The Sussex Spaniel. 459 



whom we must be in a great measure indebted for 

 the Sussex spaniel as he is to-day in his purity. 



In the modern specimens there is a tendency to 

 get the coats too fine, such of course being to the 

 advantage of the dogs when before the judges, but 

 very much against them for work. A good dog 

 ought to have a hardish coat, dense underneath, 

 perfectly straight, and one that would allow a willing 

 dog (and the strain is willing enough) to work in the 

 thickest covert of briars and brambles. 



Then another peculiarity in the Sussex spaniel lies 

 in his ears. These ought not to be too long, small, 

 or narrow where they are set on (which should be 

 low), but larger or " lobe shaped " towards the base, 

 all nicely coated with straight silky hair, quite free 

 from fringe at the tips. Perhaps one of the most 

 typical of her race we have seen was Mr. T. B. 

 Bower's Maud, born in 1871. She was bred by Mr. 

 Saxby, and said to be pure Rosehill on the sides of 

 both her sire and dam. She was, however, some- 

 what finer in coat, and had not quite so workman- 

 like an appearance as might have been desirable. 

 Those handsome dogs, the Bebbs (there was a 

 whole family of them), that did no end of winning 

 on the show bench twenty years ago, were not 

 Sussex at all. Old Bebb, Mr. Burgess's, originally 

 came from Lord Derby's kennels, and proved such a 



