THE SETTER. 



253 



achievements being with the fine English 

 Setter, Lingfield Beryl, who won both the 

 all-aged stake at the Kennel Club and that 

 at the English Setter Club's meetings in the 

 spring of 1906. Mr. A. T. Williams has also 

 owned a few noted trial winners, and from 

 Scotland comes Mr. Isaac Sharpe, whose 

 Gordon Setter, Stylish Ranger, effectually 

 put a stop to the silly argument that all this 

 breed are old men's dogs, by winning a big 

 stake or two three years ago. 



Many of the older field-trial men hold 

 tenaciously to the opinion that the modern 

 exhibition Setter is useless for high-class 

 work, and contend that if field-trial winners 

 are to be produced they must be bred from 

 noted working strains. As a fundamental 

 principle this argument will not hold water, 

 for the contrary has been proved many times. 

 Doubtless this prejudice against show dogs 

 has been engendered by the circumstance 

 that many owners of celebrated bench win- 

 ners care nothing about their dogs being 

 trained, in some cases generation after 

 generation having been bred simply for 

 show purposes. Under such conditions it 

 is not to be wondered at that the capacity 

 for fine scenting properties and the natural 

 aptitude for quickly picking up a knowledge 



of their proper duties in the field which in 

 the case of the progeny of such dogs as have 

 been constantly worked for generations pre- 

 viously becomes an hereditary attribute 

 is impaired to such an extent as almost to 

 warrant the assumption. But why should 

 this state of things exist at all ? The 

 writer has always contended that there is no 

 earthly reason why a good show dog should 

 not also be a good worker. 



The probabilities are that sooner or later 

 means will be found to do away with the 

 anomaly, and that the system which now 

 provides classes at championship shows, 

 in which only dogs that have obtained 

 a certificate of merit at the trials are 

 eligible to compete, will be very much 

 enlarged upon, possibly to the exclusion of 

 all Setters which have not been broken. 

 This would not be a very difficult matter 

 to arrange, as certificates, on an author- 

 ised form, might as easily be made by 

 breakers and required from exhibitors 

 as are those which specialist clubs require 

 from the owners of brood bitches and stud 

 dogs to make puppies eligible for produce 

 stakes and other such competitions. At all 

 events, this idea should commend itself 

 to the Kennel Club. 



MR. ISAAC SHARPE'S STYLISH DOLLIE. 



