24 DOMESTICATED HUNTIXG-DOGS. 



day have a strain of the rough dog in them, but it is gradu- 

 ally dying out as compared with ten or twenty years ago. It is 

 alleged, and I fancy with some truth, that the rough dog runs 

 cunning sooner than the smooth, and hence the cross is objected 

 to ; and certainly many litters of greyhounds bred in this way 

 within the last few years have been remarkable for this objection- 

 able vice. 



The points, or desirable external characteristics of this breed, 

 with the exception of the rough coat, are so similar to those of 

 the smooth greyhound, that the two may be considered together. 



THE SMOOTH GREYHOUND. 



This elegant animal appears to have existed in Britain from a 

 very early period^ being mentioned in a very old Welsh proverb, 

 and a law of King Canute having precluded the commonalty from 

 keeping him. Numberless hypotheses have been brought forward 

 relative to the origin of the greyhound, BufFon tracing him to the 

 French nation, and some other writers fancying that they could 

 with more probability consider him as the descendant of the bull- 

 dog or the mastiff. But as I believe that it is impossible to 

 ascertain with any degree of certainty the origin of the species 

 Cam's, so I am quite satisfied with the conclusion that no long- 

 standing variety can be traced to its source. We must, therefore, 

 be content to take each as we find it, and rest content with in- 

 vestigating its present condition ; perhaps in some cases extending 



