The Dogs of Boytown

by Walter A. Dyer

"Ladies and gentlemen," said he. "If you will kindly give me your attention, and if Monty Hubbard will be good enough to sit on Mr. O'Brien's head, I will explain the manner in which the judging will be conducted. When I call out the names, the owners will please bring their dogs to the ring. I will inspect them in groups of five. I will make a note of the best dogs in these groups, and will then ask to see some of them a second time in order to determine for certain which are, in my judgment, the best dogs."

Beginning with Hamlet, he called for the first five dogs in the row, and proceeded thus until, in the last group, six were judged. He went at it in a businesslike manner, examining each dog carefully, and making jottings in a notebook. When asked about his basis for judging the dogs, he promised to explain that when he announced the winners. Each owner held his or her own dog in the ring, making him walk past the judge when so requested, and it all went smoothly until the third group came to be judged. Then, before anyone knew what had happened, the overwrought Mr. O'Brien had made an angry lunge at Li Hung Chang, and there was something doing in the show ring. The chow was not lacking in courage and returned the attack, while the other three dogs struggled vainly to mix in. Some of the ladies in the audience screamed, and it required the combined efforts of Mr. Hartshorn, Mr. Morton, Tom Poultice, and Monty Hubbard to separate the antagonists and straighten things out again. Mr. O'Brien was unsatisfied and snarled ominously, but it made him look all the more spirited during the judging. After that there were no untoward events to mar the occasion.

By the time Mr. Hartshorn had had some of the dogs up a second and even a third time it was nearly four o'clock, the hour set for announcing the winners. The place was crowded now, and not a little speculation was heard as to the judge's probable decisions. Among the boys, at least, this interest in the outcome amounted to tense excitement, in which some of the grown-ups were not ashamed to share.

At length Mr. Hartshorn came to the rope and addressed the gathering.

"Ladies and gentlemen," said he: "you are all waiting, I know, to learn the names of the winning dogs, but first I think I ought to offer a few words of explanation. Let me say that we have some very good dogs here to-day. They might not measure up to the standard set in the big shows, but they are very good representatives of the various breeds. Since it is necessary to compare dogs of different breeds instead of dogs of the same breed in judging, it is not altogether easy to reach a decision on comparative merits. I can only rely upon my best judgment and will ask you to be indulgent with me in case you do not agree with my choice.

"In judging dogs at a show, we do not take into consideration the personal character or intelligence of a dog, but chiefly his physical characteristics. He must not appear stupid, and he must show the qualities of character attributed to his breed. A sleepy terrier, for instance, cannot win in a show. Beyond that, however, it is a matter of what is called type. Authorities have carefully gone over the points that are typical of each breed and have written them out in what are called the standards. Winning dogs must conform very largely to the type described in the standard, and the more of the established points he can show in perfect form, the higher will be his score in selecting his position among the winners. I cannot take your time to describe all these points in each case, but simply state that my judging is on that basis.

"It is an arbitrary method, I grant you, and there are good people who protest against judging dogs in accordance with their physical features, not taking into account the qualities of heart and brain that we really care for in a dog. But that is the fancier's way of getting at it. If we did not have arbitrary and approved standards to work toward in breeding, every breeder would work out his own personal ideas, and we would have a strange assortment of sizes and shapes and no predominant type in any breed. It is the work of the fanciers that has produced the marked differences between the breeds and that keeps them from degenerating into a sorry lot of mixed mongrels, until we should not be able to tell a collie from a St. Bernard.

"I trust that this brief explanation will give you an idea of the basis of my judgment in this show. I have given the preference not to the wisest and most capable and most affectionate dogs, but to those that most nearly approach the approved standards of their breeds. I will now ask to have the following dogs brought to the ring: Mr. Sanderson's German shepherd dog, Rupert of Hentzau; Mrs. Peabody's Pekingese spaniel, Chi Yen; Herbert Pierson's Great Dane, Hamlet; Harry Barton's English bulldog, Mike; Montague Hubbard's Irish terrier, Mr. O'Brien (keep him on a short leash, Monty); Jack Whipple's English setter, Remus."

All of these dogs have been previously mentioned except Rupert. Both he and his master were newcomers in Boytown, and the big, strong, active dog, with his wolfish look, his erect ears, and his brave, bright eyes, had attracted a good deal of attention at the show. When the six dogs had been brought again into the ring, Mr. Hartshorn continued his discourse.

"I believe," said he, "that all of these dogs should receive honorable mention, or, as we call it at the shows, the V. H. C.—very highly commended. They all possess points of excellence, but all fall short in some particulars. Rupert of Hentzau looks like a perfect dog, but if you were to compare him with the best of his breed you would see that he is a little too short in the head, too flat-sided, and too leggy. Chi Yen measures up pretty well, but she hasn't a good color and her coat isn't quite as profuse as it should be. Hamlet's feet and ankles are bad. This is often the case with big dogs that grew fast when they were puppies. Their bones do not strengthen fast enough to bear their increasing weight, and the result is apt to be flat feet, turning out, and bent ankles. Hamlet is a bit thin, too, but is otherwise a good Dane. In the English bulldog classes, the preference is generally given to the extreme types. A dog with wider elbows, deeper chest, and a heavier jaw would beat Mike easily. Mr. O'Brien has Irish terrier character a-plenty, but he is a bit too large and coarse, as the expression is, and his coat is too long and soft and too light in color. Remus will make a fine dog some day, I believe, but he has had hard luck thus far and he hasn't grown up quite evenly. He needs strengthening in the shoulders and he is out of coat. His tail is a bit stringy. With proper care, I believe these defects can be obviated. I take pleasure in conferring the V. H. C. on these six dogs."