50 THE IRISH TERRIER. 



and there is still a dash of the old fighting blood in their descendants. 

 They dearly love a mill, and though it would be calumny to say they 

 are quarrelsome, yet it must be admitted that the male portion of the 

 breed is perhaps a little too ready to resent any attempt at interfering 

 with their coats ; but are they not Irish, and when did an Irishman shirk 

 a shindy ? 



" The Irish terrier is a very intelligent dog, and most lively and 

 amusing companion. He is equally suitable for town and country. He 

 is a mine of fun for a country ramble, putting up everything he comes 

 across ; and there is no better terrier than a well-broken Irish for a quiet 

 ramble round the fields with your gun. 



" Mr. Despart aptly describes him as the 'poor man's sentinel, the 

 farmer's friend, and generally the gentleman's favorite ; ' they are such 

 merry, rough-and-ready looking fellows, and the dash of the ' devil ' they 

 all carry in their bearing makes them very attractive to terrier lovers. 



" Mr. Erwin says : There are some strains of them that will hunt 

 stubble, or, indeed, any kind of field or marsh, quartering their ground 

 like a setter or pointer, and, moreover, standing on their game in their 

 own style. When a lad, I had a dog of this breed, over which I have 

 shot as many as nine couple of snipe, and have been home in good time 

 for school at ten o'clock a. m. There was little tinie for missing on the 

 part of either of us, and the dog did not make a single mistake. 



" Irish terriers are not quarrelsome, but can and will take their own 

 part if set upon, — the size of the aggressor no object. Kallymena hav- 

 ing sent more terriers to the bench-show than any other locality that I 

 know of, and this breed of dogs having been a favorite here since 

 I remember dogs, I have had a good opportunity of studying them, and 

 think more highly of them the longer I know them. 



" Their great merit lies in the following qualities : 



" PLUCK. — Irish terriers are remarkably good tempered, and can 

 be implicitly relied upon with children ; they have this peculiarity, that 

 they often appear shy and timid, but their true nature soon flashes out 

 on occasion. Some of the pluckiest I have owned have had this pecu- 

 liarity of appearing often timid, such as the late ' Tanner,' ' Sporter,' 



