94 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[Mabch 2, 1883. 



the Menml 



FIXTURES. 



BENCH SHOWS. 

 March ?, B, fi and 10-Piusbumh, Pa.. Benclj Show. Chaa. Lincoln, 



Superintendent,, Entries close Feb. 25. 



April IS. 19, -ii> .in.l 31— New York, Sixth Annual Bench Show of the 

 Westminster Kennel Club. Entries close April 3. Chns. Lin.,, In, 

 Superintendent. 



May ft IP, 11 and IS— Boston. Mass. Third Bench Show of the Massa- 

 chusetts F.etmel Club. ('has. Lincoln, Superintendent; E. E. Hardy. 

 Secretary Exhibition Committee. P. O. Box 1793, Boston. 



FIELD TRIALS. 



September— National American Kennel Club Field Trials on Prairie 

 Chickens. Jos. Tl, Dew. Columbia, Tenn.. Secretary. 



December— National American Kennel Club Field Trials on Quail, 

 Grand Junction. Tenn. D. Bryson, Memphis, Temi., Secretary. 



GORDON SETTERS. 



WE are glad to see that there is a growing interest taken 

 in this grand breed of setters, and we trust that the 

 gentlemen who have taken the matter in hand will not rest 

 until they succeed in restoring the prestige of this old time 

 favorite. We clip From the London Field the following letter 

 upon the subject from Dr. Niven: 



Sir — The letters which have appeared in late numbers of 

 Tlie Field on Gordon setters have peculiar interest, for the last 

 Tear I ventilated my opinion of what they ought to be in the 

 7jrc Stock Journal, but, from no answers coming to my ques- 

 tions, 1 fancied that Gordon or black-tan setters were, no longer 

 thought much of in England, but had been set aside for then- 

 more fashionable brethren, the Laveracks and Llewellins. It 

 was with much pleasure indeed that I read the very interest- 

 ing letters on this subject which have appeared in your 

 columns from those who ought to know what constitutes the 

 Gordon setter. 



Eor the past six years (not very long, I grant) I have been 

 breeding Gordons, and in the many litters of pups which I 

 have had in that time I have always found white on the breast 

 and some of the toes of at least one-half of the whelps, al- 

 though both sire and dam were not so marked. From analyz* 

 ing the pedigrees of these, which trace back to Kent, Rock, 

 Rhine, Regent, and others 

 which were called Gordon 

 setters, I am led to believe 

 that white must have been 

 largely predominant in some 

 of the older strains. By care- 

 ful selection, and keeping 

 only the pups which show 

 no white, I believe the pres- 

 ent show bench Gordon set- 

 ter has been obtained, but, 

 by doing so, we are falling 

 into a very much worse fault 

 than a little white on the 

 chest. We are getting too 

 much black, and the tan 

 mixed with the black very 

 much; at least that is my 

 experience, and I dare say 

 others can say the same of 

 their stock, so that, in order 

 to get the tan markings 

 clear and distinct again, it is 

 necessary to cross with the. 

 red Irish setter, and I could 

 name some prominent breed- 

 ers of the present Gordon 

 setter who made no secret 

 of doing so. By this cross 

 also it is affirmed they get 

 better field dog's, and I have 

 no doubt but that they do. 



What I contend for is to 

 try and get a lighter-built 

 dog than what has lately 

 been the rage. No wonder 

 that the Gordon setter has 

 been named, and rightly so, 

 the " old man's dog." He is 

 built too heavy in front; 

 his massive head and heavy 

 shoulders were never made 

 to get over the ground, and, 

 from what I have seen of 

 them, their loins and quar- 

 ters have been sacrificed in 

 order to get the fashionable 



front. I think it is time for breeders of Gordons to take this 

 up, and get an equally handsome dog, properly proportioned 

 both before and behind, which would be a stayer in the field. 

 1 do not quite like the idea of crossing with the Irish setter, on 

 account of his well-known fault of being so headstrong, as I 

 think one of the greatest pleasures of owning a Gordon is that 

 he is a very easily broken dog, and requires little or no hand- 

 ling to make him a very pleasant one to shoot over, which I 

 fear would be lost to a certain extent if the Irish setter blood 

 was introduced to any great extent. 



I have been endeavoring to do this, and have partially suc- 

 ceeded, by crossing the old champion Blossom with a Duke 

 bitch. Out of ten or twelve puppies of this cross, I have no 

 hesitation in saying there is not one that is not a good, fast 

 dog; and, although they have not got very fashionable heads, 

 they make up for it in their loins and quarters. 



I am much obliged to Mr. Sergeantson for the correction as 

 to the breeder of Blossom, and would be still more so if he 

 could trace out for me the pedigree of Bloom. Although Blos- 

 som is now nearly ton years old, he is as active as a puppy, 

 and can hunt (as we "say in Canadal as fast and as long as 

 many of the young ones. ' My motto for breeding Gordons or 

 black-tan setters is "strength with lightness." J. S. Niven. 



In response to the request of Dr. Niven, Mr. Sergeantson 

 gives the following: I have great pleasure in being able to sup- 

 ply Dr. Niven with the pedigree of Blossom's dam, Bloom; 

 and as Blossom has left some worthy descendants behind him 

 in this country, no doubt their owners will also be glad to 

 know the pedigree, and f dare say you will, therefore, kindly 



EUblish it. Mr. Strikes unfortunately" mislaid the. pedigree, 

 ut it has been obtained again through the kindness of Mr. 

 "Webber, of Falmouth, from his old friend and neighbor Mr. 

 Pope, the breeder of Bloom. Here it is. Bloom was whelped 

 April 13,1871, and was by Whitford's Rake out of Pope's 

 Blanche, by Itaekott's Grouse, (Loi'J) out of Pope's Bess II., by 

 Pope's Tip out, of his Boss I. Tip and Bess I. were purchased 

 by Mr. Pope from the Earl of Southesk, of Kinnaird Castle, 

 about the year 1854. Whit-ford's Rake, was a long, low dog, 

 first-class in the field, and won first prize at the Bath and West 

 of England Show in 1868. W. Sergeantson. 



Acton Buiineli. Rector v. 



Editor Forest and Stream : 



In your issue of Feb. 38 I notice an article by Dr. Niven on 

 the Gordon setter, in which he asks several (Questions about 

 this grand field-dog. Being a great lover of held sports and 

 owner of some fine field-dogs, my experience of many years 

 in breeding this dog, and in hunting over them in the North, 

 South and West, I consider a sufficient reason why I should 

 be entitled to express my opinion and answer the above-named 



gentleman's article, and to assist in placing the Gordon before 

 your many readers in his true light. His first question — "Is 

 it necessary that a Gordon setter shoidd be a heavily-built 

 dog!" Certainly not, if you wish him for field-work; but from 

 a bench point of view, one would be led to think differently; 

 the bench show dog is touch too heavy for field-work; some of 

 the prize w inn ers of the present day weigh from 08 to 75 lbs. 

 How many hours' work, do you suppose, such a dog capable 

 of performing, and what chance, would lie have by the side of 

 the nicely-made held Gordon, weighing only 50 lbs.? The lat- 

 ter dog would surpass him in all tield-work by long odds. 



Who, pray tell me, would wish to start on a hunt with two 

 of these heavy Gordons in their wagons, when they can get 

 the same breed and color, with lighter frames, swift as the 

 racers, with nose surpassed by none, and powers of endurance 

 equal to any strain in this country or in Europe, I believe the 

 craze for large dogs for the. bench has been the cause of so 

 many comments on this strain. 



Secondly, he asks, " What advantages are to be gained by 

 breeding thus?" 



I will" say positively none; eveiy step taken toward the 

 heavy dog is ruinous to any strain of field-dogs, unless you are 

 breeding for the. style, and speed of the cart-horse. 



Thirdly, he asks,' "Are the Gordon setters of to-day as good 

 in field as when a little white was allowed on chest or feet?" 



The light-weight Gordons are good field-dogs, whether it is 

 with a frill or toe of white. I certainly — speaking in a field 

 point of view — wotdd not destroy one so marked, nor a black- 

 white and tan dog, if of proper size. My preference is always 

 for the Gordon with as little white as possible. I think "it 

 wrong to debar such from competing at shows. Fellow -sports- 

 men, a good Gordon cannot be of a bad color; color will not 

 spoil his field-work. Manypnps are destroyed for a white chest 

 or foot; save them, and many you will find, at two years old, 

 have lost the white hair; it will" have grown out; turn your at- 

 tention more to destroying of the large dogs and perpetuate a 

 smaller dog. 



Fourthly, he asks, "Will a lightly-built dog do the same 

 amount of field-work as the more heavily -made one?" 



I will say the heavy dog can be used lip in a few hours, 

 while, the lighter-built one will last as many weeks. This I 

 have seen in the field with the two types. 



Fifthly, he says, " Gordon setters did well in the first field 

 trials; how is it now they are not placed?" It is very seldom 

 any entries are made at trials now; not, T am sure, for fear of 



GROUSE DALE. 



WE give our readers this week a sketch by the well known 

 artist Mr. J. M. Tracy, of the celebrated setter Grouse 

 Dale, which we need scarcely say is a speaking likeness. 

 Grouse Dale, won first at the late Eastern Field Trials 

 on Robbins' Island. He won the puppy stakes at the 

 inaugural meeting of the Eastern Field Trials Club in 1879, 

 and was second with Aldrich's Smut in the braces at the same 

 meeting. He also ran at the same trials in 1880, but was not- 

 placed, although lie. ran a grand heat with Gladstone, except 

 that he was unsteady at the finish. At the last meeting on 

 Robbins' Island he ran a.ll of his heats in good form, vanquish- 

 ing such noted performers as Croxteth, Maida, Lizzie Lee and 

 others. He also ran at the late National and Pennsylvania 

 Trials at Grand Junction, Tenn., but was so heavily" handi- 

 capped by his long journey and want of rest that, although he 

 showed some remarkable good work he was unplaced in the 

 national all aged, winning with Das hin g Monarch third in the 

 brace and dividing second with Warwick in the Penn- 

 sylvania all aged. He has been shown on the bench 

 but once, capturing a v. h. c. at New York in 1880, 

 in a large and very good class, his sire. Waters' Grouse, 

 being placed first in the same class. His dam, Daisy 

 Dale, won second at Philadelphia in 1877, and is a full sister to 

 Diana, the dam of Pollux, who won the Derby at the last 

 meeting on Robbins' Island. Grouse Dale is a handsome, dog, 

 rather above the medium size. He is nearly white, with 

 lemon — or rather orange — markings, and is now three years old. 

 He is quite stylish, and all his movements are very "graceful. 

 His action while reading game and his style while on point or 

 backing is magnificent. He is very intelligent and obedient and 

 has a capital nose, and is always in the. best of health and 

 spirits and ready for the. field at a moment's notice. He is 

 owned by Mr. Wni. A. Buckingham, of Norwich, Conn., and 

 was trained by Mr. Wm. Tallman, of Providence, R. I. 



WORMS IN PUPPIES. 



WM. A. BUCKINGHAM'S GROUSE DALE. 



their not being placed, but because they are not owned by 

 men whose principal hobby is to have a trainer and see his 

 dog hunted once a year. But they are owned by practical 

 hunters, and many by those who have not the means to grati- 

 fy themselves in yearly field-trial amusement. Then, again, 

 they are owned by men who wotdd attend but then- time is 

 not their own. If the Gordons, with field form, had the same 

 labor expended for them, as dogs of other strains, they, to 

 my mind, would do much better nose-work than what we"read 

 of at many yearly trials. 



Sixthly, he asks, "Have the English setters so much im- 

 proved, or have the Gordon setters retrograded?" The Gordon 

 is as good for field-work to-day as he ever was. and is the peer 

 of the. English in many respects. I believe you can get more 

 first-class field-dogs out of a litter of Gordons than you will 

 ever get out of English or Irish, 



To queries seven and eight will say, in order to improve the 

 Gordon Cor the bench, have, the standard changed for a lighter 

 and more racy-looking dog. Fellow-lovers of this dog, it is 

 the dog on the bench, with his immense frame, that has made 

 him unpopular with many that have purchased them for field- 

 work. We have in this country as fine field Gordons as any 

 one could wish for. and wherever owned thev are very highly 

 prized. H. Malcolm. 



Baltimore, Md. 



TRACT'S SKETCHES,— Mr. J. M. Tracy, the well-known 

 artist, has just issued the second pair of the series of hunting 

 scenes which he is publishing. One. of them, " A Hunting- 

 Scene in Tennessee," is a striking picture of the well-known 

 Gladstone and Peep o' Day. The other is a capital delinea- 

 tion of Minnesota chicken hunting, with Dash III. and 

 Countess May in the foreground The pictures heretofore 

 published by Mr. Tracy have met with a, very cordial recep- 

 tion from the sportsmen of the country, who recognize a 

 "master hand" in the truthful as well as pleasing portrayal of 

 the animals represented There has been such a call for these, 

 pictures that Mr. Tracy has found it impossible to supply the 

 demand as promptly as he would like. He has now made ar- 

 rangements for increasing the production, and will soon be 

 able to fill all orders as soon as received. 



A CONSCIENTIOUS DOG.— A faithful Newfoundland dog 

 spent the night on a pond in Connecticut, recently, guarding 

 the coats of a party of ice-cutters. He refused bo leave them 

 when called awav, and in the morning he was found at his 

 post badly frozen. That dog was a noble philanthropist: he 

 probably knew that the icemen would seize on the fact of an 

 axe or saw being lost to raise the price of ice in the summer, 

 and he averted the calamity.— Christian Union. 



ONE of our correspondents, Mr. John White, of Bridgeport, 

 Conn., writes us that one of his pointer puppies has died, 

 and that the supposed cause was worms, for which he treated 

 him, but upon making an examination after death he could 

 discover no sign of worms, but found that the, bowels were 

 very much inflamed and congested. He adds that he has no 

 doubt that many young dogs 

 die from this cause that are 

 wrongly supposed to have 

 been afflicted with worms. 

 This is undoubtedly true, 

 and in such cases, when the 

 animals are dosed with the 

 usual remedies that are ad- 

 ministered for worms, the 

 disease is aggravated, caus- 

 ing the poor dog much 

 unnecessary suffering, if, in- 

 deed, they are not the direct 

 cause of his death. For this 

 reason extreme caution 

 should be observed in the 

 treatment of the ills to 

 which our pets are subject. 

 We have no doubt that often- 

 times the drastic remedies 

 that are administered to 

 expel the worms are the 

 primary cause of the inflam- 

 mation" that frequently ends 

 the days of many an unfor- 

 tunate youngster who, with 

 E roper care, would have 

 een spared to gladden the 

 eyes of his master with the 

 mature beauty of his form, 

 and rejoice his heart with 

 the faultless performance of 

 his duties in the field. As 

 we have often stated in 

 these columns, we never 

 dose a pup with powerful 

 medicine. Formerly we pur- 

 sued the opposite course, and 

 by careful nursing arid a 

 constant recourse to our ex- 

 tensive stock of drugs, suc- 

 ceeded in killing about two- 

 thirds of the animals that 

 we bred, and raining the 

 health of a portion of the 

 remainder. Since we have 

 adopted the "don't care'.' 

 system all this has changed and we seldom lose a pup from 

 disease. We firmly believe that nature— if untrammeled by 

 the use of pernicious drugs— will safely bring through four 

 out of five of the puppies left to her care. 



THE BOSTON DOG SHOW. 



n^HE third bench show of dogs which is to be given by the 

 JL Massachusetts Kennel Club, at Music Hall, May 9, 10, 11 

 and 12, promises to be a grand one. The classification list is 

 now in course of publication, and will be one of the most com- 

 plete ever offered. 



The club, after due consideration, have decided to give 

 handsome certificates of award in the following order: First, 

 second, third, very highly commended, highly commended, 

 and commended, to each of the different classes in their list. 



The judges will be particularly instructed not to give those 

 awards unless the dogs come up to the proper standard of 

 merit. 



The classes number ninety-six against sixty-three of the. 

 last show given in Boston. The following other classes will 

 be made champion classes: For heavy and light weight 

 pointers, black spaniels, heavy and light weight champion 

 fox-terriers, champion mastiffs, champion St. B 

 champion bulldogs and bull-terriers; also same to DUgS, Skves, 

 Yorkshires, and other breeds; a class will be made forthe 

 new breed of dogs, the famous berghunds, which have been 

 extensively imported into this country by Mr. LorUlard and 

 other gentlemen. 



The prize list will soon be ready, and an office opened winch 

 "will be duly announced 



Mr. Chas. Lincoln has again been appointed Superintendent 

 for the Show, He reports that a great amount of interest, is 

 already being taken in the show from various parts of the 

 country. 



Special invitations will be sent to England so as to make a 

 truly representative show of all the best dogs in the world. 



The entries will close April 3. 



All communications should be addressed to E. E. Hardy, 

 Secretary, P. O. Box 1,793, Boston, Mass. 



NEW YORK DOG SHOW— A special prize of a club 

 medal will be given for the best, greyhound puppy under 

 twelve months, also a medal will be given for the best Chesa- 

 peake Bay dog or bitch. This class of dogs was lint. . 

 left out in making out the prize list. Thomas Orgill, Esq., of 

 Brooklyn, will judge the classes for spaniels in the sporting 

 division. Please state that the P. O. Box is No. 1,635, where 

 all communications should be addressed. — Chas. Lincoln, 

 Supt. 



