THE ENGLISH WATEE SPANIEL. 103 



6. The lack and quarters (value 7|) also have no peculiarity, but the stifles are 

 almost always straight, giving an appearance of legginess. 



7. Legs and feet (value 10). The legs should be straight, and the feet large, 

 but strong ; the toes are somewhat open, and covered with short, crisp curls. In all 

 dogs of this breed the legs are thickly clothed with short curls, slightly pendent 

 behind and at the sides, and some have them all round, hanging in ringlets for 

 some time before the annual shedding. No feather like that of the setter should 

 be shown. The front of the hind legs below the hocks is always bare. 



The tail (value 10) is very thick at the root, where it is clothed with very short 

 hair, and is well shown in the portrait of Blarney. Beyond the root, however, the 

 hair is perfectly short, so as to look as if the tail had been clipped, which it some- 

 times fraudulently is at our shows ; but the natural bareness of tail is a true 

 characteristic of the breed. 



9. The coat (value 10) is composed of short curls of hair, not woolly, which 

 betrays the poodle cross. A soft, flossy coat is objected to as indicative of an 

 admixture with some one of the land spaniels. 



10. The colour (value 10) must be a deep puce liver without white; but, as 

 in other breeds, a white toe will occasionally appear even on the best-bred litter. 



11. The symmetry (value 5) of this dog is not very great, and I have conse- 

 quently only estimated it at 5. 



Mr P. J. D. Lindoe's Eake is by Eobson's Jock out of Duck, by Tuffnell's Jack, 

 a son of McCarthy's Boatswain, Jock by Lord Eglinton's Boatswain out of Flush. 

 He has won nine first prizes, besides several seconds. Blarney is by Tollemache's 

 Boatswain out of Skidmore's Juno, and has won three first prizes, besides seconds 

 and highly commendeds. 



THE ENGLISH WATEE SPANIEL. 



Although a class for this variety of the spaniel is often included in the prize 

 lists of our shows, the exhibits are generally of a most miscellaneous character, and 

 I do not pretend to be able to settle the points of the breed with anything like 

 accuracy or minuteness. The following description will probably serve to include 

 all the variations : 



Head, long and narrow ; eyes, small ; ears, long and clothed with thick curls ; 

 body, moderately stout and barrel like, but not so much so as the field spaniel; 

 legs, rather long, straight, and strong; feet, large and spreading; stern, bushy 

 and curly-coated; colour, liver and white, varying in the proportion of these 

 colours. 



