A Jury of Experts. 103 



And so could one go on. Richmond Jack, a cast-off from 

 the Leicester kennels, obtained seventeen votes ! Tartar 

 and Nimrod were worth a score of him, and fairly and 

 squarely judged could beat him any day in the week. 

 Surely, then, we should require a jury of experts to select 

 the ten best smooth-coated fox terriers that have been 

 before the public during the last quarter of a century. 



Good as Belgrave Joe no doubt was, he could not be one 

 of these, for he was never exhibited on the bench. Com- 

 paratively few persons ever saw him in the flesh, and his 

 reputation cannot be lowered by being omitted from the 

 list. The jury of experts is not at hand, so as far as in 

 my power lies I will arrogate their supposititious duty to 

 myself, and simply say that I consider the following are the 

 ten best fox terriers I ever saw. At the head of all Result 

 shall be placed, and then come Old Jock, Chance, Tyrant, 

 Dorcas, Buffet, Olive, Richmond Olive, Rachel, and Rattler, 

 But one half of these are amongst the selected by the 

 " gallant forty-one," and I venture to say that not a single 

 individual out of that odd number will have the temerity to 

 say that the Fox Terrier Chronicle's list is a better selection 

 than mine. 



The ten dogs I have named were, or are, all-round good 

 ones, neither too big, nor too little, nor, so far as I am 

 aware, do they bear any brand which would prevent them 

 occupying the highest position on any show bench in the 

 world. Pincher I would have included, but he had but one 

 eye when I saw him, and Tyke's brindled patch debarred 

 him, in my humble opinion, from figuring amongst the 

 " immortals." Spice had a soft coat, and no tail to speak of ; 

 Richmond Liqueur had the latter defect almost intensified, 

 and was but a puppy when she died ; Richmond Jack's head 



