of a Clumber, but with a bit of longish hair about the top of the skull. This was, perhaps, the reason why 'Idstone' wrote: 'English Water Spaniels are simply crosses and modifications of the Irish race. In many cases they are imperfect examples of that for which Mr. M'Carthy and Captain Montresor are celebrated--neither better nor worse.' If 'Idstone' meant that the dogs to which he and other judges had given prizes were such as he describes in the above quotation, the writer is prepared to endorse his words. He must, however, add that 'Idstone,' for a man of considerable learning and wide experience, was apt to adopt narrow and superficial views, and he was prone to dogmatise, as dog judges are very apt to do. Clearly, if the dog was a cross or a modification of another breed, and not what he was called, he should not be recognised by his pretensions; but 'Idstone' begs this question, for there is no reasonable assumption that English sporting writers during centuries, who described the English Water Spaniel, were writing of that of which they knew nothing. There is no evidence that the Irish Water Spaniel had any existence as a distinct breed so recently even as the early decades of the present century; yet it is on the supposition that the Irish Water Spaniel is an older variety than the English Water Spaniel that 'Idstone's' whole argument rests."

Taking the principal writers from the beginning of last century we find that they mostly mention two varieties of dog used in wildfowling, the larger of which they call the Water Dog, the smaller the Water Spaniel. Both of these are described as curly-haired, and various theories of their production from crosses with other breeds have been more or less plausibly suggested; it is, however, hardly necessary to father the looks of either of them on any outside cross.

Our sporting forefathers were practical men, and showed that they were so in their selection of dogs suited to the work to be done; and although it is true they held peculiar notions as to the relations between the colour of the coat and the courage of the beast, such time-honoured superstitions are far less ridiculous than the freaks of modern fancy laid down by self-elected lawgivers— such as, for instance, that an Irish Water Spaniel must have the stern, or caudal vertebra covered with skin only and as innocent of hirsute adornment as a mop-handle!

It is probable that a large and a small Water Spaniel, or Water Dog, would naturally result from the different requirements of sportsmen. He who frequented the sea-coast would require a bigger and stronger dog than the inlander who found his quarry in marshes, rivers, and sedgy ponds. Shakespeare's Water-rug was probably a Water Spaniel, which he used in hunting the water

fowl on the Avon and the tributary streams about Wootton-Wawen and Henley-in-Arden, as no doubt did also the poet of field sports, Somerville, in that charming part of Warwickshire where he lived, wrote, and now lies buried.

Here is the description of the English Water Spaniel, published by the Sporting Spaniel Society :—

Skull.-Long, straightish, and rather narrow.

Jaws. - Long and rather pointed, without superfluous lip.
Eyes.-Small, dark, and intelligent.

Ears. Of medium length, set on forward, and thickly coated.

Neck.-Strong, and of fair length.

Shoulders. Somewhat low and broad.

Fore Legs.-Long and strong, with bone of great size.

Body.- Large, round, and barrel-like; back ribs well developed; chest deep and broad.

Loin.-Strong and very slightly arched.

Hindquarters.-Long and muscular, the stifle well bent.

The croup rising towards the stern, combined with the low shoulder, gives the dog the appearance of standing higher behind than in front.

Feet.-Large, strong, and well-spread, thickly clothed with hair, especially between the pads.

Stern.-Carried a little above the level of the back, but by no means highly. Coat.-Oily, and composed of thick, crisp curls, no topknot, and the curl should end at the occiput, leaving the face quite smooth and lean-looking. Ears and stern thickly covered with ringlets.

Colour. Liver-and-white, self-coloured liver, or liver-roan-and-white, with usually a blaze up the face.

CHAPTER XXIX

THE RETRIEVERS

No breed of latter days has sprung into greater favour than that of the Flat-coated Retriever; but whereas he has improved in both quality and quantity, his Curly-coated cousin has sunk in disfavour, despite the efforts of the devoted band who formed themselves into a club for his development and maintenance-an advantage (?) which the flat-coated variety has never fully enjoyed, although in the year 1900 a subsidiary society was formed for its benefit, which society was affiliated to the Gun-dog League; but no great encouragement has been offered by this body, with the exception of the institution of Retriever trials in connection with those periodically held for Pointers, Setters, and Spaniels.

That the Curly-coated Retriever is doomed to practical extinction is a notable and an undeniable fact, which must be put down to the inevitable law of the survival of the fittest.

For every Curly-coated dog (speaking of the recognised show type) used in the field, or exhibited on the bench, there are now a score, at least, of Flat-coats. The origin of the latter variety is not very remote, and is by no means difficult to fathom. It may be taken that the Labrador dog and the old English black Setter are the tap-roots from which it has generated and developed. Sometimes the cross of the Gordon, and even the Irish, Setter has been resorted to, as evidenced by the throw-back of red- or liver-coloured puppies, and others showing a sprinkling of brindle on the legs, muzzle, and thighs, whilst the tan eye-spot not infrequently displays itself. It may be that in the earlier days of the nineteenth century Retrievers closely resembling the modern finished article were to be met with; but it was not until the days of Mr. Gorse, Mr. Thorpe-Bartram, and Mr. S. E. Shirley were reached, that a uniform and recognised type was arrived at; and to the champions of the show-bench belonging to these gentlemen, our present-day representatives, almost without exception, trace their lineage.

Adonis, Merlin, Sailor, and Ben were amongst the earliest patriarchs to claim recognition. The last named was the sire of

Champion Zelstone, who was without doubt the bed-rock of the breed. Contemporary with him was Mr. Shirley's Champion Thorn, and the concentration of the blood produced Champion Moonstone, (possibly the most perfect Retriever of all time, and assuredly of his day). He sired Champion Blackthorn, sire of Black Paint, dam of Black Drake, sire of Champion Wimpole Peter, sire of Paul of Riverside.

In a collateral line Champion Darenth (Hopeful-Donna) is another notable landmark, for he is responsible in the direct line for many of the highest-class specimens of later days such a line, for instance, as his son Black Cloth, sire of Black Drake, the latter by far the most notable dog of modern times, for his stock have won and are still winning (1902) more prizes than that of all the other dogs of the last decade put together.

As the writer had the honour of breeding and owning Black Drake throughout the whole of his career at stud, on the show-bench, and in the field, he is naturally diffident in singing his praises; but the position of the dog in the Stud Book is unique, and the influence that his blood must have on the Retriever of the future is so obvious that he may be excused for giving a brief biography of so remarkable a Retriever. His sire was Black Cloth, by Champion Darenth-Black Skirt by Champion Blackthorn-Mavis; Blackthorn by Champion Moonstone-Champion Sloe; Champion Sloe by Champion Thorn-Lady in Black. His dam, Black Paint, was own sister to Black Skirt; hence it will be seen how closely inbred he was with the Zelstone strain, and that of Mr. Solly, which had its chief origin in Mr. Gorse's Sailor. But this is blood that apparently stands any amount of inbreeding; for, even when recrossed, there is no evidence of a general or of a constitutional weakness. On the contrary, the show and stud dogs of the day, who represent what is practically a family party, are a particularly robust and hardy lot. But a time must inevitably arrive when a distinct outcross will have to be resorted to; and as it is hardly likely that a ready-made Retriever of sufficient quality will be found who does not trace back on either side to one of the tap-roots enumerated above, it is obvious that recourse must be had to the primary elements of the modern Retriever's entity.

Of late years the Labrador has grown in favour, and though the writer has no personal experience of his merits, there are knowledgable sportsmen who swear by him, by reason of his alleged possession of all the virtues which a Retriever should possess. Many of these dogs have been carefully bred and the strains jealously guarded; but to the writer's eyes they appear, for the most part, rather coarse and cloddy; so that the element of the Setter becomes a necessity, if the quality of the modern Retriever is to be maintained. But first get your black Setter-no easy matter forsooth;

though the cross of the red Irish Setter with the Labrador would probably produce a fair percentage of blacks. These could be crossed in with a high-quality, show, Flat-coated Retriever, and thus a fresh current of blood would be introduced, which not only would check the tendency to excessive inbreeding, but would probably increase the powers of scent, and induce that steadiness which, it must be regretfully admitted, is often sadly wanting in our modern dogs; for they are high-couraged creatures, and somewhat impatient of restraint.

As a

To revert to Black Drake (Fig. 72). His early show career was anything but brilliant, for he was a leggy, backward puppy that did not appear to full advantage until he was over two years old, and he was quite eclipsed by his litter-sister Black Hen. youngster he had a grand head, but it suddenly grew coarse, and then, later on, again fined down, until there was little fault to find. He won innumerable prizes, and beat most of the champions of the day, securing two challenge prizes himself, and just missing the full championship title, owing to an extraordinary oversight on the part of a judge. But it was as a stud dog that his achieve