74 THE BOSTON TERRIER 



blooded dog, not the mongrel that so often 

 masquerades under his name. Still, as there are 

 black sheep in every family, a dog showing an 

 ugly, snapping, quarrelsome disposition will occa- 

 sionally be met with which, to the shame of the 

 owner, is not mercifully put out of the way and 

 buried so deep that he can not be scratched up, 

 but is allowed to perpetuate his or her own kind 

 to the everlasting detriment of the breed. 



How many a one has come away from a dog 

 show utterly disgusted with perhaps one of the 

 best looking dogs on the bench, who, after ad- 

 miring its attractiveness in every detail, discovers 

 on too near an approach to him that he possesses 

 a snappy, vicious disposition? 



I am perfectly well aware that due allowance 

 must be made for the unnatural excitement that 

 surrounds a dog, perhaps for the first time 

 shown, away from all he knows, and surrounded 

 by strange noises and faces. Yet I consider it 

 an outrage on the public who give their time 

 and pay their money, to subject them to any risk 

 of being bitten by any dog, I care not of what 

 breed it may be. At a recent show in Boston, in 

 company with three or four gentlemen, I was 

 admiring a very handsome looking Boston, a 

 candidate for high honors, when his owner 

 called out to me: "Mr. Axtell, do not go too 

 near him or he will bite your fingers off. I 



