174 



THE BOOK OF THE CAT. 



chief point of a silver tabby should be clear- 

 ness and distinctness of markings ; the 

 sharper they are the better. My ideal cat 

 would have the two spine stripes clear and 

 well denned from shoulder to base of tail, 

 set off by the ' epaulet ' behind each front 

 leg. On each side of the body should appear 

 what may be called the horseshoe ; both sides 

 should match exactly. The hind-quarters 

 well barred. The fore-legs should also be 

 barred, each in symmetrical correspondence 



the hazel eye, enhanced by dark rims. Hap- 

 pily, latitude is allowed in this direction in 

 the standard drawn up by the Silver Society, 

 which decrees the colour shall be the green 

 or orange. But with all these, my ideal 

 silver tabby must have perfect shape of body, 

 so far as it is possible to obtain it, as well as 

 luxuriance of coat. The long, thin-bodied, 

 snipy-headed, spindle-legged cat is an abomin- 

 ation. The ideal cat must be cobby, with 

 short, thick legs, the head broad and massive, 



MISS DERBY HYDE'S 

 'THAMES VALLEY SILVER KING. 



(Photo: E. Lander, Eating.) 



with the other. The double cheek swirls, the 

 markings on the forehead, which may be 

 easily imagined to take the shape of a lyre, 

 the shaded eyebrows and whiskers, and dark 

 outlines to the eyes, all these give a character 

 to the face not found except among tabbies. 

 More or less conspicuous will be the dark 

 lines across the chest, known as the ' Mayor's 

 Chain.' Occasionally some more favoured 

 animal is found to have two such lines. The 

 beauty of all these markings is thrown up 

 by the ground colour of the coat, which should 

 be a clear bright silver. The whole effect, if 

 one may so describe it, is like a piece of elabor- 

 ately wrought black lace on lustrous silvery 

 silk. The colour of the eyes is somewhat a 

 vexed question. Some fanciers prefer green. 

 Personally, I think nothing is more lovely than 



ears small, well tufted and set wide apart, 

 the nose short and wide at the tip, the tail 

 short and wide at the extreme end I con- 

 sider a pointed tail very undesirable. The 

 coat of the ideal silver tabby should be long 

 - and thick, and the texture as silky as possible. 

 " Having described my ideal silver tabby, 

 the next question is how to get it. When I 

 succumbed to the fascination of the long- 

 haired beauties some years ago, I resolved to 

 breed only from the very best stock obtain- 

 able, and I have unflinchingly adhered to 

 this rule. I would like to impress upon any- 

 one starting this delightful hobby that it is 

 absolutely a waste of time and money to 

 attempt breeding from any but the best. 

 The observance of this principle will save 

 many disappointments, much heart-burning, 



