SPOTTED TABBIES. 57 



spotted tabbies. And these crosses were not infrequent in 

 bygone times when the wild cats were more numerous than 

 at present, as is stated to be the case by that reHable autho- 

 rity, Thomas Bewick. In the year 1873, there was a speci- 

 men shown at the Crystal Palace Cat Show, and also the 

 last year or two there has been exhibited at the same place 

 a most beautiful hybrid between the East Indian wild cat 

 and the domestic cat. It was shown in the spotted tabby 

 class, and won the first prize. The ground colour was a 

 deep blackish-brown, with well-defined black spots, black 

 pads to the feet, rich in colour, and very strong and power- 

 fully made, and not by any means a sweet temper. It was 

 a he-cat, and though I have made inquiry, I have not been 

 able to ascertain that any progeny has been reared from it, 

 yet I have been informed that such hybrids between the 

 Indian wild cat and the domestic cat breed freely. 



/^^x 



