THE SMOOTH GREYHOUND. 45 



there is a want of liberty in the play of the whole shoulder, be- 

 cause the elbow rubs against the ribs, and interferes with the 

 action. This is called being " tied at the elbow," and is most care- 

 fully to be avoided in selecting the greyhound, as well as all other 

 breeds. The arm should be straight, long, and well clothed with 

 muscle. T.he knee should be bony, and not bent too much back, 

 which is an element of weakness, though seldom to such an extent 

 as to be prejudicial to real utility. The leg, or bones below the 

 knee, should be of good size, the stopper (or upper pad) well 

 united to it, and firm in texture, and supported upon a foot of the 

 formation recommended under that head. 



The COLORS commonly met with among high-bred greyhounds, 

 are black, blue, red, fawn, brindled, and white, variously mixed. 

 Thore are also sometimes seen cream, yellow, brown, dun, and 

 grey dogs. When a plain color is speckled with small white marks, 

 the dog is said to be ticked. The black, red, and fawn are the 

 most highly prized by most coursers, especially when the last two 

 have black muzzles. Some people are partial to blue dogs, of 

 which several good specimens have been met with, as may also be 

 said of the brindled color, but, as before remarked, the general 

 opinion is in favor of blick, red, and fawn. I believe that black 

 red, and white, may be considered as the primary colors, and that 

 the others arise out of their mixture in breeding. Thus a black 

 dog and a white bitch will produce either blacks, whites, black and 

 whites, blues, or greys ; while a red dog and white bitch will have 

 red, white, fawn, red and white, yellow, or cream puppies. Black 

 and red united together make the red with black muzzle or the 

 black brindle, while the blue and fawn give rise to the blue brin- 

 dle; or sometimes we see the black or blue tanned color, as we 

 meet with commonly enough in the setter, spaniel, and terrier. 

 Mr. Thacker was of opinion, with some of the early writers on 

 the greyhound, that the brindle was a mark of the descent from 

 the bulldog ; bat, as nothing is known of the time when the color 

 first appeared, no reliance can be placed on the hypothesis. 



The texture of the coat is the last point upon which any reli- 

 ance is placed, but, as far as my experience goes, there is little 



