26o 



THE NEW BOOK OF THE DOG. 



the curly-coated Retriever he is a beautiful 

 dog, and one is gratified to note that the 

 old prejudice against him, and the old 

 indictment as to his hard mouth, are fast 

 giving place to praise of his intelligence 

 and admiration of his working abilities. 



Speaking generally, it seems to be accepted 

 that he is slightly inferior in nose to his flat- 

 coated cousin, and not quite so easy to break, 

 but there are many keepers and handlers 



MESSRS MASON AND WOODS 

 CH. PRESTON SULTAN 



BY BERKELEY SULTAN NEGRESS. 



who have discovered in individual 

 specimens extraordinary merit in 

 the field combined with great en- 

 durance. It is not certain that 

 any great improvement has been 

 effected in the variety during re- 

 cent years, but there are particular 

 dogs to - day who are decidedly 

 better than any that existed a 

 dozen years or more ago, when 

 such celebrities as True, Old Sam, 

 King Koffee, Ben Wonder, Doden 



Lad have taken their places in the history 

 of the breed. Later there have been such 

 famous specimens as Gomersal Surprise and 

 Gomersal Tip Top, Good Lad, Naughty Boy, 

 Tiverton Beauty II. and III., Millington 

 Princess, Belle Vue Nina, in the writer's 

 opinion one of the very best, and her im- 

 mortal conqueror Preston Sultan, a dog 

 whose quality of coat, bone, substance, head, 

 eye and perfect make and shape have never 

 been surpassed. Gomersal May 

 Fly, Preston Wonder, Belle Vue 

 Surprise, Miss Wonder, another 

 beautifully shaped bitch, and Miss 

 Quality, are later additions to the 

 scroll of fame. The prefix " Gom- 

 ersal " belongs to Messrs. Mason 

 and Wood, " Tiverton " to Mr. 

 Sam Darby, " Belle Vue " to Mr. 

 Flowett, and " Berkeley " to Mr. 

 A. Clarkson. Henry Skip worth, 

 Lord Melville, Duerdin Dutton, 



Ben, 



Lad, and Una, were prominent, and there 

 is no doubt that the curly coats attained 

 show form in advance of the flat-coated 

 variety. Among the early specimens in 

 addition to those just mentioned Tiverton 

 Lady was a notably beautiful bitch, as were 

 Barkwith Lady, Black Gipsy, and Gomer- 

 sal Lady ; and the names of Gomersal 

 Tipster, Gomersal Beauty, Berkeley Black 

 Boy, Berkeley Gipsy, and Tiverton Best 



R. FISH'S CH. MISS WONDER 



PRESTON SULTAN PRESTON LADY. 



A. R. Fish, R. Chapman, and J. Donald 

 are names of breeders and owners which 

 have frequently appeared in the prize lists 

 of recent years. 



The coat of the curly Retriever plays a 

 very important part in his value and per- 

 sonality. There are many kinds of coat, 

 but the only true and proper one is the 

 close fitting " nigger curl," of which each 

 knot is solid and inseparable. A coat 

 of this quality is not capable of improve- 



