WHITE PERSIANS. 



121 



and by novelists who have a weakness for 

 describing interiors with a beautiful white 

 Persian cat reclining on the hearthrug. 



I am indebted for the following notes on 

 white Persians to Miss M. Hunt, whose beau- 

 tiful white cat " Crystal " appeared on an 

 earlier page, and by an unfortunate mistake 

 was stated to be the property of Mrs. Finnie 

 Young : 



" The blue-eyed white Persian is, I consider, 

 one of the most interesting to breed, and, in 

 my experience, no more delicate or difficult 

 to rear than any other Persian. 



" I have had them now for nearly four years, 

 and, I think I may say, with a good deal of 

 success. I bought ' Crystal ' in 1898, when 

 four months old, and she certainly has 

 been a good investment. Out of the sixteen 

 white kittens she lias had, ten of them have 

 been blue-eyed. 



" The very best kitten I owned was never 

 exhibited ; he went to Mrs. Champion, who 

 considered him the best and healthiest kitten 

 for his age she had ever seen. Unfortunately, 

 he died suddenly shortly after she had him. He 

 was by Champion 'White Friar' ex ' Crystal,' 

 and was one of the same litter as ' Jovial 

 Monk,' which did so much winning for Miss 

 Ward, who purchased him from me at the 

 Crystal Palace, where he took first. ' Crystal ' 

 herself has only once been beaten by a white 

 cat, and that had not even blue eyes ; but she 

 was in splendid coat, and ' Crystal ' was quite 

 put of coat. Most judges are agreed, I think, 

 that ' Crystal ' is the best blue-eyed white 

 female in the country. 



" The colour of the eyes of white kits can be 

 told much earlier than in any other colour ; 

 some I can tell as soon as they are open, others 

 I am not quite sure of till they are about a 

 fortnight old. The eyes are generally bright 

 blue from the beginning, without a shade of 

 kitten grey in them. I do not think that both 

 parents having blue eyes makes much differ- 

 ence to the number of blue-eyed kits in the 

 litter. If one parent is blue-eyed and the 

 other odd-eyed the result is often just as good. 

 I know of a green-eyed queen which had a 



litter of three by Champion ' White Friar '- 

 all were blue-eyed. 



" As to deafness, I cannot account for it at 

 all, as it often appears, though both parents 

 have perfect hearing. 



" Since Mrs. Finnie Young and I purchased 

 ' White Friar ' in 1900, whites have become 

 much more plentiful in Scotland, and the com- 

 petition is now very keen indeed up North. 

 ' White Friar ' has had a very successful 

 career_ since he came into our hands, both as 

 sire and on the show bench, and can still hold 

 his own against all comers. He has won 

 sixteen first prizes since 1900, besides cham- 

 pionships and numerous specials." 



Mrs. Champion, whose name is well known 

 in " catty " circles, and who has now left these 

 shores for America, did a great deal to estab- 

 lish a thoroughly good strain of white, blue- 

 eyed Persians. Her celebrated " White Friar " 

 (now in the possession of Mrs. Finnie Young 

 and Miss Hunt) is justly considered the finest 

 male specimen in the fancy. Certainly he 

 could only have been beaten by his son " White 

 Tsar," bred by Mrs. Champion from her 

 "White Witch." This cat, which assuredly 

 would have had a notable career, was sold by 

 Mrs. Champion for 20 to Mrs. Colbourn, in 

 America. He arrived in poor condition and 

 died shortly afterwards. I remember seeing 

 an absolutely perfect white Persian kitten at 

 Mrs. Champion's. It was by " White Friar " 

 ex "Crystal." He had startling deep blue 

 eyes, tiny ears, and broad, round head, and at 

 nine weeks old his coat measured nearly three 

 inches across. Alas ! though healthy and 

 strong, this proved too perfect a specimen for 

 this world, and " Crystal Friar " succumbed 

 to the epidemic of gastritis then raging amongst 

 our feline pets. Referring back to celebrated 

 white Persian cats of the past, I well recollect 

 the marvellous size and splendid coat of Mrs. 

 Lee's " Masher." who took the cat world by 

 storm when exhibited at the Crystal Palace in 

 1890. This enthusiastic fancier paid 21 for 

 " Masher," whose show career was shortened 

 by an accident. This cat was remarkable in 

 those days, if only for his grand blue eyes. 



