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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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setters
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Large dogs with long coats and long hanging ears, used when shooting game birds. A setter's function is to crouch ('set' derives from the same root as 'sit') when it scents a bird. There are three breeds, all developed in the British Isles. The English setter, used for hunting from the 16C but bred in its present form in the 19C, has a white coat flecked with a darker colour. The Gordon setter or black-and-tan (a black body with light brown at the extremities) was developed by the 4th duke of Gordon in Scotland in the late 18C. The Irish or red setter, deriving from Ireland in the 18C, was originally white and red but has been bred to have a pure red coat.
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