THE SKYE TERRIER. 



407 



for this purpose certain qualities were im- 

 perative. First and foremost the terrier 

 needed to be small, short of leg, long and 

 lithe in body, with ample face fringe to 

 protect his eyes from injury, and last, but 

 by no means least, possessed of unlimited 

 pluck and dash. 



The Skye Terrier of to-day does not 

 answer to each and every one of these 

 requirements. He is too big decidedly he 

 is too big especially in regard to the head. 

 A noble-looking skull, with large, well- 

 feathered ears may be admirable as orna- 

 ment, but would assuredly debar its possessor 

 from following into a fox's lair among the 

 boulders. Then, again, his long coat would 

 militate against the activity necessary for 

 his legitimate calling. 



The Skye Terrier, as, already hinted, has 

 a certain affinity with other breeds of 

 terriers, with whom it is not unreasonable 

 to suppose that he has frequently been 

 crossed. The inexperienced eye often 

 mistakes the Yorkshire and the Clydesdale 

 Terriers for the Skye, although beyond 

 the fact that each breed carries a long 

 coat, has its eyes shaded with a fringe, 

 and is superficially similar in build, there 

 is no resemblance great enough to perplex 

 an attentive observer. 



It was not until about 1860 that the 

 Skye Terrier attracted much notice among 

 dog lovers south of the Border, but Queen 

 Victoria's admiration of the breed, of 

 which from 1842 onwards she always owned 

 favourite specimens, and Sir Edwin Land- 

 seer's paintings in which the Skye was 

 introduced, had already drawn public atten- 

 tion to the decorative and useful qualities 

 of this terrier. The breed was included in 

 the first volume of the Kennel Club Stud 

 Book, and the best among the early dogs 

 were such as Mr. Pratt's Gillie and Dunvegan, 

 Mr. D. W. Fyfe's Novelty, Mr. John Bow- 

 man's Dandie, and Mr. Macdona's Rook. 

 These were mostly of the drop-eared variety, 

 and were bred small. 



About the year 1874, fierce and stormy 

 disputes arose concerning the distinctions 

 of the Scottish breeds of terriers. The 

 controversy was continued until 1879, when 



the Kennel Club was approached with the 

 view to furnishing classes. In that year 

 a dog was shown in Dundee belonging to 

 Mr. P. C Thomson, of Glenisla. This was 

 brought from the Isle of Skye, and was 

 presented as a genuine specimen of the pure 

 and unsullied Skye Terrier. He was a 

 prick-eared, dark-coloured dog, having all 

 the characteristics of the breed, and his 

 pluck was equal to that of a Bull-terrier. 



MRS. HUGHES, WITH CH. WOLVERLEY DUCHESS. 



Photograph by T. Fall. 



He was described, however, merely as a 

 " Scotch Terrier," a designation which was 

 claimed for other varieties more numerous 

 and more widely distributed. The con- 

 troversy was centred upon three types of 

 Scottish terriers : those which claimed to 

 be pure Skye Terriers, a dog described 

 briefly as Scotch, and a third, which for a 

 time was miscalled the Aberdeen. To those 

 who had studied the varieties, the distinc- 

 tions were clear ; but the question at issue 

 was to which of the three rightly belonged 

 the title of Scottish Terrier ? The dog 

 which the Scots enthusiasts were trying to 



