118 DOMESTICATED DOGS FOR THE GUX, 



Body long, low, and strong, tail round and carried slightly down ; 

 but straight, without any approach to feather. The celebrated 

 breed knoA\Ti as " McCarthy's " is thus described by that gen- 

 tleman in " The Field " newspaper. 



" The present improved and fancy breed, called McCarthy's 

 breed, should run thus : — Dog from 21 to 22| inches high (seldom 

 higher when pure bred), head rather capacious, forehead pro- 

 minent, face from eyes down perfectly smooth, ears from 24 to 26 

 inches from point to point. The head should be crowned with a 

 well-defined top-knot, not straggling across like the common 

 rough water dog, but coming down in a peak on the forehead. 

 The body should be covered with small crisp curls, which often 

 become daggled in the moulting season ; the tail should be round 

 without feather underneath, of the two rather short, and as still* as 

 a ramrod ; the colour of a pure puce liver without any white. 

 Though these dogs are generally of very high mettle, I have never 

 found them intractable or difficult to be trained ; they readily 

 keep to heel and down-charge, and will find a dead or wounded 

 bird anywhere, either in the open or in covert, but they are 

 not partial to stiff thorny brakes, as the briers catch the curl and 

 trail after them. It is advisable to give them a little training at 

 night, so that in seeking objects they must rely upon the nose 

 alone. For the gun, they should be taught to go into the water 

 like a duck ; but when kept for fancy, a good dog of this breed 

 will take a flying jump of from 25 to 35 feet, or more, perpen- 

 dicular height, into the water. My old dog " Boatswain " lived to 

 be about eighteen years old, when, although in good health and 



