Beagle owners, like the masters of Foxhound kennels, have never been very partial to the ordinary dog shows, and so the development of the up-to-date Beagle, as seen at recent shows, is somewhat new.  It is just as it should be, and if more people take up “beagling” it may not be in the least surprising.  They are very beautiful little hounds, can give a vast amount of amusement, and, for the matter of that, healthy exercise.  If a stout runner can keep within fairly easy distance of a pack of well-bred Beagles on the line of a lively Jack hare, he is in the sort of condition to be generally envied.

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DESCRIPTION OF THE BEAGLE:  HEAD—­Fair length, powerful without being coarse; skull domed, moderately wide, with an indication of peak, stop well defined, muzzle not snipy, and lips well flewed.  NOSE—­Black, broad, and nostrils well expanded.  EYES—­Brown, dark hazel or hazel, not deep set nor bulgy, and with a mild expression.  EARS—­Long, set on low, fine in texture, and hanging in a graceful fold close to the cheek.  NECK—­Moderately long, slightly arched, the throat showing some dewlap.  SHOULDERS—­Clean and slightly sloping.  BODY—­Short between the couplings, well let down in chest, ribs fairly well sprung and well ribbed up, with powerful and not tucked-up loins.  HIND-QUARTERS—­Very muscular about the thighs, stifles and hocks well bent, and hocks well let down.  FORE-LEGS—­Quite straight, well under the dog, of good substance and round in the bone.  FEET—­Round, well knuckled up, and strongly padded.  STERN—­Moderate length, set on high, thick and carried gaily, but not curled over the back.  COLOUR—­Any recognised hound colour.  COAT—­Smooth variety:  Smooth, very dense and not too fine or short.  Rough variety:  Very dense and wiry.  HEIGHT—­Not exceeding 16 inches.  Pocket Beagles must not exceed 10 inches.  GENERAL APPEARANCE—­A compactly-built hound, without coarseness, conveying the impression of great stamina and vivacity.

CHAPTER XXII

THE POINTER

It has never been made quite clear in history why the Spaniards had a dog that was very remarkable for pointing all kinds of game.  They have always been a pleasure-loving people, certainly, but more inclined to bull-fighting than field-craft, and yet as early as 1600 they must have had a better dog for game-finding than could have been found in any other part of the world.  Singularly enough, too, the most esteemed breeds in many countries can be traced from the same source, such as the Russian Pointer, the German Pointer, the French double-nosed Griffon, and, far more important still, the English Pointer.  A view has been taken that the Spanish double-nosed Pointer was introduced into England about two hundred years ago, when fire-arms were beginning to be popular for fowling purposes.  Setters and Spaniels had been used to find and drive birds into nets, but as