152 



THE SETTER. (Cam's Index.} 



England has long been celebrated for her setter,, particular 

 care having been taken to preserve the breed in the utmost 

 purity. The great sagacity and docility of this elegant animal, 

 together with the exquisite acuteness of its scent, and its power 

 of enduring much fatigue, render it one of the most highly 

 prized of the sporting dogs. When it scents the birds, it 

 crouches down or sets, as it is termed, and thus indicates their 

 presence. Somerville has very correctly described its proceed- 

 ings in the field : 



" When Autumn smiles, all beauteous in decay, 

 And paints each chequer'd grove with various hues, 

 My setter ranges in the new shorn fields, 

 His nose in air erect ; from ridge to ridge 

 Panting he bounds, his quarter'd ground divides 

 In equal intervals, nor earless leaves 

 One inch untried. At length the tainted gales 

 His nostrils wide inhale ; quick joy elates 

 His beating heart, which, awed by discipline 

 Severe, he dares not own, but cautious creeps, 

 Low-cowering, step by step, at last attains 

 His proper distance ; there he stops at once, 

 And points with his instructive nose upon 

 The trembling prey." (The Chase, 1742.) 



