THE GUN AT HOME AND ABROAD 
of the latter converted into stables for the accommodation of thorough- 
breds trained on the Town Moor; while as regards Mr Darbey he cannot 
now be counted on as a supporter of any but west-country shows. Mr A. R. 
Fish seems to have taken his place, and his strain of Penworthams is 
pleasing to the eye, all the dogs being especially close in curl, very wedge- 
shaped in head and fine in muzzle; while few flat -coats are so deep in 
brisket, or so good in legs and feet as those sent to the chief shows from 
the famous Lancashire Kennel. I can say nothing about their ability in 
the field, but the men who were responsible for the bulk of the entries 
at the show at Stafford the last week in February assured me that all 
their dogs were broken, and that few showed the slightest trace of being 
hard-mouthed. Why then cannot some one show a little enterprise by 
having a good-looking curly -coated retriever broken and prepared for 
the field-trial campaign ? His lowly origin is against him, I will admit, 
but had the poodle -Labrador or Irish water -spaniel cross had such a 
friend as his flat-coated relation possessed in Mr S. E. Shirley, he would 
probably have long ago received the recognition which is his due. In 
appearance he is a workman from stem to stern; he can stand a day’s work 
as well as any dog; while his fondness for water makes him invaluable on 
some shootings. The coat of a really good one is so closely curled as to 
be practically impervious to water, and that, of course, is a material 
advantage. As a gundog this variety is certainly worth better recognition 
than it has yet obtained. 
Yellow or golden -coloured retrievers, made popular by the Hon. L. 
Harcourt, who uses no others on his Nuneham shooting near Oxford; 
Mrs W. M. Charlesworth, Mr W. A. Sturdy, and Macdonald the Ingestre 
Park gamekeeper, have attained a position in the list of gundogs by 
the provision of classes at some of the leading shows, and Mrs Charles - 
worth showed enterprise by having a small team broken with a view 
of competing at the field trials. Normanby Sandy ran well at the Kennel 
Club meeting and was awarded a certificate of merit, quite a triumph 
considering the quality of the entry and the closeness of the competition. 
This dog was splendidly handled; he showed initiative, proved that he 
had a good nose, and showed no fear when asked to face rough covert. 
It was, however, his lack of dash, when compared with the handy and 
adaptable Labrador, which accounted for the judges not giving him a 
prize, but he proved himself to be a very capable retriever, and in a less 
important stake he might have realized the fondest hopes of his owner. 
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