its purity the small bulldog which was common enough in the 

 sixties. The task presented so many obstacles that surely none 

 but ladies, with all the enthusiasm and perseverance of their sex, 

 would have ventured upon it. Lady Kathleen Pilkington and 

 Mrs. Carlo F. C. Clarke, staunch from the beginning, are still 

 pursuing their object with admirable pertinacity, and, what is more, 

 they are succeeding in converting the scoffers to the view that a 

 miniature edition of the big dog is a possibility. Every year the 

 type is improving, and the dreadful unsoundness that was at first so 

 common is being extinguished. Miniature bulldogs can now walk 

 instead of crawl, and the backs are better, although we still meet 

 some that dip too much behind the shoulders. Early experiences 

 almost warranted the taunt: "Thou call'dst me dog before thou 

 hadst a cause," a taunt which is no longer justified. 



No one will pretend that the miniature bulldog is good tor 

 anything other than companionship. He could not throw an ox 

 if we wished to set him to such barbarous work, but if we want 

 an inmate of the house of manageable size and reasonable pro- 

 portions, with the looks and attributes of a larger animal, we have 

 one ready at hand. They are not easy to breed. If they were, 

 half the interest in the pursuit would vanish at once, for most of 

 the pleasure in a hobby consists in having some obstacle to over- 

 come. Lady Kathleen Pilkington once wrote: "To cultivate 

 them has been an intense interest, and a very great pleasure, for 



