
equally eminent in speed, scent, and intelligence. As, however, it is usually the com- 
panion of poachers and other disreputable characters, the gamekeeper bears a deadly hatred 
towards the Lurcher, and is sure to shoot the poor animal at the earliest opportunity. 
For this conduct there is some pretext, as the creature is so admirably adapted for the 
pursuit and capture of game that a single poacher is enabled, by the aid of his fowr- 
legged assistant, to secure at least twice as much game as could be taken by any two men 
without the help of the Dog. 
That punishment generally falls on the wrong shoulders is proverbially true, and 
holds good in the present instance. For the poor Dog is only doing his duty when he 
is engaged i in marking or capturing game, and ought not to be subjected to the penalty 
of wounds or death for obeying the order which he has received. If any one is to be 
punished, the penalty ought to fall on the master, and not on his Dog, which is only 
acting under his orders, and carrying out his intentions. 
The sagacity of this Dog is really wonderful. It learns to comprehend the unspoken 
commands of its master, and appreciates quite as fully as himself the necessity for lying 
concealed when foes are near, and, in every case, of moving as stealthily as possible. It 
is even trained to pioneer the way for its owner, and to give ‘him timely warning of hidden 
enemies. Destructive to all game, whether winged or furred, the Lurcher is especially so 
in the rabbit warren, or in any locality where hares abound. Its delicate sense of smell 
