340 BRITISH DOGS 



Mr. Reginald Cooke's success as a breeder has not been so 

 marked as it should have been, having regard to his pluck and 

 enterprise as an exhibitor, and seeing that he always will have the 

 best, regardless of cost. At times his kennel has been un- 

 approachable, and gems of the first water filled it. The Champions 

 Worsley Bess (the best bitch the writer ever remembers to have 

 seen), Wimpole Peter (ditto, dog), Black Quilt, and Dido of 

 Swynnerton are a quartet to be proud of indeed, and the time is 

 ripe when he can at last point to something " extra special " of his 

 own breeding. Wave of Riverside was good, but Paul of Riverside 

 is better, as he ought to be, seeing that he is the son of the two 

 most perfect Retrievers of all time Champions Wimpole Peter and 

 Worsley Bess. 



Mr. Hulkes has had many good winners, but the best of them, 

 Pettings Mallard, for some unknown reason, failed to make the 

 mark as a stud dog, that might have been expected, having regard 

 to his figure and breeding. 



Lord Redesdale (erstwhile Mr. A. B. Freeman Mitford, C.B.) 

 is very fond of a good Retriever, and has been worthily represented 

 on the show-bench from time to time. His sheet-anchor was 

 Champion Boreas of Batsford, a dog very hard to beat, and one 

 with as great a reputation in the field as on the show-bench. Here 

 again is, so far, a comparative failure at the stud ; for, with the 

 exception of Black Charm, the writer can recall no really high-class 

 offspring of this grand dog. 



Mr. G. R. Davies, of Hartford, Cheshire, used to keep a large 

 kennel, and was very successful at one time, his stud dog Duke III. 

 begetting for him some very good-class stock, whilst those who 

 purchased his Retrievers at his annual sale were loud in praise 

 of the strain, from a sportsman's point of view. 



The name of Retriever exhibitors is legion, and it is only 

 possible to mention a few of the most prominent of the present, while 

 Messrs. Thorpe-Bartram, Gorse, and E. G. Farquharson occur as 

 stalwarts of the past, though perhaps one ought not to include the first 

 named in that category, as he still occasionally sends a useful one to 

 the show-ring. And what can the writer say of himself? His services 

 as a judge have been in fair request, and he is credibly informed 

 that, as a rule, his decisions have given fair satisfaction. It is 

 impossible to please every one, but at least he is always prepared 

 to give a reason for his awards, and, if needs be, to argue it out. 

 His system is a simple one to adopt, but difficult of successful 

 accomplishment. It aims at arriving at the aggregate of the dog's 

 merit : firstly considered point by point, and lastly by "the 

 altogether," or relative value of general quality, outline, and 

 symmetry. 



The origin of the writer's strain arose from Champion Sloe 



