222 DOGS AND ALL ABOUT THEM

sound all over ; his advent was opportune-he was just the dog that was wanted, and there is no doubt he did the breed a great amount of good.

A dog called Colne Crack, who was a beautiful little terriers was another of the early shown ones by whom the breed has lost nothing, and two other terriers whose names are much revered by lovers of the breed are Cholmondeley Briar and Briar Test.

Some years ago, when the breed was in the stage referred to above, a club was formed to look after its interests, and there is no doubt that though perhaps phenomenal success did not attend its efforts, it did its best, and forms a valuable link in the chain of popularity of the Airedale. It was at best apparently a sleepy sort of concern, and never seems to have attracted new fanciers. Some dozen or so years ago, however, a club, destined not only to make a great name for itself, but also to do a thousandfold more good to the breed it espouses than ever the old club did, was formed under the name of the South of England Airedale Terrier Club, and a marvellously successful and popular life it has so far lived. The younger club was in no way an antagonist of the older one, and it has ever been careful that it should not be looked upon in any way as such. The old club has, however, been quite overshadowed by the younger, which, whether it wishes it or not, is now looked upon as the leading society in connection with the breed.

At a meeting of the first club-which went by the name of the Airedale Terrier Club-held in Manchester some eighteen or twenty years ago, the following standard of perfection and scale of points was drawn up and adopted:

Head-Long, with flat skull, but not too broad between the ears, narrowing slightly to the eyes, free from wrinkle ; stop hardly visible, and cheeks free from fullness ; jaw deep and powerful, well filled un before the eyes ; lips light ; ears V-shaped with a side carriage, sm2 I but not out of proportion to the size of the dog ; the nose black ; the eyes small and dark in colour, not prominent, and full of terrier expression ; the teeth strong and level. The neck should be of moderate length and thickness, gradually widening towards the shoulders and free from throatiness. Shoulders and Chest-Shoulders long and sloping

THE AIREDALE TERRIER   223

well into the back, shoulder-blades flat, chest deep, but not broad. Body-Back short, strong and straight ; ribs well sprung. Hindquarters-Strong and muscular, with no drop ; hocks well let down ;

the tail set on high and carried gaily, but not curled over the back. Legs and Feet-Legs perfectly straight, with plenty of bone ; feet small and round with good depth of pad. Coat-Hard and wiry, and not so long as to appear ragged ; it should also be straight and close, covering the dog well over the body and legs. Colour-The head and ears, with the exception of dark markings on each side of the skull, should be tan, the ears being a darker shade than the rest, the legs up to the thigh and elbows being also tan, the body black or dark grizzle.

Weight-Dogs 40 lb. to 45 lb., bitches slightly less.

At the time of the formation of the Southern club the state of the Airedale was critical ; possessed of perhaps unequalled natural advantages, lovely dog as he is, he had not made that progress that he should have done. He had not been boomed in any way, and had been crawling when he should have galloped. From the moment the new club was formed, however, the Airedale had a new lease of life. Mr. Holland Buckley and other keen enthusiasts seem to have recognised to a nicety exactly what was required to give a necessary fillip to the breed ; they appear also to have founded their club at the right moment, and to have offered such an attractive bill of fare, that not only did everyone in the south who had anything to do with Airedales join at once, but very shortly a host of new fanciers was enrolled, and crowds of people began to take the breed up who had had nothing to do with it, or, indeed, any other sort of dog previously.

Some few years after the foundation of this club, a junior branch of it was started, and this, ably looked after by Mr. R. Lauder McLaren, is almost as big a success in its way as is the parent institution. Other clubs have been started in the north and elsewhere, and altogether the Airedale is very well catered for in this respect, and, if things go on as they are now going, is bound to prosper and become even more extensively owned than he is at present. To Mr. Holland Buckley, Mr. G. H. Elder, Mr. Royston Mills, and Mr. Marshall Lee, the Airedale of the present day owes much.