ENGLISH AND IRISH SETTERS. 101 



chest not being so wide as that of the pointer, it plays very freely 

 upon the ribs. The true arm should be very long, and the elbow, 

 when in perfection, is placed so low as to be fully an inch below 

 the brisket, making the fore arm appear very short, as seen in 

 the beautiful illustration which heads this article. The bone of 

 the leg is very large, and the feet round, thick, and their soles 

 hard, while they, as well as the back of the legs, being clothed 

 with long hair, are well protected from all kinds of friction. The 

 hind quarter is not usually so muscular as that of the pointer ; but 

 the thighs being longer, and the hocks usually stronger, the power 

 is quite as great. The hind feet and legs are clothed with hair, or 

 " feathered," as it is called, in the same way as the fore legs, and 

 the amount of this beautiful provision is taken into consideration 

 in selecting the dog for his points. In all these the English and 

 Irish dogs are alike, except that the latter are rather more leggy, 

 but are very powerful nevertheless, and are quite as enduring. 

 The colour of the Irish should be a rich blood red, with muzzle 

 of the same shade. Sometimes this is actually black, but more 

 often a rich mahoganj'^, the same dark shade running down the 

 back to the stern, which has the short hair as dark as the muzzle, 

 but this deeper stain is objected to by most breeders. Many strains 

 have more or less white about their limbs, but the mouth should 

 always be black, and, unless they are white and red, the less 

 white the better. On the other hand, the English setter has almost 

 always, like the pointer, a foundation of white, with black, liver- 

 coloured, yellow, red, or lemon-coloured head, and much of the 

 same colour, with or without ticks, about them. Some are pure black 



