568 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[June 39, 1893. 



Immh 



F IXTU RES. 



DOG SHOWS. 



Aug. 30 to Sept. 2.— Blue Grass Kennel Club, at Lexington, Ky. Mr. 

 Roger Williams, Sec'y- „ , . - ^ 



Sept. 19 to ^2.— World's Fair, Chicago. W. I. Butshanan, Chief Dept 

 of Agricultui-e. , „ . „ , 



Sept. 11 to 15.— Toronto, Canada. C. A. Stone. Sec'y. 



FIELD TIUALS. 



Sept. 4.— Northwestern Field Trial Club's second annual trials, Man- 

 itoba. Thos. Johnson, Sec'y, Winnipeg. ^ . , „ ■ w v,» i? 



Sept. 12.— Manitoba Field Trials Club's Trials, Souris, Manitoba. E. 

 D. Adams, Sec'y, Winnipeg. , , . „ „ ^ . , -r.- , .. t j 



Nov. 6.-Unite(i States Field Trials CWs Fall Trials, Bicknell, Ind, 

 P. T. Madison, Sec'y, Indianapolis. ^ , , ™ . , ^i, 



Nov, 7.— International Field Trial Club's Fourth Trials, Chatham, 

 Ont. W. B. WeUs, Sec'y, Chathain. . , ^ . n -ir 



Nov. 15.— Ohio Field Trial Club's Second Trials, Canton, O. C. V. 

 Lelllnger, Sec'y. . „ ,. , t j t 



Nov 15.-American Field Trial Club Trials, at Carhsle, Ind. W. J. 

 Beck, Sec'y, Columbus. Ind. _ , , ^ n^r ™ 



Nov 20 — Eastem Field Trial Club's Trials, at Newton, ^. C. Mem- 

 bers' Stake Nov. 16. W. A. Coster, Sec'y. 



1894. 



Jan. 39.— Southern Field Trial Club's Trials, New Albany, Miss. T. 

 M. Brumby, Sec'y, Marietta, Ga. . „ . , ^ , 



Feb. 19.— United States Field Trials Club's Spring Trials, Grand 

 Junction, Tenn. P. T. Madison, Sec'y, IndianapoUs, Ind. 



TWENTY YEARS IN DOGDOM. 



The Bench. 



Twenty years of kennel history. Measured by the history 

 of nations and men, two decades seem a sliort flight of time, 

 still it vsrould be impossible, in the limited space at our com- 

 mand, to do full justice to the wonderful growth, of kennel 

 interests in America during that period. The crude efforts 

 of a few sportsmen at Chicago in 1874, started the competitive 

 feeling which has re.sulted in and rendered possible such a 

 grand exhibition as that -which took place in New York last 

 February. 



One cannot resist the temptation to ponder and think over 

 the vast amount of time, energy and money which have been 

 expended to make such a gathering possible. There are men 

 living to-day, old sportsmen, who well remember the first 

 dog shows held in 1874, and could they Rip-Van-Winkle- 

 like close their eyes upon the intervening lapse of time and 

 open them in a New York show of 1893, they would doubtless 

 appreciate the feelings of Washington Irving's creation, 

 when he entered that village in the Catskills. Enough of 

 simile — ^the age is too practical to indulge in much senti- 

 ment. 



To the field sportsmen of America are we indebted for the 

 impetus that set the dog show ball a-rolling. ' The desire to 

 improve the native field dogs led to numerous importations 

 of highly bred setters and pointers in 1873-74, and to the ac- 

 complishment of this end the FOEEST AND STREAM, even in 

 its infancy, lent no little aid. It brought English and 

 American sportsmen together through the medium of its 

 columns; it negotiated the purchase of several animals 

 which became famous in our stud books as the nucleus from 

 which have sprung many of the finest strains of sporting 

 dogs in the field to-day; it nursed and encouraged the grow- 

 ing interest in "pedigree" dogs by donating valuable cups 

 and trophies at the early shows and field trials, and while it 

 has seen the rise and fall of many kennels, it has ever kept 

 the one end in view— the advancement of the dog in public 

 estimation. 



In a resum6 of this nature the musty record must enter 

 largely, and while columns could be written of the interest- 

 ing events which have transpired in the kennel world durin 

 twenty years, we must at present confine ourselves to a nar- 

 rative of the leading ones. 



To Mr. C. S. Wescott ("Homo"), of Philadelphia, belongs 

 the credit of first suggesting, in a letter to the Foeest and 

 Stream of April 9, 1874, that bench shows and field trials 

 should be held to improve the dogs of that day. We are 

 glad to know that this gentleman lived to exhibit at shows 

 larger than even his voidest imagination could have desired 

 at that early date. 



The first show of which we find a record in Forest and 

 Stream is that held by the Illinois State Sportsmen's Asso- 

 ciation, June 4, 1874, at Chicago. There were twenty-one 

 entries, but no regular classes. Native setters, Laveracks, 

 Gtordon and Irish setters, both individual and crossed, and 

 pointers conapeted together. It seems to have been a sort of 

 mixed competition, where field training had almost as much 

 to do with the awards as beauty of formation. Mr. J. H. 

 Whitman was awarded the premium with Frank and Joe, 

 three years old, black and steel mixed setters, bred by Hill- 

 iard from imported Gordon setters. The judges were Messrs. 

 L, B. Croker, of Mendota, 111.; John Davidson, Monroe, 

 Mich., and H. N. Sherman, Baloit, Wis. These gentlemen 

 in closing their report said they considered this "a very im- 

 portant branch of any meeting of this nature, and hope the 

 Association at its future meetings will offer prizes and give 

 every possible encouragement to such an exhibition. The 

 Great West was the first to give it prominence, 'and in this 

 respect commensurate to its prominence in all other amuse- 

 ments of the field sportsman." Who can say but that this 

 prominence has been ably sustained? 



Three weeks later a small show was attempted at Oswego, in 

 connection with the sixteenth annual New York State Sports- 

 men's Association meeting, but as there were only three 

 entries the prizes were withheld and entry fees returned. 

 In only one instance, the proposed show in Pittsburgh, Pa. 

 in 1887, has a bench .show committee found itself in this 

 unpleasant plight. The show held at Mineola, L. I., in 

 October, 1874, is generally conceded to be the first regular 

 bench show where regular classes and prizes were provided. 

 The first prizes were cups, and diplomas were given to the 

 second prizewinners. The judges were Messrs. E. S. Carman, 

 A. Gubner and Chas. H. Raymond, who imported through 

 Forest and Stream the noted Laverack setters Pride of the 

 Border and Fairy. The only exhibitors known to the kennel 

 world, of the present day whose dogs were awarded prizes 

 are A. C. Waddell, who won second with Kate in Gordon 



setter bitches, first with Colburn's Dash for setters (any 

 breed), first in pointer dogs with the afterward well known 

 Phil, and second in bitches with his Belle; Edmund Orgill, 

 who took second in setters (any breed) with Nelly. 



Several shows were held during this year in connection 

 with sportsmen's association meetings, bvit were confined 

 naturally to sporting dogs, and field merit and training en- 

 tered largely into the competitions. A more pretentious 

 show was then held at Springfield, Mass., April 28-29, 1875, 

 and is noted as the first dog show held in New England. 

 The entries numbered 167, and the classification seems crude 

 indeed to that of the AV. K. C. show eighteen years later. 

 The jadges for pointers and setters were Horace Smith, at 

 that time kennel editor of FoEEST and Stream; Lieut. Harry 

 Metcalf, U. S. Army, and F. W. Lawrence, Brookline, Mass. 

 The other classes were judged by Ethan Allin, T. Eaton and 

 O. B. Deane. The classes were for Laverack setters, Gordon 

 setters, English and native setters, red Irish setters, English 

 pointers, Spanish pointers, native pointers, foxhounds and 

 beagles, spaniels and retrievers, terriers, Newfoundlands, St. 

 Bernards and collies, mastiffs, bulldogs and bull-terriers. 



The show was considered at that time a great success and 

 thenceforth small shows cropped up in every direction, and 

 while the prizes advanced in value the entries correspond- 

 ingly increased. As an example of the great interest dis- 

 played by Forest and Stream in the budding fancy, we 

 note that on Feb. 34, the same year, 1875, this journal held a 

 small show in its office and donated a silver cup for the best 

 brace of setter pups under nine months of age. A number of 

 sportsmen turned up with their dogs, though scant notice 

 was given of the contest, and a gentleman whose name is well 

 known to latter day sportsmen and show goers, carried off 

 the "mug." This was Mr. Jacob Pentz, then of Newark, N. J., 

 with his brace of pups by Rodman's Dash out of Flora. 

 Among those who attended were Col. Skinner, Edmund Or- 

 gill, the late Nicholas Saltus, owner then of fine kennels in 

 Brooklyn; Baron Gubner of Utrecht, owner of the famous 

 Irish setters Lisga and Mike; Dr. Alex. R. Strachan, whose 

 kennels were based on the importation of setters and point- 

 ers made some years before by Sir Frederick Bruce; Theo. 

 Morford, owner of some famous orange and white setters; 

 Frederick Underhill, of Newark, N. J., then noted as the 

 owner of a rare kennel of English beagles; N. Rowe, who 

 had been importing some prominent setters and pointers, 

 and Count Shorb, owner of the famous red setter J ack. 



In"^1876 the Centennial dog show was held at Philadelphia, 

 but little knowledge of the show can be gained from reports 

 at that date, as everything seems to have been arranged and 

 carried out with that blissful disregard for bench show pro- 

 prieties that appears to obtain at Chicago even at this ad- 

 vanced period. Meanwhile shows had been held at St. Louis, 

 Baltimore and other cities, and a number of dogs had quali- 

 fied for the champion classes by winning the prizes in the 

 open. This brings us to the formation of the Westminster 

 Kennel Club, and the holding of its first show in 1877, 

 which served, if nothing else, to show that America had by 

 this time become possessed of a goodly number of canines 

 which could not only sport a pedigree, but were thought by 

 their owners to be deserving of public recognition. Forest 

 AND Stream was here again a power behind the throne, for 

 we find one of its editors, the late Wm. H. Tileston, on the 

 bench show committee. 



The show was held May 8 to 10, in the old Madison Square 

 Garden, then known as Gilmore's Garden. The late 

 Charles Lincoln was superintendent. The dogs benched 

 numbered 874. The catalogue first called for Division I., 

 Sporting dogs, and in this were included only the champion 

 classes for each breed, English, Irish and Gordon setters, and 

 pointers (any weight). In the open classes, imported and 

 native setters were classed separately, and we find that 

 no less than 64 native setter dogs alone were entered. 

 Native Irish setter dogs also polled a goodly entry of 

 50, and Gordons were well backed by 33 in the dog class and 

 1.9 in the bitch class for imported or natives, while the native 

 had also two other well filled classes. Pointer entries num- 

 bered 102, and cocker and field spaniels had 30 entries. An- 

 other surprising entry was that of mastiffs, no less than 25 

 being in the one class. St. Bernards had not yet gained 

 their subsequent eminence and popularity, as only 16 names 

 appear. Pugs were quite numerous, there being 26. There 

 were 23 Skye terriers, and their colors ranged from steel 

 blue, blue gray, sky blue, silver gray, iron gray and blue and 

 tan to yellow. Some very valuable special prizes were offered, 

 and here again we find that Forest and Stream was a lib- 

 eral helper, donating a silver cup, value SlOO, made by Tiffany 

 & Co., for the best red Irish setter stud dog, native or im- 

 ported, to be shown with not less than two of his get. 



It is a pleasure to reflect that the judges at this show are 

 all living to-day and are taking, vrith one exception, an 

 active part in dog shows. They were Messrs. John Davidson, 

 Dr. L. H. T waddell. Rev. J. Gumming MacDona (England), 

 a minister then, but a lawyer and M.P. now; T. Frank, P. 

 Kavanagh, and Capt. (now Major) J. M. Taylor. 



To Mr. J. H. Whitman, of Chicago, belongs the honor of 

 winning the first prize at an American dog show. Among 

 the earliest present day exhibitors are Dr. William Jarvis, 

 L. H. Smith, of Canada; Fred Gebhard, August Belmont, 

 who showed a black and tan setter, among other sporting 

 dogs, and also some fox-terriers at the New York show of 

 1877; James Mortimer, who exhibited the bulldog Crib at 

 the same show; S. Fleet Speir, M.D., Max Wenzel, C. 

 Dubois Wagstafl, E. S. Sanford, Jr., E. Dexter, W. J. 

 Farrar, O. W. Donner, E. Orgill, W. A. Coster, who showed 

 an Irish water spaniel and a cocker; A. Belmont Purdy, P. 

 O. DeLuze, now treastirer of the W. K. C; Dr. L. H. Twad- 

 dell, who showed some celebrated dachshunds; R. L. Bel- 

 knap, late owner of Winlawn Kennels of mastiffs; H. Mead 

 J. P. Haines, Jenkins Van Schaick, the colUie owner' F. 

 Bronson, John Matthews, who even at that early date 

 showed a bulldog, Duke; George Raper, D. P. Foster A. 

 Kisteman, who showed pugs; W. Sanderson, who showed 

 Donald, a noted Skye terrier; all these names appear iu the 



1877 catalogue of the W. K. C. show. Later shows hef ore the 

 early '80s brought George Langran, H. W. Huntington, A. 

 C. Wilmerding, James Watson, J. Otis Fellows, F. Senn, 

 Sidney Dillon Ripley, T. M. Aldrich, R. P. Keasbey, Dr. 

 Cattanach, C. E. McMurdo, George D. McDougall, F. R. 

 Hitchcock, L. & W. Rutherfurd, W. J. Comstock, Richard 

 Gibson, F. B. Fay, R. C. Cornell, A. H. Moore and others 

 whose names do not just at present occur to us, to the front 

 and who are still in the ring. Breeders come and breeders 

 go, but it is likely that those mentioned will own dogs as 

 long as they live. The successes and disappointments of suc- 

 ceeding shows all over the country are familiar to most of - 

 our readers, so it is not necessaiy to enter further into this 

 part of kennel history. 



While dog shows have done so much toward improving 

 our friend, the dog, these gatherings could not have become 

 the important events they now are, had not the kennel press 

 lent every aid in their power to help along the good cause. 

 Forest and Stream can review the past years with every 

 feeling of self-satisfaction. It has ever fostered the growing 

 interests and its pages have always been open to those who 

 wished to discuss the merits of their dogs. Forest and 

 Stream has never truckled to any power or association; 

 when criticism was needed it was sharply given, and this will 

 be the policy of the future— independent— not seeking to 

 quarrel for the sake of notoriety or finding fault, but by 

 every means in its power upholding the grand canine fabric 

 that its many readers, the dogmen of to-day, have erected. 



H. W. LACT. 



The Field. 



The young sportsman of the present day accepts the estab- 

 lished order of things as a matter of course. But what has 

 been universally accepted as right for a few years may easily 

 imply existence from time immemorial. It is not many 

 years since improvement began. 



The perfection of the practical sportsmanship of to-day 

 had its origin in very crude beginnings about twenty years 

 ago. In this country— and it is of this country of which I 

 write — so great is the dift'erence between ideas, implements 

 and methods of to-day and those of twenty years ago that 

 they mark widely different eras of development. 



A history of the evolution of field trials, theories of breed- 

 ing, improvement and growth of sportsmanship, etc. , Avould 

 fill a large volume. This sketch is intended merely to point 

 out a few landmarks of the history, it is not a history in 

 itself. 



Twenty years ago very few men considered the pedigree of 

 a setter or pointer as being of much importance. The prac- 

 tical work of the dog afield was the chief test. The question 

 whether the progeny of such dogs would be like or unlike 

 the sire or dam was given very little thought. Then there 

 were very few sportsmen comparatively, therefore there was 

 very little market for dogs, and low prices prevailed, The 

 highest prices then would be considered as too small for 

 consideration at present. 



Such few pedigrees as there were twenty years ago were 

 mostly a record of crosses of all kinds of setters— Irish, Gor- 

 don, native and English. There were most excellent dogs, 

 however, twenty years ago. They were strong, enduring 

 and intelligent. Their constitutions were soimd. Twenty 

 years ago there were many who valued highly the dropper, 

 as the progeny of a setter and pointer is called. The dropper 

 was supposed to combine in a high degree the excellence of 

 both parents. A man would be ashamed to own a dropper 

 now. 



There were a few kennels, however, which exerted care in 

 dog breeding, but as compared to the present they were ex- 

 tremely few and the pedigrees are to-day unsatisfactory. 



Twenty years ago, primitive ideas and primitive methods^ 

 obtained everywhere. The muzzleloader was the favorite- 

 field gun. A rude powder horn or glass bottle was considered! 

 a good receptacle for gunpowder, and the shot was carried 

 in anything that would hold it. The hunter poured out 

 powder in the hollow of his hand till he thought he had 

 enough for a load. Thus a gun was seldom loaded twice 

 alike. The percussion cap was then considered about the 

 limit of improvement over the flint look. Old newspapers 

 were prized as good wadding, but a yellow jacket's nest was 

 considered better, particularly by the brother sportsmen who 

 did not live in the city. The shooter who owned a wad cutter 

 and cut his wads out of refuse cardboard was credited as 

 having reached about the limit of loading refinements. 



Twenty years ago, many good men and true believed that 

 a dog's tongue needed "worming;" that a dog suffering from 

 distemper could to a certainty be cured by rubbing tar on 

 his nose; that shooting a dog with bird shot, when at work 

 afield was good pedagogy; that a rifle bullet went perfectly 

 straight; that a diet of meat would permanently ruin a dog's 

 nose, etc. These are but a few of the things which were our 

 pride and our knowledge twenty years ago. We do not 

 believe them now. 



With the advent of the sportsmen's journal of the rod and 

 gun, general improvement began and good lessons were 

 taught. Field trials were inaugurated, which stimulated 

 competition, advertised the sport to the world, and served 

 as great object lessons to the beginner or unskillful sports-- 

 man. Endless discussions began on the relative merits of 

 certain breeds or strains of dogs, and on the merits of guns.. 

 By continually sifting out the chaff from the wheat, much 

 accurate knowledge was established. 



The first field trial was held in 1874 at Memphis, Tenn. , 

 beginning Oct. 8. It had twelve entries, nine of which 

 started. There was but one stake, a' Free-For-All. First 

 prize, a silver service. That was the beginning, humble in- 

 deed as compared with the great field trial events of to-day, 

 many of which last a full week. Indeed, under the heat 

 system which prevailed three or four years ago, some trials 

 lasted two or three weeks nearly. 



Mr. H. Clark Prichitt has the honor of winning, with Ms 

 dog Knight, the first field trial event, which was held by the 

 Tennessee State Sportsmen's Association. 



Since tliat time field trials have grown steadily in iiupo r 



