52 SHOOTING IN CHINA 



enough to lame a dog, and one seed in the 

 ear quite sufficient to set up an annoying 

 cankerous discharge, the reasonableness of 

 not shooting over a valuable animal until 

 the seeds have been rendered harmless by 

 the frosts should be willingly admitted ; and 

 if one's setter is only to be available for 

 shooting purposes for a couple of months 

 in the year at most, the question of expense 

 alone is one worth a passing consideration. 

 One point in favour of setters is that they 

 are hardier dogs than pointers, especially 

 the Irish dogs, and they are certainly more 

 companionable. 



" Pointers: The preceding objections 

 have been raised not against the virtues of 

 the dogs enumerated but against the unsuit- 

 ableness of their coats for work in this climate 

 until the cover lightens and the seeds are 

 down. Something may be done towards 

 mitigating the seed evil by working the 

 dogs in cankercaps, but still their necks 

 and feet are ever open to the reception of the 

 fell annoyance. Now, pointers may be said 

 to go harmless through these trials : seeds 

 very seldom get into their ears, and are 

 without much difficulty extracted from 



