126 THE BOOK OF THE DOG. 



disappeared." Mr. Graham won, with Sporter, the champion cup for the best dog or bitch exhi- 

 bited. In open dogs Parnell and Tanner II. were 1st and 2nd, both since dead. In the 

 bitches Moya Doolan beat Colleen Dhas. At Birmingham, in December, 1878, Tanner was ist 

 and Fly 2nd. Fly had no right to her place ; and it was characteristic of the judging that Spuds 

 was quite passed over. In December, 1878, at the Alexandra Palace, Fly (the 2nd prize winner 

 at Birmingham) was 1st, and Spuds 2nd, Paddy II. commended, and Moya Doolan not noticed. 

 The pent-up feelings of the Irish Terrier breeders now burst forth, and first took shape in a 

 petition, which was to be presented to the Kennel Club, praying them in future to appoint them 

 special judges, or, failing that, to let the same gentlemen that had wire-haired Fox-terriers 

 also judge Irish Terriers. This latter was a good proposition, which we herewith recommend 

 to the attention of dog-show committees ; they will then get judged by a terrier man, 

 and that will be a move towards satisfactory decisions. However, seeing the support which 

 the petition promised to receive, the question was raised, Why not establish a Club at 

 once ? In a week or two the club numbered fifty, nearly half of which were Englishmen. 

 Even so soon Irish Terrier Club was one of the greatest successes in dog clubs on 

 record, and since that time the number and interest in it have gone on increasing. At 

 the Irish Kennel Club Show, Dublin, in April, 1879, Spuds and Moya Doolan were 

 ist and 2nd in champion class ; Tanner II. and Paddy II. were ist and 2nd in open 

 dogs ; and Sting, still a puppy, made her first appearance, and won in open bitches, 

 beating Rags and Kathleen. Gaelic was very highly commended, this being his first 

 appearance. At the Alexandra Palace, in July, 1879, Gaelic was put over Sporter and 

 Erin, and a new bitch over Moya Doolan. 



Thus far we have endeavoured to trace the history of the Irish Terrier proper during 

 the last few years, and now we venture to lay before our readers the experience of, and 

 opinions on, the breed' of Mr. George R. Krehl, the enthusiastic English Vice-president of 

 the Irish Terrier Club. This gentleman, who at great personal trouble has in the kindest 

 possible way collected for us the extracts and opinions of the most trustworthy authorities, 

 and interwoven them with his own, writes as follows : 



"The Irish Terrier is a true and distinct breed indigenous to Ireland, and no man can 

 trace its origin, which is lost in antiquity. Mr. Ridgway, of Waterford, whose name is 

 familiar in Irish Terrier circles from having drawn up the first code of points, states 

 that they have been known in Ireland ' as long as that country has been an island, 

 and I ground my faith in their age and purity on the fact that there exist old manu- 

 scripts in Irish mentioning the existence of the breed at a very remote period.' In old 

 pictures representing scenes of Irish life, an Irish Terrier or two are often to be descried. Bally- 

 mena and County Wicklow may almost claim to be the birthplaces of the breed. Most of the 

 best specimens hail from Ballymena and the neighbourhood, where Mr. Thomas Erwin, of Irish 

 Setter fame, boasts an extensive experience of this breed, and has always kept a few of 

 the right old working sort for sporting purposes ; and ' in County Wicklow,' Mr. Merry says, 

 ' it is well known that the pure breed of Irish Terriers have been carefully kept distinct and 

 highly prized for more than a century.' Mr. E. F. Despard, whose name is well known in 

 Irish Terrier circles as a very successful breeder and exhibitor, claims an acquaintance of over 

 40 years with the breed. Mr. George Jamison, too, has known and kept them many years, 

 and up till a little while ago had won more prizes than all the rest of the Breeders put 

 together. I mention these proofs of the age of the breed to show those who have lately 

 come to admire them that it is not a made up, composite, or mushroom breed. They are 



