36 Gleanings from the 



alfo for fmalneffe vnto the little field-moufe." 

 One of Holinfhed's divifions of Englifh mafliffs 

 is fufficiently amufing : "Some doo both barke 

 and bite, but the cruelleft doo either not barke 

 at all, or bite before the barke, and therefore are 

 more to be feared than anie of the other." The 

 whole chapter deferves perufal. 



Turning to the numerous varieties of our dogs, 

 it is worth while quoting fome curious fails here 

 from Mr. Darwin : " The bulldog is an Englifh 

 breed, and, as I hear from Mr. G. R. Jeffe, feems 

 to have originated from the maftiff fince the time 

 of Shakefpeare ; but certainly exifted in 1631, as 

 mown by Preftwick Eaton's letters. There can 

 be no doubt that the fancy bulldogs of the prefent 

 day, now that they are not ufed for bull-baiting, 

 have become greatly reduced in fize, without any 

 exprefs intention on the part of the breeder. Our 

 pointers are certainly defcended from a Spanim 

 breed, as even their prefent names Don, Ponto, 

 Carlos, etc. mow ; it is faid that they were not 

 known in England before the Revolution in 1688 ; 

 but the breed fince its introduction has been much 

 modified, for Mr. Borrow, who is a fportfman, 

 and knows Spain intimately well, informs me that 

 he has not feen in that country any breed * corre- 

 fponding in figure with the Englifh pointer ; but 

 there are genuine pointers near Xeres which have 

 been imported by Englifh gentlemen.' A nearly 

 parallel cafe is offered by the Newfoundland dog, 

 which was certainly brought into England from 

 that country, but which has been fince fo much 



