34 DOGS AND ALL ABOUT THEM

that they succumbed under the weight and perished. On that account they were discarded by the monks.

In connection with the origin of the St. Bernard, M. Schumacher wrote in a letter to Mr. J. C. Macdona, who was the first to introduce the breed into Great Britain in any numbers " According to the tradition of the Holy Fathers of the Great Saint Bernard, their race descends from the crossing of a bitch (a Bulldog species) of Denmark and a Mastiff (Shepherd's Dog) of the Pyrenees. The descendants of the crossing, who have inherited from the Danish dog its extraordinary size and bodily strength, and from the Pyrenean Mastiff the intelligence, the exquisite sense of smell, and, at the same time, the faithfulness and sagacity which characterise them, have acquired in the space of five centuries so glorious a notoriety throughout Europe that they well merit the name of a distinct race for themselves."

From the same authority we learn that it is something like six hundred years since the St. Bernard came into existence. It was not, however, till competitive exhibitions for dogs had been for some years established that the St. Bernard gained a footing in Great Britain. A few specimens had been imported from the Hospice before Mr. Cumming Macdona (then the Rev. Cumming Macdona) introduced us to the celebrated Tell, who, with others of the breed brought from Switzerland, formed the foundation of his magnificent kennel at West Kirby, in Cheshire. Albert Smith, whom some few that are now alive will remember as an amusing lecturer, brought a pair from the Hospice when returning from a visit to the Continent and made them take a part in his attractive entertainment ; but the associations of the St. Bernard with the noble deeds recorded in history were not then so widely known, and these two dogs passed away without having created any particular enthusiasm.

Later on, at a dog show at Cremorne held in 1863, two St. Bernards were exhibited, each of whom rejoiced in the name

of Monk, and were, respectively, the property of the Rev. A. N. Bate and Mr. W. H. Stone. These dogs were exhibited without pedigrees, but were said to have been bred at the Hospice of St. Bernard. Three years later, at the National Show at Birmingham, a separate class was provided for the saintly breed, and Mr. Cumming Macdona was first and second with Tell and Bernard. This led to an immediate popularity of the St. Bernard. But Tell was the hero of the shows at which he appeared, and his owner was recognised as being the introducer into this country of the magnificent variety of the canine race that now holds such a prominent position as a show dog.

The names of Tell and Bernard have been handed down to fame, the former as the progenitor of a long line of roughcoated offspring ; the latter as one of the founders of the famous Shefford Kennel, kept by Mr. Fred Gresham, who probably contributed more to the perfecting of the St. Bernard than any other breeder. His Birnie, Monk, Abbess, Grosvenor Hector, and Shah are names which appear in the pedigrees of most of the best dogs of more recent times. When Mr. Gresham drew his long record of success to a close there came a lull in the popularity of the breed until Dr. Inman, in partnership with Mr. B. Walmsley, established a kennel first at Barford, near Bath, and then at The Priory, at Bowden, in Cheshire, where they succeeded in breeding the finest kennel of St. Bernards that has ever been seen in the world. Dr. Inman had for several years owned good dogs, and set about the work on scientific principles. He, in conjunction with Mr. Walmsley, purchased the smooth-coated Kenilworth from Mr. Loft, bred that dog's produce with a brindle Mastiff of high repute, and then crossed back to his St. Bernards with the most successful results. Dr. Inman was instrumental in forming the National St. Bernard Club, which was soon well supported with members, and now has at its disposal a good collection of valuable challenge cups. The dogs bred at Bowden carried all before them in the show ring,

THE ST. BERNARD

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