The Pointer. 253 



has left his favourite dogs for the newer love of 

 " pedigree" shorthorns. Then into the teens of years 

 ago, Mr. C. H. Mason, Yorkshire, was showing and 

 winning with a number of good dogs, but when 

 he went to the United States, where he is now 

 one of the leading authorities on canine matters, 

 his kennels were dispersed. 



Of late years Devonshire has become the favourite 

 county in England for its strains of pointers, most 

 of which are liver and white in colour, though 

 occasionally those of the lemon and white crop up. 

 As to these Devonshire pointers, a well-known west 

 country sportsman kindly contributes the following : 



No other country can lay claim to older pointer blood than that 

 which is found in Devonshire. If we carefully go through the 

 pedigrees of the field trial performers and bench winners of the 

 present day, whether in our own country or in America, we shall 

 almost invariably find that those which take premier honours can 

 trace back to the old Devon sort. Long before dog shows and 

 field trials became fashionable Devon pointers were distinguished 

 for their high quality, for their total freedom from anything 

 approaching the hound cross, and for their natural working 

 characteristics, such as staunchness on point, range, and readiness 

 to back. 



Probably the variety of work which this county affords has 

 something to do with the stoutness and symmetry which were always 

 reckoned essential to good breeding by our old sportsmen. Steep 

 hills, often covered with stone and rock, and deep and holding 

 moorland, render muscle and lifting power, good legs and feet, 

 a necessity, consequently we find these points kept in the 

 foreground, and handed down to us almost as heirlooms of 



