56 CATS AND ALL ABOUT THEM 



to have all good Blue kittens, then keep these clear of any 

 other breed. If bred with Blacks, you must be content with 

 perhaps only one or at most two Blues in a litter. A Blue 

 and a Tortoiseshell may be mated together if Creams are 

 desired and, again, a Blue and a Cream can be crossed for 

 the same purpose. You must run the risk, however, of 

 getting an oddity half blue and half cream, commonly called 

 Blue Tortoiseshell. These are useful for breeding Creams, 

 but they are not desirable for exhibition purposes. The ex- 

 periment of crossing Blues and Silvers cannot be said to be 

 satisfactory ; the blue tinge destroys the purity of the silver 

 tone and very often only light Smokes are the outcome 

 of such matings. These nondescript cats can find no 

 abiding-place in the Show pens for some judges call them 

 Smokes and others declare they can only be judged in the 

 " any other colour " class. Blues mated with Tabbies too 

 often result in Blue Tabbies or the sound solid colour of the 

 blue will be marred by markings. Two Brown Tabbies 

 almost invariably produce a Black in the litter. Very good 

 Brown Tabbies are bred from Tortoiseshells. There is no 

 doubt that Brown Tabbies are amongst the hardiest of long- 

 haired cats and they have more massive limbs and broader 

 skulls. Therefore, if stamina is desired, get some Brown 

 Tabby blood in your strains. A Silver Tabby weak in 

 markings may be crossed with a Black to bring out their 

 density. The great failing in this beautiful breed is too 

 often their blurred appearance and want of distinctness 

 in the tabby marks and this is frequently the result of 

 mating with a Silver. By the way, what a thing of beauty a 

 cat marked like a zebra would be ! Silver Tabbies should 

 not be mated with any other variety of Tabby. The Orange 

 or Red Tabby is an attractive cat though finely marked 

 specimens are scarce and, as is generally known, females of 

 this breed are much rarer than males. Breeders of Tabbies 

 should strive to eradicate white chins which are too much in 

 evidence. Silvers or Chinchillas have had all sorts of ex- 

 periments tried upon them but I think that in this breed, as 

 in Smokes, it is best to keep the purity of colour so beautiful 

 in the Silver and the white undercoat so desirable in the 

 Smoke Persians. In shorthaired breeds it will only be 

 necessary to draw attention to the Siamese, Manx and Blue 



