i8 DOGS AND ALL ABOUT THEM 



When bull-baiting was prohibited by law the sportsmen of 

 the period turned their attention to dog-fighting, and for this 

 pastime the Bulldogs were specially trained. The chief 

 centres in London where these exhibitions took place were the 

 Westminster Pit, the Bear Garden at Bankside, and the Old 

 Conduit Fields in Bayswater. In order to obtain greater 

 quickness of movement many of the Bulldogs were crossed 

 with a terrier, although some fanciers relied on the pure breed. 

 It is recorded that Lord Camelford's Bulldog Belcher fought 

 one hundred and four battles without once suffering defeat. 



The decline of bull-baiting and dog-fighting after the passing 

 of the Bill prohibiting these sports was responsible for a lack of 

 interest in perpetuating the breed of Bulldogs. Even in 1824 

 it was said to be degenerating, and gentlemen who had pre- 

 viously been the chief breeders gradually deserted the fancy. 

 At one time it was stated that Wasp, Child, and Billy, who 

 were of the Duke of Hamilton's strain, were the only re- 

 maining Bulldogs in existence, and that upon their decease the 

 Bulldog would become extinct a prophecy which all Bulldog 

 lovers happily find incorrect. 



The specimens alive in 1817, as seen in prints of that period, 

 were not so cloddy as those met with at the present day. 

 Still, the outline of Rosa in the engraving of Crib and 

 Rosa, is considered to represent perfection in the shape, make, 

 and size of the ideal type of Bulldog. The only objections 

 which have been taken are that the bitch is deficient in wrinkles 

 about the head and neck, and in substance of bone in the 

 limbs. 



The commencement of the dog-show era in 1859 enabled 

 classes to be provided for Bulldogs, and a fresh incentive to 

 breed them was offered to the dog fancier. In certain districts 

 of the country, notably in London, Birmingham, Sheffield, 

 Manchester, and Dudley, a number of fanciers resided, and it 

 is to their efforts that we are indebted for the varied specimens 

 of the breed that are to be seen at the present time. 



In forming a judgment of a Bulldog the general appearance 



