354 ALL ABOUT DOGS 



late Charles Dickens, some of which came out in 

 their green coloured numbers, while I was a school- 

 boy, and it was the delight of my brothers and 

 self, to sit and listen to them being read out to us by 

 our dear mother, who had a gift in that direction. I 

 hope my readers will pardon my giving here, a very 

 short doggy story, from Pickwick Papers, in the pithy, 

 disjointed sentences of " Mr. Alfred Jingle," as I wish 

 to give something, however slight, about nearly every 

 breed, and the anecdotes about Pointers are not very 

 numerous. " Ah ! you should keep dogs, fine animals, 

 sagacious creatures. Dog of my own once, Pointer, sur- 

 prising instinct, out shooting one day, entering enclos- 

 ure, whistled, dog stopped, whistled again, Ponto! no 

 go ; stock still, called him, ' Ponto, Ponto,' no go, stock 

 still, wouldn't move, dog transfixed, staring at a board, 

 looked up, saw an inscription, ' Gamekeeper has orders 

 to shoot all dogs found in this enclosure,' wouldn't 

 pass it, wonderful dog, valuable dog that, very. 

 1 Singular circumstance that,' said Mr. Pickwick, 

 1 Will you allow me to make a note of it ? ' ' Certainly, 

 sir, certainly, hundred more anecdotes of the same ani- 

 mal.' " 



At the risk of its being considered " a chestnut," I 

 will here recount the story of the dogs of Oldacre, so 

 well told by the late William Howitt, in his " Boys' 

 Country Book " (one of the prime favourites of my 

 boyhood). "This story brings to my recollection, 

 those two noble dogs at Oldacre, two grand Setters 

 that Squire Mills used always to have at his heels, 

 whether it was shooting season or not, just one the 



