482 THE BOOK OF THE Doc. 



writers on the breed are responsible for representing this dog as attaining to a greater stature 

 than he in reality does, and a case in point is Sydenham Edwards, who, writing in " Cynographia 

 Britannica" in the year 1803, of the Dane, remarks that 



"The Dane is about twenty-eight inches high, some will reach thirty-one. In form he is 

 between the Greyhound and Mastiff; head straight; muzzle rather pointed; ears short, 

 half pendulous, usually cropped ; eyes in some white, in others half white or yellow ; 

 chest deep; belly small; legs straight and strong; tail thin and wiry; colour sandy-red 

 or pale fallow, with often a blaze of white on the face. A beautiful variety called the 

 Harlequin Dane has a finely-marked coat, with large and small spots of black, grey, liver- 

 colour, or sandy-red upon a white ground ; the two former have often tan-coloured spots 

 about the face and legs. 



" The grand figure, bold muscular action, and elegant carriage of the Dane, would 

 recommend him to notice had he no useful properties, and hence we find him honoured in 

 adding to the pomp of the noble or wealthy, before whose carriage he trots or gallops in a 

 fine style ; not noisy, but of approved dignity becoming his intrepid character ; he keeps his 

 state in silence. That he is obliged to be muzzled to prevent his attacking his own 

 species, or other domestic animals, adds much to the effect, as it supposes power and gives an 



idea of protection I certainly think that no equipage can have arrived at its 



acme of grandeur until a couple of Harlequin Danes precede the pomp. I do not know at 

 what time he was introduced into England, nor whether he was ever used here for any but 



the above purpose Whether the Orientals use him in the hunt I do not know, 



but in the East they term him the Tiger Dog." 



These remarks of Sydenham Edwards are accompanied by a coloured illustration which 

 represents three Danes viz., two Harlequins in recumbent positions, and one sandy-coloured 

 one standing up. In the Harlequins the eyes are white or "china," whilst in the sandy-coloured 

 one they are a pale yellow. Compared with the illustrations which accompany this article, 

 the dogs pourtrayed by Edwards are light in bone and snipy in muzzle, but still their character 

 and type much resemble the modern German Mastiff. The ears appear to have been 

 partially removed, and the stern of the dog who is standing up is carried up, and shows a 

 tendency to curl. It may be observed that probably some of this Harlequin Dane blood 

 has found its way into the veins of our modern Dalmatians, though the latter are very 

 much smaller in stature, especially as the Danes were used as carriage dogs as the 

 Dalmatians are now ; but this is a matter which hardly commands attention in the 

 present chapter. A curious fact in connection with Sydenham Edwards' remarks, is the 

 reference which he makes to the term Tiger Dog, by which he appears to have been of the 

 opinion that possibly the Dane was used to hunt tigers. A more modern and, we think, 

 feasible explanation, is to be found in the following extracts from a letter of Mr. Gustav 

 Lang, whom we have already quoted, in which he says : 



" Referring to my notes on the German Mastiff, I add now a few remarks on the Tiger 

 Dog, which only differs from it in colour. It is peculiar that we in German by 'Tiger' do not 

 mean the colour of a tiger, but like a 'Tiger' horse, for example, which is white with small 

 dark spots, as distinguished from the piebald horse. The large Tiger Dog has a ground- 

 colour of white or silver-grey, with very irregular specks, as distinguished from the Dalmatian, 

 which has its spots quite regular. These two breeds are essentially different from each other. 



