70 The Dog Book 



should be a pretty good headed dog, while one strong in Finsbury Pilot blood 

 should be good coated, or in breeding from dogs bred that way we may 

 expect such results. But that is not what pedigree means to the American 

 buyer and for his purpose the form might as well be filled up at random, with 

 Toms, Dicks and Harrys, and Marthas, Janes and Betsies, especially if you 

 can put "Ch." before any of the names. To him it is a pedigree, to the 

 man who knows it is a piece of paper. It is this class of buyers that write for 

 two puppies, not related, and start breeding dogs to win prizes with, because 

 these puppies trace to some champions within a generation or two. Such 

 a buyer and breeder produces pedigrees, not winners. We were at the Bir- 

 mingham show of 1879 and chatted with the late William Graham, to whom 

 we owe the excellence of the present-day Irish terrier. He had had a very 

 successful time with his dogs, and swinging his stick in the direction of the 

 row of dare-devils, he said " Some men show pedigrees ; I show dogs and take 

 the prizes." We were among the former at that show, Vero Shaw in his 

 report saying that the pedigree was worth more than the dog; and there are 

 thousands of that sort bred annually and from the very best dogs we 

 have, for it is only the very top skimming of the cream that become cham- 

 pions of record. 



It is a matter for the greatest regret that this pedigree foible is sup- 

 ported by the government and restrictions imposed which show that the 

 responsible official has not the slightest knowledge of dog matters or how 

 dogs rate themselves; dog-show records taking the place of cattle pedigrees. 

 We will give a late personal experience. Having been intrusted with the 

 purchase of a number of dogs abroad that could win prizes here, a very 

 thorough search through Ireland and England was made and a dozen 

 bought. I do not think I asked as to the pedigree of a single one. I was 

 buying winners, not pedigrees, and knowing that good pedigrees are made 

 by good dogs and not vice versa, I bought the dogs and then set the seller at 

 work to get the pedigrees perfected to suit the Washington requirements. 

 To do this occupied nearly three weeks, and it was necessary to expend over 

 thirty dollars to have past generations supplied with stud-book numbers. 

 Two pedigrees could not be so furnished, not that there was anything un- 

 known, but the sire of these dogs was out of an unregistered dam, though 

 as he was about the most famous dog in England and has more living descend- 

 ants than any dog of his breed, his full pedigree is perfectly well known and 

 has been given over and over again. The owner filled out a blank, but the 



