THE KENNEL.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1425, 22 June 1899, Page 36

THE KENNEL.

(By a. W. Steven l ?, Secretary of the Wellington Kennel Club.)

NSW SOUTH WALES KENNEL CLUB. FIFTH ANNUAL SHOW.

Written for the “New Zealand Mail.” The fifth annual Championship Show of the Kennel Club of New South Waxes was opened in the Exhibition Building, Prince Alfred Park, on the 7th June, and, as must be generally admitted, was an undoubted success. The club was most fortunate m having perfect weather the whole time, and the atiendance throughout the exhibition was very encouraging, being much m excess of previous figures. Hie show was officially opened on the Thursday atteinoon by His Excellency the Governoi (Earl Beauchamp) who is an enthusiastic deerhound fancier, and the large building was crowded witn visitors. lbhail is an immense building particularly suited for the holding of uog and poultry shows, being all on the one floor and the benches can oe arranged with such system that the animals can be easily identified on reference to the The benches used are toe very latest pattern of wire cnvisions, similar to those used by our New Zealand clubs, and their fixing and fittings reflected great credit on the club s otficials. ■ . . . , Too much praise cannot be given to the president (Mr T. F. Thompson) for the success of the show. He has indeed worked hard and it must be i ei j encouraging to see his efforts crowned w : tb. such marked success. ine other officials of the club have done their share faithfully, and special mention must be made of the arduous worn, dene by Mr L. L. Ramsay, tlie secretary and Mr T. Mitchell, the treasurer, and their stall of assistants and stewards. A special feature of the exhibition was that the hon veterinary surgeon, Captain A. P. Gribben, was with his stall in attendance at the door early in the morning, and every dog was critical .) examined prior to admittance. >~ix spacious judging rings were kept very busy the most of the clay, and Mr Court Rice, who had the lions share of the work, had to complete some or the classes the following morning. Particular mention may be made of the smart manner in which the award cards were posted over the benches. In addition to a large team of New Zealand dogs, there were dogs from Victoria and Queensland, together witn thß Sydney exhibits, and competition was very keen. Mr William Hamilton, the judge of the fox terrier classes, placed the whole of his dogs on exhibition, and they, with his magnificent collection of fox terrier pictures, attracted considerable attention. There were 197 classes provided, the entries totalling just upon 800, representing nearly 500 animals benched. This is very good and shows a slight general increase all round, and the quality of the exhibits generally was of a very high order, all breeds being well represented. It is very interesting to note that some of our New Zealand dogs, in addition to scoring many prizes, were very much admired, particularly the bull dog, “Bully Solano,” the property of Mr Moorehouse, the collie pup “Armsbearer,” belonging to Mr R. Wark, undoubtedly the best headed collie in the whole show, and Doctor Newman’s flax-coated retrievers, a breed that is almost unknown in Sydney, so much so that many were known to enquire what breed of dog they were. Coming now to the various exhibits we will endeavour to give a short description of some of the principal prizewinners. The St. Bernards, with a total entry of fifty'-hiine in the thirteen classes provided, formed a most creditable group, and according to Mr Court Rice’s opinion showed marked improvement in quality from "last year. Mr E. Palmer’s “Snow King,” who scored in three classes, is a dog of considerable character, with a huge head of fair type and good limbs, and only requires more “stop” and more lengthy quarters. “Highfield Prince,” second to “Snow King” in each class, is a symmetrical, sound-limbed, dog of the smooth-coated variety with a shorter face and better ( -s©t-on stern than the winner. Heishowhowever, too flat in skull, showing mastiff type, has a “wall” eye and a badly marked head. The bitches were very good, indeed the winner “Woniora Ladv Jessamine” (also in three classes), possessing by far the best head and

eyes, with a grand body and limbs. Her coat is open and thin, otherwise, she would have beaten her brother. “Snow King” for the Challenge Cup. ‘ Stoneeot Countess Lecnie,” another good cne, second, was shown well, but is too long in the head and fails also in “stop” and eye. losing also in ear. “Denholm Victoria,” third, fails in markings and was shown badly. Mastiffs, with twenty-six entries in thirteen classes, were small in number, but cf great quality. “Hazeldene Nob’e” continued lrs victorious career, and may safely be named as the best dog of any breed ever seen in Australasia. The almost equally grand “Reeklaw ” loses to the winner in hind quarters and action. “Hazeldene Dora.” the winning bitch is also well-nigh faultless, and both she and “Noble" could win anywhere in the world. The Newfoundlands, with four entries and Bloodhounds, four entries, were bad and c'.ll for no special comment. Tire winning Great Dane is a llavl quin, showing great type, but he has no bone and a had coat. Deerhounds showed great quality and such clogs in such a country ct:ght not to be in the hands cf but one exhibitor as at present, still they formed a group their owner Mr M. C. Davies may well be proud of. Greyhounds and Dalmatians were fair classes, but not calling for special notice. In Bulldogs it was a case cf the Non Zealand “Bully Solano” first and the rest nowhere. He requires no description in a New Zealand paper. Pointers were bad. failing in eyes, ears, throatiness and in depth of chestas a whole. There was not a goed one benched. English Setters were good, the New Zealand dog. Mr P. Hunter’s “Bilton Reck,” second, losing place on account of h ; s bad front, but in character and type lie excels. “Kirketon White Spider.” first, is not so good in head, but is well feathered and good all round. Mr P. Hunters “Lady Richmond.” winner of the bitch championship, also shows great quality. Gordons were poor. Mr T. Mitchell's “Kiowa Pen” being the best, the same owner’s “Kiowa Brunette” having no “stop” and by no means good forelc-gs. Irish; Setters were worse than bad, two Victorian specimens, catalogued at £3 and £2 respectively, winning everything. One remarkably good Harrier turned up. a really good, ad-round dog. Dr Newman’s two flat-coated Retrievers had an absurdly easy task, and it was equally absurd to hear those who had never seen a specimen oi ihe variety before, and others whose knowledg dates back twenty years, saving they were not as good as Sydney's best, “curiies,” rubbish at best, had they been, shown. The Collies were the oczt I .led classes 161 entries for the fourteen oh sses provided, and are best criticis ’d by saying that there were a few good ores among many bad. One thing very noticeable about the collies was the lack of that uniform quality that is so marked in any of our New Zealand shows. Here, after you had taken away the placed dogs, the balance could be generally summed up as poor. In novice dogs the winner. Messrs Rogen and Andrews’ “Shetland Wallace.” is very na-st in expression, although possessing a good coat, he carries his ears very wide, and should have given way to Mr R. Walk's “Armsbearer,” who has bettor head, eyes, ears and expression and only loses p lit'le in coat. The judge, Mr W. T. Wright, created some surprise in making the awards he did. In the Novice, Puppy and Australianbred dogs, placing “Wallace” first, “Armsbearer” second in each instance, then coming to the Limit dogs he gave the same two dogs equal first, and in tho Open Class he placed them. “Onuskirk Palmbearer” first. “Armsbearer” second, “Wallace” third.

A judge must undoubtedly have a deal of courage to knowingly reverse decisions, and certainly have good reasons for so doing, and being very curious to know them, I obtained from Mr Wright the following which he gives as his reason for so deciding:—Of the young dogs “Shetland Wallace” and “Armsbearer,” tho latter, as they came into the ring did not show to advantage, being very shy. while cn the other hand, the former was at his best, being full of life and go. Of the qualities of the two dogs, the New Zea'?•»<.• dog has a particularly good head, and the best ear carriage of any dog in the show. “Wallace” has also a fair head, good burnt!), both over shot, “Armsbearer” excelling in ear carriage. “Wallace’s” ears are not set high enough on head. With reference to coat “Wallace” excells, carrying much heavier coat, cf better texture; in body, legs and feet “Wallace” still superior to “Armsbearer.” Mv chief objection as a collie expert to “Armsbearer” is the carriage of his tail, on the other hand “Wallace” is good in biush, and better in hind quarters gentrally. “Wallace,” when shown with older dogs, did nob show well in ring, while “Armsbearer” in the Limit and Open Classes was the very reverse, showing to perfection. “Glentworth Perfection,” third in the Australian-bred Class is common, with a bad head, eye and. expression, but a good coat. Mr L. D. Borsdorff’s “Bremen Brilliant.” (a litter brother to Mr J. Horrax’s “Champion Haveward”), third in the Limit Class, is thick and short in head, with bad ear carriage,

which takes off collie character from an otherwise good dog, has an exceptionally good coat, nice length cf body, best brush in tho show. and plenty of liberty, but his head would always keep him) back in good company. “Ormskirk Palmbearer, tho winner in the Open Class and Champion, is moderate in eye, was not in good coat, and sadly wants white markings, but he wears wonderfully., well. In tho bitch cva.sse? it was a case cf Messrs Rogen and Andrew first, second and third riglib through. the rest unplaced. Tho winning puppy, “Shetland Bessie." is a black, tan and white, with good length cf head, fair car carriage, plenty cf coat, nice quality cf bene and generally a very fair collie, the second and third, which did not show veil, medium. “SheTand Lass,” the winner in the Austr.dia.n-bred, Limit and Open Classes and bitch championship, has a. good head and oar carriage, rice length of body, plenty cf liberty, and although not in good form, win? very ermly. Bull Terr levs were as a whole in horrible condition, nearly nil suv'ering more or less from skin disease. IMcuklar i Boss.'’ tho winning puppy 1 :s bad feet bad eves, end a weak far : “Merve’Jous, ’ second, is better e vt-iywhere bar forelegs, and should have won. Monkland Harry, ’ first in open dogs, is Ropy and weak m face, but has a good shaped eye. The winning bitch “ Wveim.” was by far the best in the show, has a grand head, well shaped eye. geod legs and feet, on the eriher hand, she is a little “gcose-rumped.” Sieves were very moderate and require no comment; and Irish Terriers were not much bert r. “EltUam Spuds.’ first m Australian-bred dogs, has a vile eye and expression and little character, while “Mon’dand Dan” is still worse in both respects. “Irawaru.” the New Zealand dog, has good ears, eyes and coat, but is v. ide in front and turns his elbows out. Airedale Terriers, although small in numbers, were very good classes. “Wisten Sirdar.” first in puppies, is hotter furnished and better m colour and ft - than 2i.tr P. Hunter’s "Wellington Tes- ' second v who, in his turn, beats ; Champion Marwick Briar.” in coat, ears and character. The latter is very bad in colour, dreadfully soft m coat, and was shown ridiculously fat. “Rust ic Vixen. ’ the open bit oh winner, has huge cars and poor colour, but a better head than the second, “Warwick Una." Ihe Fox Terriers came next to the collies numerically, making a total entry Ox 162. and their quality was cn the whole mere even than in the collies, in fact the- Fox Terriers were to my mind, the feattre cf the show. The judge, Mr Hamilton, had a hard task H perform, and although one or two of bis award.-, might have been altered t<> advantage, yet be gave very general satisfaction, and I feel sure it would be impossible to find a more pains- takinojudge. _ In Novice dogs. “Carlo Weaver” wins, a.though oversized, high on the leg and r, bit thick in head, and should have given place to Mr Thompson’s “Hedfern Tactician.” “Blair Cowrie Mailboy.” second, lias bad head and feet, and a long back. “Medlow Mario.” second in puppy class, has a perfect Bull Terrier eye. “Glendon Vicar,” third in Australian-bred dogs, got all he deserved, with Ins bad eye, worse cars and flat feet. In Limit dogs, Mr H. Morses’ “Vivisco” (imp) wins easily. He has a. good stretch of head, good small dark eye, appears a bit throaty, but carries a most profuse coat on the neck, lovelv ear carriage, good bone, grand legs and feet and showed well. “Validity” (imp), third in this class, liars a good head, in most other respects, bad, very light in bone in proportion to his size. In Novice bitches Mr H. Moses’ “Glendon Pride” won as she did in all her classes, and the bitch cliamnionship. For the latter she met the exWellington bitch “Treason.” Of them the .judge says : “I gave the pair long consideration, being loth to put an eight months’ puppy over a mature bitch, but the more I carefully prepared both, the more I found the puppy won. She has a beautiful body, legs and feet, grand hard, dense coat, laying perfectly? Her head is, before the eye, a wee bit light in muzzle, but otherwise long and lean with tlie best quality and carriage of ears in the show; "showed well~ her general contour and qualitv standingcut from every other bitch bc-nched. This bitch, is. to my mind, the very best terrier I have ever seen .and is undoubtedly the best ever bred in Australia. I hope the all-round good qualities she now possesses will not be lost with maturity.” With respect to “Treason,” age is making its appearance with this bitch; she was dull in the ring and her front is not what it was. In Field Spaniels Mr R. B. Williams’, of Dunedin, showed a couple of toppers and the judge was unable to part them. They were longer, lower and more typical than anything in the show. Many Cockers were overweight, and the little ones got tlie prizes although in ono or two cases the bigger ones showed the better type. Mr E. B. Fitts’s “Djin Djin” ruined his otherwise good chance by carrying his stern at right angles with his back, an unpardonable thing in a spaniel. Blenheim Spaniels were bad but Dr Gwynne Hughes showed a good Japanese wanting in blaze up forehead and somewhat in coat and feather.

A few useful Dachshunds were shown, and it is to be feared that the majority of tlie Scottish Terriers must- have got in thc-ir way when legs were being given out nearly everyone having a beautiful “crook.” “Liryelea Reptile'” of tlie latter breed might have won in, dog puppies and fails chiefly in coat, but has a grand head, and is very promising. “Wyong Scot-tie,” second, is also better than the winner, with u good head and front and a short back. Mr L. L. Ramsay's “Liryelea Hedgehog” (imp), winner cf open class and championship, has a grand head ears and body, but spoiled by Dachshund forelegs. “Wyong Sheila" had a long body and bad front. NEW ZEALAND COLLIE CLUB. The annual meeting of the New Zealand Collie Chib was he id last evening. Present—Messrs L. Gerard (in the chair), W. If uni trie, .!. F. Mills, H. Gerard, ClirYoruBrauinb, G. illcEwen, J. Horrox, 0. Parker. ?. .Taniieson, .J. vV. Davidson and I>. Wright <: ? ? cre t a ry). The report statc-d that there were now I>U names cn the roll. The last annual fhow was cne of the mow successful ex-nihiri-us of the kind in Aucivalasio. The thanks of the club were due to thedonors cf prizes, etc. The club, it was pointed out, has made wonderful progress during its two years’ existence, and no doubt, with the united efforts of its members in the future, it will continue to hold a most enviable position in the canine world. During the year sheep dog trials had been held in various parts of the colony, which shows that the club has been the means of extending the interest' iit the breeding of high class collies throughout New Zealand; and it was thought worthy of mention that since the club’s inception many of its members imported from the best markets dogs that would hold thc-ir own and be a credit to any fancier in any part of the world. Mr E. Harrison was elected an honorary member of the club. The election of officers' resulted as follows: , Patron, Lord Ranfurly; prsulent. Mr E. W. Mills; vicepresidents, Mesilames R. Gerard, T. McCarthy. Maddox, A. B. Stewart, L, CaselLerg, .). Horrox. Messrs A. B, Stewart, F. J. Nathan. F. Shaw, C. Lucena. E. Harrison. E. Gerard, G. McEwen, J. F. Mills, F. N. Watson. H. Palmer, T. Parker, G. Reid, A. Cotter, F. N. Edwards and J. Horrox; committee, Messrs T. Jamieson, W. Parker, J. W. Davidson, Clifford-Bramah, W. Rountree, W. Ret hr, in. J. O. T.illr. T. H. Pitt-.Tackson, Ik .ivneebone, G. Weldon, F. Wakelin and H. Gerard: judges. Messrs F. X. Watson. J. Horrox, F. \V. Edwards. Clilrord-Brnruab, F. Riga's, ,T. Liioco, J. C. Coupe, T. H. Bos worth, A. B. the wort arid R. Smith: treasurer, Mr C. Stubbs; secretary, Mr B. Wrig’R. Votes of thanks were accorded to Mr F. Evans (auditor), Mrs E. Gerard and the press for services rendered during the past year. it was w solved to send the secretorv to represent the club at the Auckland Championship Show cn .August fih and sth. Five new members were elected. Intimation is given in our advertising columns cf the Auckland Kennel Club's eighth annual dog show, which is this year to be held on Friday and Saturday, August 4th and sth. In connection - with this will Ire held the Collie Championship Show. The date on which entries close is July 22nd and entry forms, etc., may be obtained at the “Field" office, Wellington, or from the hon. secretary, E. J. Parry, Mount Albert. Auckland. Wc understand that the committee are using every effort to make tlie show a success. Tlie arrangements are to be- first-class, and given good weather and the support of the vpoera I nublie this year's show should be “the” show of the club.