2O4 British Dogs. 



exaggerated the dog will catch a bump on hags and tussocks as he 

 runs over rough ground. 



The back is decidedly long and strong, but supple ; the fore ribs deep, 

 and not too much rounded ; the back ribs rather shallow, but not so 

 much so as to cause the dog to be greatly tucked up in the flank. In 

 ihis there should be a happy medium between the greyhound form and 

 the square built mastiff. The loin is slightly arched, and from the hip 

 bones there is a gradual droop to the set on of tail. 



The forelegs straight and muscular, strong forearm, elbow in a line 

 with the body and well let down ; hind legs well bent, strong and 

 muscular thighs ; sickle hocks ; from the hock-joint there should be 

 no feathering, in strong contrast to the hams above, where the 

 feathering is very abundant ; the feet are not quite round, like a cat's, 

 neither are they long, like an English terrier's, but between the two ; 

 the knuckles are well sprung, the claws strong, and the pads hard and 

 useful. 



The coat is of the greatest importance, and one of the great 

 characteristics of the breed. It consists of an outer long compara- 

 tively thin lot of hair, of hard, useful texture, and an under jacket of 

 very thick, close, soft hair, quite of a woolly texture, and in black dogs 

 always of a fulvous colour, which is frequently seen through the outer 

 ihin covering. The two combined are impermeable to rain, and even to 

 Scotch mist of any ordinary or reasonable sort, and this, for a dog that 

 has to be constantly running through long grass, brackens, rushes, 

 and heather, or lying curled up in a snow wreath, or by a wet dyke side, 

 is of the utmost importance. In winter, with alternate snow, rain, and 

 frost, a very long coat is objectionable, as it gets matted with mud and 

 balls of snow, and makes travelling almost impossible for him. On the 

 jaws, face, skull, and on the entire front and inside of legs, the hair is 

 short and smooth, but from the angle of the jaw and round immediately 

 at the back of the occiput it is very long, and round the throat turns 

 upwards and forwards So thick and long is it round the neck and throat 

 as to form a decided frill or ruff, and this I hear called " the mane " and 

 " the apron/' both terms inappropriate and as purely fanciful as ridiculous. 

 If our modern dog fanciers must turn word coiners, they should become 

 more expert at it before thrusting their manufacture on the public. On 

 the whole of the body the coat stands well out, because of the abundance 



