SPORTING DOGS. 203 



1- i tlv applied, (since all trace of his descent from any 

 particular strain has been lost,) that in the field can, for 

 nose, pace, and staunchness, hold his own against any of his 

 more aristocratic confreres. Here, however, he stops. 



The Setter is at present the favorite with sportsmen 

 generally, and, lor my part, I think he is full} 7 entitled to 

 this honor; since both my own experience, and such evi- 

 dence as I have been able to collect, show that he is unde- 

 niably better adapted for all kinds of work than any other 

 field dog. As to which of the different varieties is the best 

 it is certainly a difficult question to answer without preju- 

 dice. Ivich has its friends and partisans, and as between 

 good tilings it is hard to make a selection I can only say 

 that either is. good enough, and my readers may follow the 

 dictates of their own fancy without fear of getting an in- 

 ferior animal provided they are careful to get pure blood. 



It was not until the Setter had been for many years a 

 resident of Great Britain that the Pointer made his first 

 appearance in that realm, being imported from Spain by 

 some admirer of his keen nose arid indomitable staunchness. 

 The original color was liver and white, and the dog was 

 large boned, with a heavy head and slack loins. In the 

 field he possessed exquisite scenting powers, but was surly 

 and cross in disposition, stubborn, and almost devoid of 

 affect ion for his master. Of his origin nothing is positively 

 known, but most of the old time authorities consider him 

 a cross from some of the larger hounds. 



Whatever ma}* have been the descent of the old Span- 

 iard, whether pure or of hound extraction as these authors 

 assert, the modern Pointer is essentially a made-up dog. 



From his slow and pottering style, the Spaniard soon 

 came to be regarded with disfavor, and breeders cast about 

 them for some cross which would produce a dog perpetu- 

 ating the nose and staunchness of his ancestor, but gifted 

 with a better form and more speed. To gain these, Fox- 

 hound blood was introduced with the happiest results: and 

 towards the close of the last century "Dash," a liver and 

 white/log belonging to Col. Thornton, showed such supe- 



