110 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[Feb. 21, 1890. 



DOGS OF THE DAY, 



THE last issue of Forest And Streak contains the 

 official report of the A. K. C. meeting and another re- 

 port given by Mr. Peshall of a portion of the meeting re- 

 ferring to the accounts. As my name is used pretty freely 

 in both reports I deem it necessary to give some explana- 

 tion of my motives ami a better idea of what did occur. 

 During the New York show Mr. Peshall told me of infor- 

 mation he had from some one else that Mr. Belmont had put 

 $1,000 into the A. K. C. treasury and this was covered np by 

 jumping the commencement of the fiscal year from Jan. 1 

 to Jan. 11, and commencing with the $1.2558.28 carried for- 

 ward to new cash book. I asked Mr. Wiluierding, of the 

 auditing committee, if he could say anythiug as to the 

 peculiar date, and he said no; that Mr. Vredenburgh had 

 placed all his books at the committee's disposal, his 1888 as 

 well as the 1889 books, and that he saw nothing that sug- 

 gested anythiug of the kind. On arriving at the A. K. C. 

 office for the annual meeting I looked up the Gazette file 

 and found the statement of account as presented at the last 

 annual meeting and which is reproduced by Mr. Peshall. 

 The accounts were not what should have been presented at 

 an annual meeting, being simply a quarterly statement 

 from Dec. 5 to Feb. 16, in place of from Jan. 1, 1S88, to Jan. 

 1, 1889. Whether Mr. Peshall's statement was correct or 

 otherwise it was only proper that the truth should be 

 known, and for that reason I asked the question I did. To 

 this Mr. Vredenbugh replied, and in the course of his re- 

 marks said that it had been stated that the club had re- 

 ceived $1,000 from Mr. Belmont. This Mr. Vredenburgh 

 explicitly denied in so many words. This denial was all 1 

 was after, and my subsequent questions were not, as they 

 appeared in print, a piece of cross-examination, but au effort 

 to enable Mr. "Vredenburgh to correct his brought forward 

 balance with some previous statement which terminated 

 with a similar balance. I did not seem to be able to make 

 my meaning clear, and not wishing to take up the time of 

 the meeting after obtaining the distinct denial of Mr. Vre- 

 denburgh that any outside money had been passed to the 

 club's credit, I quietly said to him, "I Avon't take up any 

 more time of the meeting, but will drop in and explain to 

 you what I want when there is more time." The chairman 

 never attempted to check my questions, and I voluntarily 

 withdrew from the discussion, being fully satisfied with 

 Mr. Yredenburgh's assertion. 



I did not have, time to call on Mr. Vredenburgh as I pur- 

 posed before leaving New York, and subsequently wrote 

 him asking how the balance of 1333.45 was increased to 

 $1,228.28. The answer came back the following dav that the 

 $38(J.45 was simply the A.K.C. account, and on Jah 11, when 

 the new cash book was opened, the balance of the Stud Book 

 account was added to the $333.45. I am just as anxious as 

 Mr. Peshall to expose any wrong doing, but I must beg of 

 him to excuse me from being a partner of his in the matter. 

 The fact is, Mr. Peshall is to blame for the method of ren- 

 dering the account at the meeting of February, 1889, as 

 much as anybody is. He was present at that meeting, was 

 a member of the Stud Book Committee, and knew all the 

 ins and outs of the A.K.C. business for the year 1888, and 

 yet allowed the quarterly financial report to pass muster for 

 an annual one. Even it he was not present at the actual 

 time of adopting the report, he knew of it and also saw its 

 publication in the Gazette, and could have shown its fallacy 

 if any existed long ere this. With regard to the financial 

 statement of the A.K.C. for 1889, it has not been made out 

 as I would have it done— this I have discussed before— but it 

 is only a question of division of accounts and in no way 

 affects the balance in the bank, which is as represented in 

 the treasurer's report. As long as the A.K.C. has a hard 

 cash balance in the bank, no one will object to Mr. Peshall's 

 drawing up statements of his own to show that there is no 

 balance there and that the club is §2.000 or S3, 000 worse off 

 than nothing. 



There is, however, this to be said about attacks of this 

 kind. There was a letter read at a late meeting from a club 

 desirous of becoming a member, but asking first for infor- 

 mation as to the correctness of charge which had been made 

 against the A. K. C. previous to making formal application 

 for membership, 



New York show week was a busy time for one who had 

 many of the club meetings to attend. It is not so much the 

 time occupied by the meeting, but what is lost while efforts 

 are being made to get the members together. I dropped in 

 at several, but only took part in the Spaniel Club and asso- 

 ciate members' meeting, both of which were very satisfac- 

 tory. The Spaniel Club is now assured of its two challenge 

 cups, one for cocker and the other for field spaniels, and 

 that with a membership of not over twenty-five. The Bos- 

 ton club has followed the example of New York, and donated 

 to the cup fund the Spaniel Club's subscription to that show; 

 Rochester is expected to follow suit; Buffalo could not do 

 so, having already announced the cash in special prizes, but 

 Mr. Bush contributed §10 to the fund and guaranteed an 

 additional §10. It is a little club, but contains some hustlers, 

 Mr. Wilmerding took a well-merited step upward, and is 

 now president, with Mr. Whitehead, of Trenton, as secretary. 

 Mr. West will continue to hold the funds. 



A Dayton, O., correspondent sends us this note of what 

 we presume should be styled inclosed coursing: "Farmers 

 from the big woods brought in a large and savage old he 

 coon, and a fight between the coon and a hound dog has 

 been arranged to come off at Lang's road house, $25 a side. 

 Betting is for and against the dog being able to fetch the 

 coon out of a barrel." 



The Collie Club secretary-treasurer has been voted a salary 

 of $250 a year. As there are but seventy members who pay 

 $5 a year each , it will just leave $100 for the members. From 

 this must be deducted $10 annual dues to A. K. C; station- 

 ery, stamps, etc., cost $118 41 for the eighteen months ending 

 Jan. 1, thus for twelve months would be say $S0, cost of en- 

 graving on prize cups $12 50, making a total of $102.50 to 

 come out of the expected balauce of $100 which will only be 

 forthcoming if all the seventy members pay up. Fortu- 

 nately the club had a balance in January of $772.34, out of 

 which, however, the members are promised $500 in cash 

 special and stake money to be ref unded ($306.50). This will 

 leave $272.34 of the old balance to be carried forward to next 

 year's account, I was not present at the Collie Club meet- 

 ing and had no opportunity therefore of showing the folly 

 of paying such a sum for secretarial duties. It practically 

 amounts to seventy men paying $5 each for the distribution 

 of the stake money received by subscribers to the produce, 

 futurity and annual sweeptakes. 



The Collie Club accounts were made up to Jan. I. I sug- 

 gested that the constitution be so amended at the Philadel- 

 phia meeting last year, but was voted down, and as no meet- 

 ing of the club at which the constitution could be changed 

 was held between then and Jan. 1, it looks a little strange 

 to read in the report just issued: "In consequence of the 

 change of time for holding the annual meeting from fall to 

 spring, it was considered best to make our fiscal year corres- 

 pond with the calendar year." I quite agree with the neces- 

 sity for the change, otherwise I would not have offered the 

 resolution referred to, but as the club. decided almost unani- 

 mously that July 1 should be the termination of the fiscal 

 year, the executive committee took a good deal upon its 

 shoulders in making the change. It is by this change that 



we have two years' dues credited in one annual report, that 

 for the year ending July 1, 1889. and again for the year end- 

 ing July 1, 1890. If the next annual report is made out to 

 the correct date there will be no receipts from dues at all. 



Rochester premium lists are very scarce in Philadelphia. 

 I have only seen one so far and that was not sent to me. 

 will the Rochester secretary kindly oblige the club's many 

 supporters among the Quakers? 



Buffalo on the contrary has been most profuse in distri- 

 buting the premium lists for the show of April IB to 18, and 

 a mighty coon" list it is, one upon which the club is cer- 

 tainly to be congratulated. Here and there one can detect 

 evidence that Secretary Smith, though new to dog show 

 men, can make improvements upon models which have gone 

 before. Buffalo has made no bid for puppies, giving but 

 one class for both sexes and omitting the class altogether 

 from the majority of breeds. The one exception is in the 

 case of spaniels, which has two classes, the club classifica- 

 tion No. 1 having been adopted in necessitating this ex- 

 ception. It is just about as near a model for a $1,400 pre- 

 mium list as I have seen, and it would be very hard to make 

 any improvement on it. Mr. Tallman is to superintend, 

 and as previously announced the judges are Mr. Davidson 

 for pointers, setters, foxhounds and beagles, and Mr. Mason 

 for the remainder of the classes. 



While at New York show Mr. Willey told me that it was 

 not his intention to exhibit spaniels at Rochester or Balti- 

 more, not from any desire to pass these shows by, but he 

 could not spare the necessary time, and must therefore re- 

 strict himself to Buffalo and Boston. As a great many new 

 exhibitors may hold back on account of expecting to' meet 

 the strong New Hampshire kennel at Rochester and Balti- 

 more, Mr. Willey' s intentions might well be made public. 



Mr. Bush, president of the Buffalo Kennel Club, made 

 two good purchases at New York; Bessie W., by Obo It., and 

 Novel, by Black Pete out of Mr. Hemingway's old bitch 

 Miss Nancy. 



Mr. L. W. Sheffield, the English pug breeder, who judged 

 at Birmingham in 1889, and is also to adjudicate at the 

 forthcoming toy dogs show, wrote letters to pug exhibitors 

 with a view to obtain special prizes and get good entries. 

 An attempt is being made to assail Mr. Sheffield for "black- 

 mail." Fortunately for that gentleman his letters were 

 published in connection with the charge. While his course 

 may not be what would be followed by many judges, there 

 is not a single sentence in the letters to which any reason- 

 able person can object. 



Several letters have been received within the past week 

 respecting the associate, members' right to vote at the post- 

 poned election. One of these is as follows: "In the Febru- 

 ary number of the Gazette there is published a list of these 

 associate members, who up to Jan. 20 had paid dues for 1890 

 and were therefore eligible to vote for officers and dele- 

 gates. Since that date a large number, no doubt, have paid 

 up their dues. Are they therefore eligible to vote, now that 

 the time of voting has been extended to April 10? This is a 

 matter on which I greatlyneed enlightenment." The answer 

 is, that only those who had paid their dues on Jan. 20 have 

 the right to vote at the postpcoed election. We are simply 

 by the postponement — rendered necessary by President 

 Perry's very proper refusal to recognize the slips send out 

 as conforming to the constitution— correcting the error made 

 on Jan. 21. Mr. Vredenburgh said at the associate members' 

 meeting, that there were about seventy aditional members 

 since Jan 20, and there will soon be a hundred. As soon as 

 the hundred is complete all the members will be entitled to 

 vote for one more delegate, and so on in the case of any com- 

 plete additional hundreds. 



I would like to say in connection with the postponed elec- 

 tion that a very . strong disposition was manifested on the 

 part of Western members to have the West represented. In 

 referring to the matter of voting I said a month ago that 

 the objection to the election of delegates outside of easy 

 distance from New York was not a very good plan, for what 

 the associate members wanted was actual representation at 

 the meetings and notmere complimentary elections. Among 

 those mentioned as proper to represent the West was Mr. L. 

 F. Whitman, of Chicago, and I spoke to him on the subject 

 of his willingness and ability to attend the meetings regu- 

 larly. His reply was in every respect satisfactory. Mr. 

 Whitman took a very active part in the deliberations at the 

 associate memhers' meetings. To be candid. I was a little 

 afraid of Mr. Whitman at first. He has a straight-out way 

 of talking, and it looked like a fight and trouble, but I soon 

 found out that it was his manner, that he said all he had to 

 say and meant all he said, without any scheming. We were 

 all, I think, most favorably impressed with Mr! Whitman, 

 and he was asked by a few of us whether he would stand 

 for secretary and delegate. This he agreed to do. With your 

 permission therefore, Mr. Editor, I will put in nomination the 

 following ticket: President, Dr. J. Frank Perry, of Boston; 

 Vice-President, Dr. J. H, Meyers, or New York; Secretary, 

 Mr. L. F. Whitman, of Chicago. All of these gentlemen 

 have shown themselves to be outspoken and thoroughly in- 

 dependent and I am sure will prove worthy of the support of 

 the members. 



The reason I take the liberty of suggesting a ticket is this: 

 We are not acquainted with each other as yet. and the vote 

 is therefore likely to be very straggling and fail to determine 

 very much as to how opinions run. There is also this diffi- 

 culty: It is necessary to vote for them as officers, and while 

 some might vote, say for Mr. Whitman as secretary, others 

 might do so as vice-president, and although he might receive 

 a sufficient number of votes all told to elect bim to either 

 office, yet the split as to the offered position would lose him 

 both of them. If we were voting on this plan, which I 

 thiuk would be an improvement, that the highest number 

 of votes received by any one person made him president, 

 the second highest took the vice-presidency and the third 

 highest the secretaryship, there would be no necessity for 

 any such thing as a ticket or a suggestion on my part. The 

 difficulty now is to prevent throwing votes away. 



The accident to Mr. H. W. Lacy at the close, of the New 

 York show week was a very unfortunate circumstance, and 

 his many friends will be glad to hear of his speedy recovery. 

 It was gravely stated in a contemporary that Mr. Lacy's ac- 

 cident prevented him getting a "beat" in having his report 

 of the show published a week ahead of the Forest and 

 Stream's report. A stretch of imagination! seeing that his 

 paper had gone to press three days before his accident. 



A team of eight great Danes, sent over by Mr. TJlric S. 

 Doos, the German breeder, will be at the Chicago show. 

 What a pity they were not sent, over for New York as well. 



J. W. 



ROBINS ISLAND CLUB.— The annual meeting of the 

 Robins Island Club was held at Brooklyn, Feb. 13. The 

 Board of Directors were unanimously reelected for the ensu- 

 ing year. Below is the list: Dr. S. Fleet Speir, Messrs. 

 Alden J. Swan, Walter L. Wellington, H. D. Polhemus, 

 Chauncey Marshall, Henry J. Cullen, Jr., and Wm. Stanley. 



THE SELECTION OF A HOUSE DOG. 



[By a Lady Contrtlnitor.~} 

 Editor Forest and Stream: 



If there were only two so-called "yaller dogs" in this 

 country they would be worth $500 each, because they would 

 be valued for their rarity and not for their worth. 'The de- 

 mand for everything new is greater than the supply, and 

 when the supply increases the demand falls off. It is even 

 so with dogs; certain kinds are fashionable or unfashion- 

 able, as is furniture, dress, or anything that is bought and 

 sold. Mr. Ellwanger, in his delightful book "The Garden's 

 Story" says, "To think it has taken all these years to render 

 adaffodil 'fashionable!' As if alive flower were a ribbon, sub- 

 ject to the caprice of a milliner! Yet what may we not expect 

 when lovely woman stoops to blond her tresses, and vandal 

 florists figuratively plunge a flower into the dve pot ?" Now 

 it seems just as absurd that dogs should be "fashionable" 

 or "unpopular"— and that one should hear "fox-terriers are 

 the rage now," "pugs have gone out"— "puggie dear" is now 

 neither worse nor better than he was ten years ago- Foxie's 

 day will pass, and he will give place to the Roman dog, the 

 Chihuahua dog, or something else. It is owing to uo true 

 merit of his own that a certain breed of dog is popular, it is 

 the indefinable something, and like the professional beauty, 

 he is in favor everywhere, until there is a verification of the 

 old adage "give a dog a bad name and you hang him." A 

 great deal of this is brought about by dealers and breeders, 

 who, when they find that any one kind are becoming too 

 numerous to bring enough money to suit them, will import 

 and boom some new sort. To do which they make the most 

 of, or invent some story, or trait to his disadvantage; which, 

 if true, had been well concealed in the beginning of his 

 career. The most plausible and easiest believed is "that he 

 is treacherous," meaning that he will bite his master or 

 some person he is supposed to have an affection for. That 

 was put on the Newfoundland when certain parties wished 

 to bring up the St. Bernard. Now it is beginning to be said 

 of the mastiff, who was "all the go" a year since. Now I 

 wonder if the dog never thinks his master is treacherous 1 

 I knew an intellectual woman, who had a line sensitive doa: 

 there were times when caresses and all the pet names in the 

 vocabulary were showered upon him; at others when she 

 was busy writing or reading, he. "thinking himself long 

 enough neglected," would place his head on her knee, or his 

 nose under her hand for a caress: she, vexed with the in- 

 teruption, would knock him with the book, saying "go 

 away." Now was not that treachery ? 



Last spring while in London I read an inquiry in an Eng- 

 lish sporting paper, why Newfoundland dogs were so little 

 known in America ? I could have answered it, although 1 

 disbelieve in their treachery, but they are rather too 

 large to come under the head of house dogs. Mastiffs 

 are often made indoor dogs in the country; they have the 

 advantage of short hair, but are too big— great cumbersome 

 things, becoming very fat, stupid and piggish-looking, and 

 having such a mass of animal flesh in a room, especially in 

 summer time, makes an unpleasant atmosphere. I recall a 

 delicate little boudoir of a room in a certain country home, 

 with a pretty woman in it— everything in accord save a huge 

 mastiff stretched out and snoring audibly. In Paris it is 

 considered that there are three cl asses of dogs — the Caniche, 

 the ehien (dog), and the allez-vom en (go away). The latter 

 is a cur, or the waif of a good family adopted by some poor 

 person. 1 have a word to say in favor of the mongrel. He 

 learns to perform tricks more easily than any other sort 

 save the Caniche or French poodle. ITdee, a thoroughbred 

 cur of my acquaintance, can do creditably twelve tricks, 

 and I know others as smart as she is. 



M. Caniche is a veritable dude among dogs with his 

 shaving, and his curls— ribbons on his neck, perhaps a brace- 

 let on one leg, ridiculous— but he did not make himself look 

 so. An unshaved poodle is a fright, and before he is estab- 

 lished on this side, dog barbers will have to be set up as in 

 Paris. 



So clever is he, learning so much, understanding almost 

 everything that is said to him, he makes a fine house dog in 

 a city r home. The Russian poodle is larger, longer curls, 

 rather more intelligent, black, and much more rare. There 

 is a spaniel from Chesapeake Bay, brown, with tight, though 

 smaller curls, that I wish were known as a pet. His value as 

 a bird dog is established; he could be made almost as smart 

 as a poodle, but his home must be where there is water near 

 enough to give him frequent swims so as to retain his health 

 and looks. The cocker spaniel aud all the spaniel tribe 

 make satisfactory house pet; their long soft ears, pretty 

 paws, and engaging ways all recommend them as such, pro- 

 vided there is means to give the larger sorts (larger than the 

 Blenheims and King Charles) a good swim, for spaniels, 

 like ducks, must go into the water. No dog "makes up " 

 so prettily as a small spaniel; ribbons become him, there is 

 an air of Van Dyke pictures and Queen Henrietta Maria 

 associated with him when seen with his mistress in a city 

 drawing-room, or driving beside her on bright-colored cush- 

 ions. 



if one looks at the selection of a dog in an aesthetic point, 

 of view— and why not — he should be chosen to accord with 

 or to make a harmony with his owner, such as a tall and 

 graceful man or woman accompanied by a greyhound, 

 they would have their surroundings to correspond with 

 themselves. Put that greyhound beside a fat and stumpy 

 person, any one would note the discord. A greyhound has 

 the advantage of short hair; he is below the average of in- 

 telligence, not a good watcher, the smaller ones delicate and 

 very chilly. Again, see a young man in a white flannel 

 suit, with brown shoes, etc, with a brindle and white ter- 

 rier—there is a picture all made. The fox-terrier is fashion- 

 able, and for a city house dog very good. In England his 

 value is increased as the number of his dark spots diminish. 

 They are the most mischievous of puppies, so if a young 

 one is bought, expensive as they are, in the course of a short 

 time he will destroy to the value of his price. I have had 

 such an experience; whipping, nothing would do until at 

 last he killed a favorite canary through the bars of the cage, 

 then he was exiled. When grown he becomes a satisfactory 

 little dog, The bull-terrier puppy of fine breed is more 

 easily trained than most other sorts; he learns obedience 

 and good manners easily (if you are firm), is bright, amus- 

 ing, he need not be made cross, and if kept where there are 

 no other dogs to pick a quarrel with when grown, will be 

 gentle and affectionate to his human friends, and an excel- 

 lent watch. All white is considered the color. I have seen 

 entirely brindled ones that I thought handsome. Darwin 

 says that all quite white animals are deaf. I have noted it 

 in almost all white cats and dogs. 



Of the larger sorts the setter is often a house dog, even 

 in cities, but it is cruel to keep one of his size, and who re- 

 quires so much exercise, imprisoned in streets and made to 

 breathe the close atmosphere of a city house. Doing so 

 subjects him to many diseases and much hardship. As a 

 bird dog he is valued because his long hair keeps him from 

 being scratched in bushes and thorns. That long hair also 

 gets full of burs and hayseed, fuller yet of fleas; there are 

 various sorts and all xmces, but in getting one for a pet, one 

 that has not "a good nose" is desirable because as not 

 needed for shooting with he is less likely to go after game 

 of himself. All bird dogs are desirable to keep where there 

 are children, because they are not snappish, besides their 

 mouths aud teeth are formed to carry game without mangl- 

 ing, thus do not make as sharp a bite as those possessed 

 with sharp teeth and a pointed snout. I have seen a bird 

 dog suffer a great deal from a child's teasing, still retain 

 his good humor. A pointer is my favorite among dogs for 

 a lady's companion in a country house— intelligence, a 

 gentle disposition, not boisterous ways, they will watch 



