26 Varieties of the Dog. 



purpose of the fore-quarter is to enable the annual to take 

 advantage of the propulsion given by the vigorous con- 

 traction of the hind one, and thus to carry the animal on 

 in the intervals of the strokes. If, therefore, the fore- 

 quarter is dull, heavy, and incapable of extension, the 

 stroke is broken and suspended, and the pace is reduced 

 accordingly. But besides this purpose, in which the fore- 

 quarter of the race horse bears a similar part, that of the 

 greyhound is also used in stopping the speed, and turning 

 the body to the right or left, when the hare makes one of 

 those turns which she delights in. Here the shoulder 

 requires to be pliable yet strong, and there must be con- 

 siderable play in all its parts, or it will give way in the 

 violent effort made to change the direction of the speed. 

 The outward formation for these purposes is well known 

 and recognized by all in its general principles, though there 

 may be a difference of opinion as to its details. Every 

 one is agreed that the line through the shoulder-blade 

 should be oblique, because that gives, in the first place, 

 greater absolute length of blade ; and, in the second, it 

 gives greater power over the arm, so that it may be pro- 

 truded further and with greater force than is the case 

 with a short and upright blade. It is acknowledged as 

 a fact, that such oblique shoulders conduce to that 

 conjunction of speed and working power Avhich is de- 

 sired. At the same time, I think I have seen so many 

 cases of upright shoulders united with great pace and 

 cleverness, that the rule is by no means an absolute 

 one. But one rule is, I think, of that nature — viz., that 

 where there are confined shoulders not acting with any 

 liberty, but glued in their places, then the speed is not 

 good, and the working power is absolutely null. With 

 good sloping shoulder-blades there is almost always com- 

 bined a formation which is of the greatest consequence, 

 and that is a long upper arm — that is to say, a long bone 

 intervening between the shoulder-blade and the elbow. 

 This length of ami generally coincides with good length 

 from the hip to the hock ; and when that quarter is bent 

 as I have already described, the oblique shoulder-blade, 

 long upper arm, and low elbow, usually accompany it; 



