14 British Dogs, 



canine race, the highest achievement jof man's skill in manipulating the 

 plastic natnre of the dog and forming it to his special requirements, as he . 

 is stripped, in all his beauty of outline and wonderful development, not 

 only of muscle, but of that hidden fire which gives dash, energy, and 

 daring, stands revealed a manufactured article, the acme of perfection in 

 beauty of outline and fitness of purpose ; and, whether we see him trying 

 conclusions on the meadows of Lurgan, the rough hillsides of Crawford 

 John, or for the blue ribbon of the leash on the flats of Aitcar, he is still 

 the same the dog in whom the genius of man has so mingled the blood 

 of all the best varieties, that no one can lay special claim to him. He is 

 a combination of art and nature that challenges the world, unequalled in 

 speed, spirit, and perseverance, and in elegance and beauty of form as far 

 removed from many of his clumsy ancestors as an English thoroughbred 

 from a coarse dray horse. 



It is not my intention to attempt to trace the history of the greyhound, 

 or to follow his development from the comparatively coarse, but more 

 powerful dog from which he derives his origin. The very name has long 

 been a bone of contention among etymologists ; but, however interesting 

 to the scholar, the discussion possesses few attractions for the general 

 reader, the ingenious guessing and nice hair-splitting proving often 

 more confusing than profitable. Not to pass the subject over in com- 

 plete silence, I may observe that whilst some contend that the name 

 Canis Orcecus points to a Greek origin, others derive the name from 

 " grey," gre or grie, supposed to be originally the prevailing colours ; 

 others, with apparently greater reason, suppose the name to have been 

 given on account of the high rank or degree the dog held among his 

 fellows. 



The greyhound having been always kept for the chase, would naturally 

 undergo modifications with the changes in the manner of hunting, the 

 nature of the wild animals he was trained to hunt, and the characteristics 

 of the country in which he was used ; and having always, until very 

 recent times, been restricted to the possession of persons of the higher 

 ranks, he would have greater care, and his improvement be the better 

 secured. That his possession was so restricted is shown by the forest 

 laws of King Canute, which prohibited anyone tinder the degree of a 

 gentleman from keeping a greyhound ; and an old Welsh proverb says : 

 " You may know a gentleman by his horse, his hawk, and his greyhound." 



