46 Modern Dogs. 



Monarque, Tell, and one or two others stood well 

 ahead in their day. Then came Mr. Murchison's Thor, 

 Mr. F. Gresham's Hector, The Shah, and Abbess, 

 Miss Aglionby's Jura, one of the very best short- 

 coated bitches I ever saw, followed by Mr. Macdona's 

 Bayard ; all of which in reality stood head and 

 shoulders above other competitors. Menthon a 

 big black and tan ugly dog. quite wrong according 

 to prevailing ideas, maybe right according to the 

 style and character of a hundred years ago, 

 resembling a half-bred bloodhound or Thibetan 

 mastiff did a considerable amount of winning at 

 the earlier shows, but happily, if he was used at 

 stud at all, he has not passed down his defects to 

 the present generation. 



Mr. F. Gresham, at Shefford, in Bedfordshire, and 

 the late Mr. J. H. Murchison, following Mr. 

 Macdona, gave greatest attention to breeding and 

 importing choice specimens. At one period, about 

 1874, the former with such animals as Monk, 

 Abbess, Hector, The Shah, Dagmar and Othman, 

 possessed a kennel of St. Bernards which up to 

 that time had not been equalled. At one of the 

 Alexandra Palace shows, the Shefford strain made 

 a record by winning first and second prizes in open 

 rough dogs, the same in bitches and in smooth 

 dogs, first honours in smooth bitches, all three 



