CHAPTER XIII. 

 THE POINTER. 



ALTHOUGH the Pointer is of comparatively recent 

 introduction into this country comparatively along- 

 side his fellow worker the setter no animal is 

 more popular with the shooter. Originally said 

 to come from Spain, a country to which we are 

 indebted for other dogs, Sydenham Edwards, writing 

 in 1805, says it was first introduced by a merchant 

 trading with Portugal, at a very modern period, and 

 was then used by an old <l reduced baron," named 

 Bechill, who lived in Norfolk, and " who could shoot 

 flying." The same writer eulogises this Spanish 

 pointer, and so good a dog was he, and required so 

 little training that there was quite a chance of his 

 putting the nose of the " setting spaniel " out 

 of joint altogether. " Shooting flying " came into 

 vogue about the year 1 730 ; and this may be taken 

 to be about the date of the introduction of the 

 pointer into England. 



Probably, France had pointers before this time. 



