A wretched jaded beast, tied to a stake, a toy bulldog, or indeed a game fox terrier, would no doubt be able to pin; but it was no such miserable exhibition as this which suggested Claudian's "Magnaque taurorum fracturae colla Britannae."

Since the subjugation of the enlarged bull or wild boar by bulldogs has become impossible in this country, an absurd standard, founded upon no basis, has constantly been foisted upon breeders of this variety; and, as Darwin remarks, "there can be no doubt that the fancy bulldogs of the present day have been greatly reduced in size;" and at the same time other properties have been lost. The scale of points (usually made to fit the dog owned by the author of the same) are in themselves destructive of many of the peculiarities of the breed, because, whilst advocating the breeding for one particular property, the framer of the scale admits his ignorance of the force of correlated action: thus, for example, in advocating the production of a small thin ear, he is unconsciously but certainly diminishing the thickness and volume of the skin covering the head and neck, so necessary for the protection of an essentially gladiatorial animal as the bulldog, and at the same time, also rendering impossible the production of the folds of skin or wrinkles, and the hanging chaps so much desired, and all of ,which points he insists upon in the same breath.

The amateur is also told that the tail must be destitute of rough hair, which practically means that the coat of the dog must be of an extremely fine nature. Now, the scientist knows full well that the cultivation of this peculiarity tends to, and has actually resulted in, diminution of the bony structures; the inferior dentition; and weakness of constitution; yet the breeder is told that large bones and teeth are a sine qua, non! Darwin has also noticed the effect of correlated action here, for he remarks, the modern bulldog has fine limbs, but "this is a recently selected character." It has been frequently urged by those who have during the last few years flooded the country with canine literature, that the ancient bulldog was not so worthy of perpetuation as his toy descendant, because his head was not so great in size, in proportion to the number of pounds weight as the toy dog. It is a matter of some surprise that the fact, that the head of a King Charles spaniel, or that of a toy terrier is much greater in proportion for weight, than any 401b. toy bulldog should have escaped the notice of these gentlemen, and also the fact that dwarfs of all the animal creation have heads greatly out of proportion to their stature.

I think my readers will agree with me, that it is far more desirable to rescue the remains of this breed, for which England was once so famous, than to attempt to cultivate that which is simply a puny and imperfect imitation. That nearly all the dog show winners owe what they possess to the cross with the Spanish dog Bigheaded Billy, or to my Toro, a reference to the Kennel Club calendar will prove, and I have no doubt there is a large reserve of English gentlemen of broad views who will join the ranks of those who have, during the last ten years, done so much to reinstate a dog unquestionably more desirable in every way than the absurd apology once so high in favour:

The following description and measurements of Toro are taken from The Field of the 27th Sept., 1873, and may be of some service as a guide to breeders:

"Toro is a huge, massive dark chestnut or 'carroty' brindled dog, with blackish muzzle; he has very deep flews, high temples, large nostrils, and is very much underhung, and, for his size, short in the face. His eyes are tolerably full, and a good deal of the white is shown; the 'stop' or indentation between the eyes is large and deep, and runs high up the head. The skin about the head is very loose, and fails into wrinkles and folds when the ears of the dog are erected; and a deep double dewlap runs from the angles of the mouth to the sternum. His ears have been cut out, very little of the burr being left, and this greatly detracts from the apparent size of his head. His neck is arched, short, very thick and muscular, and covered with quantities of loose skin; the shoulders broad and flat at the top, standing well out from the ribs, and very muscular; the elbows well out from the ribs; the forearm very thick, and slightly bowed; feet large and round, and furnished with very strong claws; the chest is great, and not only broad, but deep, and the ribs are very round. There is a considerable fall at the shoulders, and from that point the loins begin to rise, the arch terminating at the insertion of the tail.

This is placed very low, has a downward crook at the root and another at the end, is very short and fine in bone, and is never erected so high as the level of the dog's back. The loins are strong and muscular, as are also the hind quarters, the stifles turning out slightly, and the hocks rather close together. The whole of the hind quarters are small, as compared with the fore quarters, and are considerably higher. The coat is very fine and smooth, and the hair very hard in texture. In showing condition Toro weighs 901b.

"The following are his exact measurements: Head, 22in.; chop, close up to eye, 14in.; length of face from corner of eye to tip of nose, 2½in.; from corner of eye down to angle of mouth, 5in.; between eyes 2¾in.; from ear to ear across forehead, 5½in.; from top of nose to under jaw, 3in.; projection of lower incisors beyond those in the upper jaw when the mouth is closed lin.; between canines in upper jaw, 2 3/16in.; in lower jaw about 2in., being broken; round neck, 19in.; length of neck, 5in.; round ribs, 31in.; across chest, 13in.; between forelegs, 9in.; length of neck and body from apex of skull to root of tail, 30in.; round forearm, 8½in; round loins, 2lin.; height at shoulder, 22in.; from point of elbow to ground, 11in.

"Toro, although very forbidding in appearance, is exceedingly quiet and docile, and is possessed of great intelligence; he retains all the peculiar attributes of the ancient British bulldog - such as size, courage, etc. He will only pin an animal by the head, and when fighting is perfectly silent and utterly regardless of pain. He is rather slow in this movements, has a rolling kind of gait, and carries his head low.

"With such a dog as we have described to start with - possessing as he does form, size, courage, and, what is if anything of greater importance, clean blood to cross out with the inbred stock which we have in England - Mr Adcock will, we think, have little difficulty in re-establishing this ancient breed."

The cross with Toro has proved exceedingly valuable, both upon the show bench and in the increase in size, constitution and bone; and, in conjunction with the strains of my champion Ajax and Queen Bess, has produced a dog, who, when full grown, will weigh from 1001b. to 1121b.

MR. F. BURBIDGE'S FOX TERRIER "NIMROD. Sire Buffer (K.C.S.B. 524) by Marquis of Huntly's Bounce out of Trinket - Dam Nellie, by Leo out of Venom.