The Bulldog 39i 



and for miles further west, in London's insatiable devouring of the adjacent 

 country. The father of a schoolboy companion, a retired officer, frequently 

 walked over to George's, taking us with him at times, and it was with fear 

 and trembling we crept along between the rows of furiously barking and 

 chain-tugging dogs. Bill George's Tiger, one of the old pillars of the stud 

 book, was probably one we then saw and knew it not, but we still remember 

 that they were mainly white with patches of colour. We know that when 

 we went on another occasion, with the same gentleman, to see some dogs 

 at Shepherds Bush, also a walk across farms and fields, to what must have 

 been Mr. Stockdale's kennels, we then saw dogs with much less white on 

 them; more brindle and white than white and brindle. These were about 

 the two best kennels of bulldogs in London, and Stonehenge took one of 

 Mr. Stockdale's dogs to illustrate his first book on dogs. Not only is it 

 our own recollection, but the illustrations of dogs of that period are all to 

 the effect that the bulldog of 1855-60 was totally unlike the dog of to-day. 

 He was only moderately low on the leg, and stood closer in front than our 

 exaggerations do. His tail more frequently than not was a plain whip tail, 

 and he lacked the massiveness of head of the later dog. In thus speaking 

 of past dogs we are not confining it to our schoolboy-day visits to " Canine 

 Castle," as Bill George called his place. After that, when we got our 

 first terrier, we struck up an acquaintance with Alfred George, the son, 

 and our homes being but a short walk apart often called on him, and of 

 course saw many of the dogs. This period was up to 1868. We were again 

 in England from 1877 to 1880, and then dabbled in dogs as a hobby. Meeting 

 Alfred George at the Alexandra Palace Show, when looking at the bulldogs, 

 we said something about the alteration in them, and we can recall almost 

 word for word his reply: "Oh, there has been a great change since you 

 went away. You will see some of the old sort at father's, but they don't 

 do for showing." 



The good dogs of the period from 1877 to 1880 were Sir Anthony, Gam- 

 bler, Doon Brae, Slenderman, Smasher, King Cole, Sancho Panza, Venom 

 (Layton's), Rosy Cross (George Raper's best bitch, for he was then a 

 prominent bulldog man). Hartley's Venom, Roselle, Faust, Lord Nelson, 

 Richard Coeur de Lion (Raper's), and then, best of all and last of all, 

 came Monarch. Some of the very old timers hold that Sheffield Crib was 

 the best bulldog of his day. He is also known as Turton's Crib, and they 

 have always told the story of Mr. J. W. Berrie's visits to Sheffield. When 



