Early Spaniels and Setters 99 



"Again 



Upstarting from the ground, where close they lie 

 Till the reloaded gun shall give them leave, 

 They bound along." 



"There, where yon rising hillocks mark the spot, 

 I saw the pack with wings that seemed declined, 

 And intermitted speed; not far from thence 

 Perchance they lie; ah no! the rising ground 

 Must have deceiv'd my eye. Push on my dogs; 

 Their flight was further still. But Pero stands 

 With head erect, his fellows straight proclaim 

 The glad intelligence, distinctly borne 

 Upon the bosom of the adverse gale. 

 With steady pace how they draw on, and see 

 How short that dog has turn'd; with body curv'd 

 Almost a semicircle there he stands." 



It is well to draw attention to some of the features of these graphic 

 descriptions. The word "pack" is of course the technical grouse term for 

 what in partridges or quail is "covey." We have the leader pointing, 

 standing, not dropping as to the net, and his fellow or fellows backing the 

 point. Then after the kill, the setters were kept at " down charge " till the 

 tedious process of loading and priming the old-fashioned flint and steel 

 muzzle-loader was accomplished. Pero again stands and is backed, and 

 finally we have the excellent description of the dog wheeling to the point 

 and arresting himself at the half turn. 



The poet next takes partridge-shooting, and now he sings: 



"My hasty meal dispatched, I seize my gun 

 And issue forth; from their clean kennels loos'd 

 My pointers meet me, and with unfeign'd joy 

 Around me bound impatient, as I trace 

 The rocky lane to yonder rising ground." 



" Near yonder hedge-row where high grass and ferns 

 The secret hollow shade, my pointers stand. 

 How beautiful they look! with outstretched tails, 

 With heads immoveable and eyes fast fix'd, 

 One foreleg rais'd and bent, the other firm, 

 Advancing forward, presses the ground." 



As the quotations are merely meant to show the divisions of dogs for 

 the gun, the foregoing will suffice for the pointer with the partridge. The 



