having drunk its fill, it can endure heat and fatigue much longer than the pointer. In wet or very cold weather the setter is to be preferred before the pointer, the body of the former being securely protected by a flowing coat, while the latter is shorthaired; consequently, in warm weather the pointer is preferable. The setter hunts by "body scent," as it is called, in contradistinction to the power possessed by the beagle, harrier, &c., who follow the foot-prints of their game, or hunt by "foot-scent."

Mr. Bell, in his "British Quadrupeds," relates an anecdote of the setter, that at once settles any question that may arise as to the animal's intelligence :

:

"By far the most interesting, and, if I may so employ the term, amiable animal I have ever known, was a bitch of this kind, formerly belonging to my father, which he had from a puppy, and which, although never regularly broke, was the best dog in the field that he ever possessed. The very expression of poor Juno's countenance was full of sensibility and affection. She appeared to be always on the watch to evince her love and gratitude to those who were kind to her; and the instinct of attachment was in her so powerful that it showed itself in her conduct to other animals as well as to her human friends. A kitten which had been lately taken from its mother was sent to us, and on Juno's approach showed the usual horror of the cat towards dogs; but Juno seemed determined to conquer the antipathy, and, by the most winning and persevering kindness and forbearance, advancing or receding as she

found the waywardness of her new friend's temper required, she completely attached the kitten to her; and as she had lately lost her puppies, and still had some milk left, I have often seen them lying together before the fire, the kitten sucking her kind foster-mother, who was licking and caressing her as her own offspring. She would also play with great gentleness with some tame rabbits of mine, and would entice them to familiarity by the kindness of her manner; and so fond was she of caressing the young of her own species, that when a spaniel bitch of my father's had puppies, of which all excepting one were destroyed, Juno would take every opportunity to steal the remaining one from its mother's nest and carry it to her own, where she would lick and fondle it with the greatest tenderness. Poor Busy, the mother, also a good-tempered creature, as soon as she had discovered the theft, hastened of course to bring back her little one, which was again to be stolen on the first favourable opportunity, until at length the two bitches killed the poor puppy between them, as they were endeavouring each to pull it from the other; and all this with the most perfect mutual good understanding. Juno lived to a good old age, an unspoiled pet, after her master had shot to her for fourteen seasons.

The Scotch setter stands higher on his legs than the English or Irish breed, and its hair is somewhat longer. The Irish setter much resembles the English, but has thicker legs, and "is distinguished," says a modern writer, "from its English relative by a certain Hibernian air that characterizes it, and which, although conspicuous enough to the practised eye, is not easy of description." Russia claims a setter of its own, an animal whose hair is long and woolly, and generally so matted that the true form of the dog is not clear to the casual observer. It is slower in its movements than the other breeds, but is possessed of a much more delicate scent, and is pronounced by sportsmen who have had opportunities to test and compare their merits, that in its peculiar way the Russian setter is unsurpassed. The muzzle of this dog matches that of a Scotch terrier for hairiness; and its feet are likewise covered with hair, which serves as an important protection in long and rough travelling.

THE RETRIEVER.

Like the pointer and the setter, this dog derives its name from its special utility-that of "retrieving" and recovering

game that has fallen at a distance after being shot. In height the retriever measures from twenty to twenty-four inches, and is powerfully built. Its colour is almost invariably black, and its fur of a moderate length and curled. There are many breeds of retrievers, but the most favourite are those derived either from the Newfoundland dog and setter or from the waterspaniel and terrier. A smaller retriever is produced by the beagle and terrier, and for stealth and quiet the smaller is superior to the larger sort in wild-game shooting.

As the animal is not born a retriever, but merely comes in its puppyhood into its master's hands an intelligent dog of promising parentage, some pains must be taken to teach it its business. It must be taught, as its first lesson - how dreadfully hard it must come to the uproarious little puppy-never to bark in business hours. Such an impropriety would disturb the game in the neighbourhood, and be to the sportsman the unlucky means of saving their lives. It must be taught not to eat the game as soon as it finds it, but to bring it straight to its master, and lay it at his feet. Being sent for a thing, it must be charged with the errand over and over again till it performs it, or it may be apt to infer that you are not very particular about the recovery of your game, and especially if it be tired-shape its behaviour accordingly.

broad, with its outline square in front, and not receding, as in the hound. Flews (i.e. the overhanging lips) manifestly present, but not pendant. The head should be well set on the neck, with a peculiar form at the junction, only seen in the pointer. The neck itself should be long, covered in its upper outline, without any tendency to a dewlap or a ruff, as the loose skin covered with long hair round the neck is called. The body is of good length, with a strong loin, wide hips, and rather arched ribs, the chest being well let down, but not in a hatchetshape, as in the greyhound, and the depth in the back ribs being proportionably greater than in that dog. The tail, or stern as it is technically called, is strong at the root, but, suddenly diminishing, it becomes very fine, and then continues nearly of the same size to within two inches of the tip, where it goes off to a point, looking as sharp as the sting of a wasp, and giving the whole very much the appearance of that part of the insect, but magnified, of course. This peculiar shape of the stern characterizes the breed, and its absence shows a cross with the hound or some other dog." This, according to Stonehenge, is a description every true-blooded pointer should answer, and, according to the same authority, white dogs with lemoncoloured heads are to be preferred before all others.

How faithful this dog is to its peculiar instinct will be found illustrated among the “ Stories of Intelligent Dogs" in another part of this volume. That it has considerable contempt for anyone less enthusiastic in the chase than himself the following incident furnished by Captain Brown will show :—

"A gentleman having requested the loan of a pointer dog from a friend, was informed by him that the dog would behave very well so long as he could kill his birds; but if he frequently missed them, the dog would run home and leave him. The pointer was accordingly sent, and the following day was fixed for trial; but, unfortunately, his new master happened to be a remarkably bad shot. Bird after bird rose and was fired at, but still pursued its flight untouched, till at last the dog became careless, and often missed his game. As if seemingly willing, however, to give one chance more, he made a dead stop at a fern-bush, with his nose pointed downward, the fore-foot bent, and the tail straight and steady. In this position he remained firm till the sportsman was close to him, with both barrels cocked; then moving steadily forward for a few paces, he at last. stood still near a bunch of heather, the tail expressing the anxiety of the mind by moving regularly backwards and for

wards. At last, out sprang a fine old blackcock. Bang, bang, went both barrels-but the bird escaped unhurt. The patience of the dog was now quite exhausted, and, instead of dropping to the charge, he turned bodily round, placed his tail between his legs, gave one howl, long and loud, and set off as fast as he could to his own home."

I

This well-known animal, to be really a fine specimen, should not exceed six or seven pounds in weight. It is not wanting in courage or hunting instinct, but, as may be naturally supposed of a dog leading so refined a life, its endurance is very limited. It is a wonderfully clever little creature, and the amusing tricks recorded of it may be counted by scores. prefer, however, giving my readers an instance of spaniel sagacity wherein was exhibited something better than fun-curious and wonderful affection. As regards the truth of the anecdote, I need merely add that it is related by Mrs. S. C. Hall:"The King Charles named Chloe was my grandmother's favourite. She was a meek, soft, fawning little creature, blind of one eye, and so gentle and faithful, refusing food except from the one dear hand that was liberal of kindness to her. Chloe's puppies were in great demand, and it must be confessed her supplies were very bountiful-too bountiful indeed, for out of the four, which she considered a proper number at a birth, two were generally drowned. My grandmother thought that Chloe ought not to raise more than two. Chloe believed that she

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