. WENTY YEARS have nearly elapsed since I first undertook for Messrs. Longman the task of revising the book on the natural history of the dog published by them for Mr. Youatt. As far as foreign varieties are concerned, that careful observer possessed very great advantages in having access to the collection of dogs which belonged to the Zoological Society soon after its institution, but which, owing to disease, was very soon abandoned. Our native breeds, however, were not so well described or illustrated by him, and his book did not meet the demands pf the public, whose attention was just then
. WENTY YEARS have nearly elapsed since I first undertook for Messrs. Longman the task of revising the book on the natural history of the dog published by them for Mr. Youatt. As far as foreign varieties are concerned, that careful observer possessed very great advantages in having access to the collection of dogs which belonged to the Zoological Society soon after its institution, but which, owing to disease, was very soon abandoned. Our native breeds, however, were not so well described or illustrated by him, and his book did not meet the demands pf the public, whose attention was just then (1859) specially drawn to them by the contemplated establishment of dog shows, which, in the same year, were instituted at Newcastle and Birmingham. By great good fortune I was enabled to obtain much reliable information upon most of our breeds; and many of the illustrations which were then given in the volume on "The Dog in Health and Disease" (notably Mr. Lukey's "Wallace," Mr. Stockdale's bulldog " Top," Mr. Morrison^s pug and English terrier, Mr. Govan^s Italian greyhound, Mr. George's Sussex spaniels, and the specimens of the Dandie Dinmont) are nearly, if not quite, equal infidelity to those which Mr. Baker has recently drawn with so much accuracy and spirit. In spite, however, of all the efforts I could make, it was found impossible to settle many of the points in dispute, and the several descrip- tions given were too loose in detail to serve as guides to young breeders or incipient judges. For this reason I commenced, in 1865, a series of articles in the Field, beginning with that on the pointer, in which I made the attempt not only to describe in detail all his points, but to settle their numerical value, on the basis just laid down by the National Dog Club, by means of a committee instituted by myself, and embracing most of the prominent breeders and judges of the day. Having thus started the
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Keywords: ., bookauthorwalsh, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectdogs
