THE LADIES' FIELD "CAT GOSSIP" COLUMNS

THE LADIES' FIELD "CAT GOSSIP" COLUMNS - 1899

The Ladies Field, a weekly magazine for well-to-do women, was founded in 1898 and focussed on women's sport, pastimes and fashions. It was published by George Newnes (in 1928, it was absorbed by The Home Magazine). The Cat Gossip column was written by Dick Whittington, the pen-name of Miss Higgins. Rather than divide up the content, I have compiled the columns into a series of chronological files. Readers wondering why prices of cats were given in multiples of £1 1s - this is a guinea; a £5 5s cat costs 5 guineas.

THE LADIES' FIELD. January 7, 14, 21 1899. - no cat column.
Mrs. Menzies, like many keen horsewomen, is fond of all kinds of animals; and she does not exhibit her fondness in any futile, amateurish way. [. . .] amongst other successful enterprises she keeps a carefully-selected Persian cattery, which has as its chief ornaments the famous blue male cat Windsor Zulu, and the clever little originals of the photograph shown here, Violet and Mignonette. Since writing the above, I have heard of the regrettable demise of Violet shortly after her return from the Brighton show, where she took a second prize. Another blue Persian of a very vivacious temperament is Molly, the drawing-room pet. - January 7, pg 176

One of the novelties which is included among the freaks, but which deserves more agreeable surroundings, is a cats' orchestra. Six or seven cats play on various instruments with marvellous precision and harmony, and one who answers to the name of Lottie Collins dances. This alone is worthy of a visit, and is certainly the cleverest thing of its kind I have ever seen. The cats' music will draw me frequently to Olympia during the time they will be there, while it proves the injustice of using the term "a cats' concert" as one of reproach and derision. - January 21, pg 250

SOME PRIZE DOGS AND CATS AT THE BRIGHTON SHOW. January 28, 1899, pg 293.

THE CATS, less than 100 in number, were of excellent quality. No.1 in the catalogue was Mrs. F. and Miss D. B. Champion's lovely long-haired and blue-eyed White Friar. He is of immense size and snowy whiteness, and well deserved the two firsts and the championship he was awarded. Second to him came Mrs. J. Pettitt's King of Pearls, and third Miss Gertrude Willoughby's Fulmer Powder Puff. Chinchillas by their extreme beauty always draw around them crowds of admirers. Here Miss Willoughby took first and well-deserved honours with her beautiful Ch. Fulmer Zaida. He is by Silver Laddie ex Silvie, and was born in 1895. In the same class - open chinchillas - came Mrs. Wellbye's lovely pair, Silver Jessamine and Dossie, both "as pretty as pictures," of whom Dossie was second and Silver Jessamine third to Miss Gertrude Willoughby's champion. Dossie is by Mr. York out of May, and not yet three years old, while Silver Jessamine, just a year younger, is her lovely daughter by Silver Lambkin. She was the winner of a first and special when shown as a kitten at the Crystal Palace in 1897.

In the open class for silver tabbies Mrs. F. Champion's most beautiful Lady Vere de Vere took a first, besides in other classes winning two more firsts, a silver medal, and a championship. She is by Mrs. Champion's Lord Argent ex Sylph, and was born on August 22nd, 1896. During her two and a half years of life she has been the winner of thirteen prizes, including two firsts and three specials last year. Her coat is of superb texture and is immensely healthy; she has lovely emerald eyes, and is a gentle and affectionate pet. A novice class for tortoiseshell, tortoiseshell and white, silver tabby, or any other tabby was headed by Mrs. Dan Logan's Adolphus Day Dream, a prize-winning kitten at the Botanic Gardens last Midsummer. He is by Lord Southampton ex Queen Bluebell, and was by many visitors called the ‘ prettiest cat in the show."

The special awards were as follows:
National Cat Club Ten-guinea Challenge Cup tor best short-haired cat in show (English or foreign), Mr. Sam Woodiwiss's Xenophon
National Cat Club Ten-guinea Challenge Cup for best long-haired cat (male or female), Miss Gertrude Willoughby's Fulmer Zaida.
Championship medals:
White long-haired, Mrs. F. Champion and Miss D. B. Champion's White Friar
Black long-haired, Dr. E. W. Roper's Johnnie Fawn
Blue long-haired, Mr. D. Leverson's Hermes
Smoke long-haired, Mrs. Harold V. James's Bakewell [Backwell] Jogram
Tortoiseshell, Miss Kate Sangster's Royal Yum-Yum
Tortoiseshell and white, Mrs. J. Pettitt's Dainty Doris
Silver tabby, Mrs. F. Champion's Lady Vere ae Vere
Any other tabby, Mrs. E. Davis's Tomasina Atkins
Manx, Mrs. H.C. Brooke's Bonhaki
Siamese, Mrs. May Robinson's Wankee
Black short-haired, Miss R. Mortival's Diamond II.
White short-haired, Miss R. Mortival's Young Diamond II.;
In blues, silver tabbies, and tortoiseshells (short-haired), Mr. Sam Woodiwiss took the medals.

THE LADIES' FIELD. February 4, 1899. No cat column

THE LADIES' FIELD. February 11, 1899, pg 418.
There was no Cat Gossip Column to be found; cat correspondence was at the foot of a dog article.
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.
META. - There is little doubt that the poor cat has an attack of bronchitis. Close up the box at the side, leave the window open, and beep the steam from a bronchitis kettle going for an hour or two, with some eucalyptus oil in the water, till she seems relieved. I should keep her in the infirmary for a bit, and not put her back to the others till she is stronger.
PRINCE. - Write to Lady Marcus Beresford, Bishopsgate, Englefield Green, about the kitten; she had some real beauties, if they are not all gone.
BEAGLE

THE LADIES' FIELD. February 18, 1899, pg 443.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD intends in future to breed principally blue Persians and Siamese, and with this object has been thinning out her cattery considerably, - retaining, however, one or two silvers and smokes. The celebrated orange, Lifeguard, is sold to Miss Cartmell. This cat is considered by most judges to be the best of his colour that has ever been exhibited. He is a most rare animal, being a bright and absolutely self-coloured orange, and he has a head of the most approved type, and eyes to match his coat. He has won several first prizes, specials, and championships. We believe the price paid was £°20.

ONE is always learning something new. A man who has travelled much, and spent some time in Persia, informed me that he never saw a long-haired cat in that country, but that common short-hairs, like English cats, were to be seen in swarms. He had seen numbers of "fluffy-tailed" cats in Russia.

It is curious to note the difference of opinion among the various judges concerning the colour a cat's eyes ought to be. It is quite understood nowadays that blues and blacks should have orange, and whites blue eyes, but there seems to be no fixed shade for the different tabbies, or for silvers, smokes. creams, etc. Some judges give all the prizes to silvers with green eyes, while others favour yellow-eyed cats. Brown tabbies seem to have eyes of all possible colours, and only a few fanciers insist upon the necessity of hazel eyes in cream, fawn, or orange cats. I think this a pity, as "sandy" cats with pale-coloured or greenish eyes look so washy and expressionless. The general opinion is that smoke cats should have amber eyes, but I find that a few judges like green quite as well. This is a point of interest, as smokes have been freely crossed with silvers and silver tabbies, and if these latter are to have green, and the smokes orange eyes, the cross will become inadvisable.

AT a recent meeting of the Cat Club Mrs. Bagster was appointed hon. secretary in place of Miss Manley, who found that the work of so large a club was too heavy for her, as she is also secretary of the Chow Club.

AT THE Edinburgh Show, on February 2nd and 3rd, the long-haired cats and Siamese were judged by Lady Marcus Beresford and Miss Simpson. The Cat Club medal for best long-haired cat went to Mrs. King's brown tabby, a magnificent cat, with a perfect head and wonderful coat. He nearly lost the medal through his bad temper, as he was so savage that it was almost impossible to get him out of his pen for inspection, and he remained buried in hay most of the time. The only cat which nearly approached the tabby in looks was Messrs. Drury Brothers' well-known Blue Boy II., who took first in the class for blue males. This much-discussed cat improves every day; he is growing larger, and is coming into even better coat than he was last month, and his colour, which has been so much abused, has vastly improved since I first made his acquaintance at the Crystal Palace. There is certainly no blue male now shown that can touch him in shape and head, and he has capital orange eyes. Mr Garrett's Lord Wimborne, which took second, is another fine cat, with a splendid head, but his eyes are green, and his coat light at the roots.

IN the chinchilla class Mr. Rintoul took first with Mercury, who is a large and very pale-coloured cat, but a bit marked on the head. The kitten class was headed by a sweet-faced, heavily-coated silver belonging to Miss Brown. In the variety class, two uncommonly good cats appeared. Mrs. Thompson's Monarch took first. He is so dark and smoked as to appear almost dirty black, but he has the shortest, broadest head imaginable, and straight, thick legs. He was shown in grand coat and condition. A splendid orange tabby, with good head and coat, took second; with Romaldkirk Admiral third, and Jael fourth. This was the strongest class in the show. Only one Siamese - an indifferent specimen - was shown. Miss Ruth Clark was the principal winner in' short-hairs.

MRS CLAUD ALEXANDER'S Ballochmyle Bumpums is certainly the best blue Russian I have ever seen in a show-pen, and at Westminster he took first and special with great ease. Mrs. Alexander was in luck when she bought him, as he was picked up in the Leadenhall Market: for 10s., and the curious part is that his mistress had no previous knowledge of cats to guide her choice.

THE NATIONAL CAT CLUB proposes, I understand, to hold a large Cat Show in Dublin in March, in connection with the Ladies' Kennel Association Dog Show. This will be a capital opportunity for Irish fanciers, who have long laboured under a great disadvantage when exhibiting; for cats which have come a long journey cannot look their best in the show pen, and the risk of sending: them so far is considerable.
DICK WHITTINGTON

The Editor will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her.

CAT GOSSIP. February 25, 1899, pg 556.

I AM truly sorry to chronicle the death of Miss White Atkins's Bitterne Cuckoo, the very handsome young blue male which took second at Westminster. Cuckoo was only ten months old, and had a brilliant career before him. He was a light blue with beautiful orange eyes, and by some people was preferred to his successful rival Blue Boy II.; there certainly was not much to choose between the two. Miss Atkins is inconsolable over her loss, as she bred Cuckoo herself from Blue Royal and Bitterne Syren, a daughter of Turkish Delight. He was a most charming cat and a great pet, running where he liked about the house and garden. Syren is expecting another litter shortly by the same sire, and it is to be hoped that this may contain a worthy successor to poor Cuckoo.

ANOTHER handsome young blue male cat which has joined the majority is Mrs. Young's Blue Jacket II., one of the handsome trio whose portraits appeared in THE LDIES' FIELD some months ago. There has been much illness among cats lately, and an epidemic of diphtheria seems to have attacked several northern catteries. Mrs. Young's pets suffered severely, and she lost eight altogether, but has successfully nursed fourteen back to health. I have heard of some other victims of this terrible complaint whose lives were saved by applying mustard plasters to their throats and dosing them with quantities of brandy. They must, of course, be kept very warm and given constant nourishment.

THE smoke male Monarch, which won in the variety class at Edinburgh, was claimed by Mr. Rintoul, of Glasgow, at the catalogue price of £5 5s. Monarch is a young cat, and has as yet only sired one family of kittens, I believe, but these took first in the litter class at the Scottish Cat Club Exhibition, and one of them was quite the sensation of the show.

MR. RINTOUL is starting a large cattery, and intends to keep seven or eight stud cats and about fifteen queens. He is determined to have nothing but the best cats that can be procured, both for showing and breeding.

MISS GERTRUDE WILLOUGHBY has a promising young silver male in Fulmer Silver King. She purchased this cat quite recently, as a mate for Ch. Zaida, and showed him at Brighton and at Finchley, on both of which occasions he took second. Though not as free from markings as he might be, Silver King is a capitally-made cat, with a good head and coat. Miss Willoughby naturally feels anxious at risking Zaida by sending her on long railway journeys, so she is glad to have a suitable mate for the little champion in her own cattery.

THERE is much difference of opinion about the correct colour and name for the fashionable light silver cat. For some years they were known as chinchillas, and this seemed a rather happy name, as, though the cats' coats are not dark at the roots like the chinchilla tur, the general external effect is the same. The Cat Club commenced calling these cats "self-silvers," but this name is not a success, tor in the first place it is not euphonious, and in the second place it is incorrect and causes much confusion. A solution of the difficulty has been conveyed to me by several correspondents. It is suggested that three classes should he provided tor silver cats: 1. Silver tabby or striped silver; 2. chinchilla or shaded silver; 3. self-silver or unmarked silver.

THE blue-eyed white Persian is becoming popular once more, and I hear of several fanciers who are going in for this charming variety. Amongst others are Lady Marcus Beresford, Miss Willoughby, Miss Packham, and Mrs. Champion. The difficulty that now arises is that as the breed has so long been neglected there are very few good males to be found. At the recent Westminster Show only Mrs. Pettitt's King of Pearls put in an appearance. A cat much admired is Mrs. Champion's White Friar, and his eyes are a lovely forget-me-not blue. I believe Mrs. Champion has a son of his, who promises to be even better than the sire.

MRS. MACKENZIE STEWART, who is well known as an exhibitor of Persian cats, is now going in largely for short-hairs, and has purchased Mr. Bolton's handsome silver tabby, Vulcan; Mrs. Herring's tortoiseshell, Miss Peggy, who took first in the novice class at Westminster; and several other good cats.
DICK WHITTINGTON

The Editor will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her.

CAT GOSSIP. March 4, 1899, pg 556.

I HEAR from Scotland that the craze tor chinchilla or self-silver cats has commenced there, and one breeder informs me that he could have sold fourteen had he had them. He adds that eleven kittens from his best queen, herself hardly more than a baby, are already bespoken.

MRS DEAN informs me that Woolloomooloo, her celebrated blue Persian male, is more popular than ever, and that, so far as she can hear, no kitten of his was shown was shown during 1898 without receiving some notice. This is saying a great deal, as a glance at the catalogue of any of our leading cat shows will reveal that almost every other blue cat entered is a child of the old champion.

I HAVE recently seen a little daughter of his belonging to Mrs. White, of Kensington, and I think her one of the most fascinating little persons I ever beheld. Had she been shown at Westminster last month she must surely have caught the judge's eye. She is a dark blue, with deep orange eyes, and a sweet round baby face. She has a beautiful coat and frill, and the shortest of legs and tails.

MRS THRING tells me that she still has Robin, the smoke litter brother to the celebrated Roy. I must say I envy her this cat, as when they were together I always considered him an even better cat than Roy. Mrs. Thring says that he has been looking lovely this winter, and she greatly regretted that, as she was changing her residence, she has been unable to show him and her beautiful cream male Royal Sovereign. Poor Sovereign died a week ago, from one of those mysterious complaints which have carried off so many cats this winter.

WE ARE pleased to hear that that enthusiastic fancier, Miss Leake, has so far recovered that she has been out for a drive. Some months ago she met with a carriage accident; a hare ran among the horse's feet and so frightened it that it bolted and upset the trap. Miss Leake was much bruised and shaken, and has been on the sick list ever since. Her presence was much missed at the Westminster show, but her cattery was well represented by the silver tabbies and self-silvers for which it is so justly famed. Miss Leake is almost the only person who still goes in largely for the old-fashioned heavy-banded silver tabby, of which Abdul Zaphir of Dingley is so excellent a type. I cannot at this moment recollect how many prizes this cat has won, but believe he has taken about seven firsts at the Crystal Palace - a very good record and a well deserved one. It is a pity the silver tabbies have gone out of fashion the last few years.
DICK WHITTINGTON.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.
CROSS PATCH. - I think you wall find your kitten will gradually get used to the dogs. On no account let the dogs chase her, or even try to play with her for a few days. I have had cate and dogs together always, and never found the least trouble in making them friendly after the first alarm had worn off.
DODO. - Write to Miss Hester Cochrane, Alderholt, Fordingbridge, Salisbury; she can give you more information on the subject than I can.
The Editor will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her.

MRS. CHAMPION'S CATTERIES AT CHISWICK. March 4, 1899, pg 555.

T HE beautiful Persian chinchilla cats owned by Mrs. F. Champion, of Fairlawn Grove, Chiswick, and her daughters, are well-known to cat fanciers and to frequenters of cat shows. Charming, indeed, are these felines, arrayed in the softest of silver-grey coats, and great and well-deserved as is the admiration bestowed upon them whenever they appear on the show benches, their full perfection can only be appreciated when they are seen in the unrestrained freedom of home life, when they are the pets and companions of their mistresses, and not show cats in the proper significance of the term.

The king of the goodly company is Lord Argent, and Lady Vere de Vere is its queen. Lord Argent has his own castle, in which he habitually lives; he is of great size and a weight and of marvellous beauty; the breadth of his skull is immense, showing great power; his paws are also large and well developed, and sweet and gentle as he looks, woe betide any enemy that falls into his clutches. He is the sire of an enormous number of prize-winners. He himself is too fully occupied as a stud cat to be often seen on the show bench, but has won first and second prizes, a special, and a silver medal on the sole occasions on which he has been exhibited. He is by The Silver Lambkin out of Sylvia. His portrait conveys but an imperfect idea of his great beauty, his lovely yellow topaz eyes, and his magnificent: proportions. Lady Vere de Vere, who is Lord Argent's daughter out of Sylph, fully lives up to her name. She is a proud, not to say vain, queen cat, and certainly is fully cognisant of her many charms. She delights in beings photographed, and puts herself in picturesque and artistic positions involuntarily. She is now but little over two years old, having, been born on August 22nd, 1896. Her show successes include a second at the Crystal Palace Show of 1897; a first and two specials at Southall; a first at Isleworth; and a second and third at the Crystal Palace Show of last October. Lady Vere de Vere has always had the misfortune to be shown when dead out of coat; so few who have only seen her on the show benches can judge of her attractions when at her best. She is an exquisite cat, with lovely tabby markings, a nice short, pretty face, with a sweet expression, a good frill, a delightfully cobby body, short legs, a well-marked and very clean coat, and a grand brush. We shall hope to see her in all her glory at future cat shows.

Argent Rex and Argent Star are a lovely pair of the very palest chinchilla Persian kittens, by Lord Argent out of Lavender. They were brought out at six weeks old, when they won the second prize at the NC.C. Botanic Gardens Show last Midsummer. They were greatly admired, being the lightest pair of chinchilla kittens in the show. Argent Star was purchased by Lady Marcus Beresford; both kittens had particularly lovely heads, in this point strongly resembling their handsome sire. Another pair of silver tabby Persian kittens brought out at the same show by Mrs. Champion were Argent Sprite and Argent Fairy. These also were by Lord Argent, but their dam was Lady Busir. They were a pair of grandly-marked kittens, of rare colour, shape, and coat, and they were awarded a first, two specials, and a championship. This charming, picture of the pretty pair was taken when they were six weeks old.

Another cat who reigns supreme in his own castle out of doors is the fine blue-eyed white Persian White Friar, whom many will remember as being the winner of many prizes at the last Crystal Palace Cat Show. These were two firsts and seconds, two challenge trophies, the N.C.C. championship, and six specials. He is the sire of a lovely kitten out of White Witch, named White Czar, who promises to grow up a splendid father. White Friar was exhibited at the Botanic Gardens Show by Mrs. Horsfall, under the name of Tim of Redgrave, and was there purchased from her by Mrs. Champion. He is a friendly as well as a beautiful person, and shares his castle with a fine black cat, with whom he seems to be on the best possible terns.

A large and most comfortable room upstairs is given up to a number of queen cats; it is divided off into separate compartments, so that each cat has her own kennel run. There is also a special run for young kittens, where they can play and enjoy themselves in approved kitten fashion. It is here that White Czar and his pretty mother, a handsome white Persian cat, though naturally now dead out of coat, spend their happy days. Another lovely queen cat is Silver Spray, the mother of Argent Tabby and Argent Nymph, another pair of beauties sired by Lord Argent. Here, also, is Princess Nicotine, a beautiful smoke, with a dense and perfectly coloured coat. This warm, well-lighted, and perfectly arranged indoor cattery is, indeed, a place in which a lover of cats would like to linger long.

The outdoor catteries are arranged round the walls of a garden, which has a central lawn on which the cats can take exercise in fine weather; but so large and commodious is the special house of each cat, with its upstairs and downstairs apartments and wired-in and covered run, that they can in no way suffer from confinement even during the most prolonged spell of bad weather. I have seen many catteries, but never any in which so much space and freedom are given to each separate animal. In summer they are shaded and beautified by the lovely foliage of some fine acacia trees. When one sees these lucky cats at home, one is not surprised at Mrs. Champion's successes on the show benches, which are shared by her daughters.

Mrs. Champion is a genuine lover of animals, and has been the owner of many horses, dogs, and other pets; to use her own words, she had complete menagerie of her own when she lived in her country home; now that she is housed in a suburb of London, she keeps nothing but cats, with the exception of one delightful little terrier, Turk, not at all a show dog, but everybody's pet. Though she has only shown for three years, she has had more wins than many who have been double and treble the time exhibiting. Her cats enjoy perfect health, and consequently are always in first-rate condition, even when shown out of coat.

One charming kitten I have left unmentioned. This is Argent Seraph. an unmarked chinchilla, by Lord Argent out of The Seraph, who was the winner of a first and second, a silver medal, and another special the only times he was shown. His dam, The Seraph, was the winner of five specials at the Crystal Palace Show of 1896, and the silver medal tor the best kitten in the show. Most, if not all, of the photographs so reproduced were taken by Miss Champion, who is a clever and most successful amateur photographer. - BEAGLE.

CAT GOSSIP. March 11, 1899, pg 590.

CH. LORD SOUTHAMPTON is, so far, the cat of the year. At Westminster he carried all before him, and at one swoop earned the coveted title of champion. He won the Cat Club gold medal for the best long-haired cat in the show, Lady Marcus Beresford's gold medal for best long-haired cat belonging to a member of the Cat Club, a challenge cup, and some other prizes. LORD SOUTHAMPTON was bred by Mrs. Greenwood, his present owner, from the celebrated Silver Lambkin and Southampton Duchess, a well-known winner, who is now in the possession of Miss Cochran. He is nearly five years old, and has won a number of prizes at different shows, notably at Holland Park and at the Crystal Palace.

MRS. GREENWOOD is devoted to her lovely pet, who is known in the home circle as Tommy Dodd. He is most gentle and playful, and when he went to be photographed refused to sit up, and lay on his back rolling, about and asking tor a game. His progeny have been most successful in the show-pen, and he is the proud father of three first prize-winners at the Crystal Palace. That he is a most valuable animal may be proved by the fact that I, at this moment, know of someone who would gladly give £50 for him.

I am inclined to think that chinchilla cats are later in developing than any others; at any rate, neither of the well-known champions of that colour, Lord Southampton and Fulmer Zaida, made a sensation on their first appearance as full-grown cats of a year or two old, but gradually improved in every point until they came to their present beauty. In my own experience I have found that silver cats, marked and unmarked, as a rule, get lighter every moult until they are about three years old.

MISS TAYLOR'S Blinks has just had a fine family of five self-silver kittens by Silver Chieftain. Unfortunately the palest one tumbled overboard and is dead, but this, so far as I understand, is the invariable habit of the palest kitten in every silver litter, so is not to be wondered at, and great things are expected of the remaining four. Blinks had seven kittens by the same sire last autumn. One took first at Westminster, and all were exceptionally good.

MRS. MACKENZIE STEWART has sold the well-known cream Persian male Zoroaster to Mr. Frankland. Zoroaster took four prizes at the Crystal Palace in 1896, and a cream-coloured son of his won the Cat Club medal at Glasgow in 1898. Another of his sons, out of Miss Taylor's Tawney, is a blue, and so exceedingly lovely that his mistress refused £25 for him. Zoroaster has the most marvellous, huge, dark brown eyes ever seen in a cat, and I have always thought that if I could establish a race of blues with these eyes my fortune would be made.

I HAVE been specially requested to write a few notes on "the ways" of Siamese cats. This is a large order, and cannot be carried out all at once, but an instalment at intervals may be found interesting. I am firmly convinced that Siamese are the most fascinating and companionable of all cats, and I can find it in my heart to love them better than dogs.

Buy a Siamese kitten of ten weeks old, and when it has reached the age of three months you will long to drown it or give it away, but let another month pass, and if you really have it constantly with you, you will agree with me as to its charms. The poor little Siamese is so affectionate that parting from his friends and family plunges him in the deepest depths of woe, and, being provided with a peculiarly strong and penetrating voice, he mourns their absence night and day. Alter a time he fixes his affections upon his new owner, and then all is well.

Recently I had a pair of beautiful Siamese kittens given to me, but the female was so wild and shy that she hid in the darkest corner she could find, and fought and struggled when handled. She adored her brother, who was a most friendly little person, and if I picked him up and petted him she would emerge from her seclusion and rush about the room, and finally climb up on my knee beside him. One sad day poor little Chin was taken ill. His sister was most brutal and callous, and even bit his tail when he lay dying, but after his body was taken away she began to mourn. All day long she screamed, and her only happiness was when I nursed and petted her. After three days she also "took ill" and died. Whether Chin's complaint was infectious or she died of a broken heart I know not, but I still regret those two kittens.

One of the nicest points about the Siamese is their affection for dogs. I had one that slept every night on my dog's back, and the dog would lick her and play with her for hours. If I annoyed her by combing her hair and tidying her up generally, she would, as soon as released, go and sit beside her friend and sulk. I could never keep a Siamese cat in a cattery as I do Persians; they somehow seem quite different, and I feel that il is positively cruel to shut then up and leave them, though it would be impossible to let a full-grown male run free, as he would probably destroy every other cat he met.

I HEAR that Lady Marcus Beresford is delighted with her cats' health and condition. Not to have one out o! health in any way is most satisfactory in so large a cattery, and it speaks well for the care and attention lavished on the inmates. Lady Marcus has recently purchased a beautiful black Persian female, which is descended from the old celebrity, Ch Neptune, and which has inherited his glorious orange eyes. Lady Marcus expects an enormous and very magnificent black male home from India shortly.

SILVER CLOUD, a handsome self-silver, full sister to the well-known Silver Mist, and dam of Silver Lustre, is leaving Bishopsgate to become an inmate of Miss Hester Cochran's cattery at Witchampton. Cloud has been mated with her grandson, Sweetheart, and as this alliance produced last year some exquisite self-silvers, the next family is looked forward to with interest.

THE accompanying photograph is of interest, as it represents a remarkably young-looking cat for his years. Fritz belongs to Mrs. Powell, of Hampton Hill, who has had him since he was a tiny kitten, and he is a tremendous favourite with his master and mistress.
DICK WHITTINGTON

The Editor will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her.

CAT GOSSIP. March 18, 1899, pg 8.

MRS. GRAHAM MENZIES has sold the blue Persian male Zulu to Miss Gertrude Willoughby. Zulu, who was formerly the property of Lady Marcus Beresford, is one of the best-headed cats I have ever seen. He is a pure light blue, and has won several prizes, while his kittens have done brilliantly in the show pens. To replace Zulu Mrs. Menzies has purchased Kingfisher from Mrs. Woodhouse. This cat is well known to all show-goers, as he has twice at Cruft's and once at the Crystal Palace taken the first prize, and he was second and third at Brighton in different years, and second at Westminster. Unfortunately, he has a tiny white spot on his throat, so has to be shown in the variety class. He was bred by Miss Cochran from Ch. Bundle and Moth. _

MISS PACKHAM is an ardent admirer of the unmarked silver or chinchilla cat. She has recently purchased Lady Marcus Beresford's beautiful Silver Dew and Miss Cochran's Silver Charm, which took third at Brighton. I hear that Lady Marcus Beresford is importing some long-haired cats direct from Persia. Notable instances of the imported type are the following three cats, all from the Bishopsgate Cattery: Cora, a tortoiseshell and white, now dead; Kismet, a beautiful little sable; and Nada the Lily, a white.

I am exceedingly sorry to hear that Mercury, who did so well at Brighton for Mrs. Champion, and afterwards, in the hands of Mr. Rintoul, took first at Edinburgh and Falkirk, has died of diphtheria. He was a very large and handsome cat, self-coloured on the body, and only slightly marked on the head. He was a son of Silver Lambkin. The Hon. Mrs. Brett has purchased the black neuter Persian Pat-Paw, which took first and two specials at Westminster. I am sorry to hear that Mrs. G. Seton has found it necessary, owing to ill-health, to give up all her cats.

THE NATIONAL CAT CLUB is determined that its Dublin Show shall be a success, and its offer to personally conduct any cats whose owners are unable to accompany them, should draw a lot of entries. Mr. F. Gresham and Mrs. Baker are the judges appointed, and their task will surely be a heavy one, as both have some classes of dogs to judge also.

THE recent discussion as to the advisability of inoculating dogs for distemper has inevitably roused some interest in catty circles. Considerable warmth is shown over the question, and one lady has even suggested compulsory inoculation before cat shows. I am not sufficiently well up in the matter to pass an opinion, and can only say that I should not care to have my cats inoculated in the meantime. I wish Professor Woodroffe Hill had allowed Mr. Sewell to carry out his proposed experiments, as the opinion of such an authority would have been invaluable. There seems to be considerable doubt as to whether inoculation does prevent distemper, and I can't help feeling that there is some risk, especially to delicate, highly-bred kittens. Everyone has ideas of his own on these matters, but I know one experienced breeder and exhibitor of cats who has all her kittens vaccinated, and believes firmly that this prevents distemper.

A CERTAIN amount of illness seems to be inevitable after both dog and cat shows, but more particularly the latter and I think this is mainly due to the fact that dogs, as a rule, have more outdoor exercise than cats, and are more accustomed to sudden changes of atmosphere. It is unusual for a cat which has been allowed to run about as it will, to be taken ill alter a show, while those which are kept shut up frequently show signs of indisposition.
DICK WHITTINGTON.

The Editor will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her.

CAT GOSSIP. March 25, 1899, pg 73.

IT s said that in Portugal Persian cats are in great demand, and that silver tabbies are first favourites. Blues are despised, as there is a short-haired blue cat in the country, and therefore this colour arouses suspicions of a cross.

I Hear that Mrs. Greenwood thinks of leaving Salisbury, and hopes to get a country house at Gillingham, Dorset. If she is successful, I expect to hear that she will once more go in for breeding cats. During her residence in Salisbury, Mrs. Greenwood has been unable to keep many cats, and it was very difficult for her to manage with Lord Southampton, but she was determined not to part with him if she could possibly help it. Lord Southampton has now four wives - Lady Betty, a tortoiseshell; Sweetbriar, a self-silver, sister of Sweet Lavender; and two young cats from Mrs. Cartwright's cattery.

THERE is some diversity of opinion as to the proper shape for a Siamese cat's head. The generally accepted idea is that it should be narrow and marten-shaped, but several leading fanciers prefer a short broad face, which is certainly hard to procure in a Siamese. One well-known judge asserts that the short face shows an English cross, but this I know to be wrong, as I know a strain of imported cats - undoubtedly pure bred - in which this shape of head is transmitted from generation to generation.

I HAVE been informed that by crossing a Siamese with a blue-eyed white cat, kittens will be produced to all intents and purposes like pure-bred Siamese, but having the English type of head. I recollect about six years ago Mrs. Balding mated her white Chinese female with Miss Forestier Walker's Tiam-o-Shiam, and there were two kittens, males, both shaped like Siamese, but one was an ordinary grey tabby, and the other a weird-looking black with greeny-blue eyes.

Kallikrates, Mrs. Hallam's young blue male, is a nice cat, with good coat and colour and a pretty frill. He took a second and a third at the L.K.A. Botanic Gardens Show. He is a son of the ill-fated Don Pedro.

THE chocolate Siamese is now coming into fashion, and Miss Sutherland has some splendid cats of this colour. They are, in my opinion, quite as pretty as the Royal, and their eyes seem to be of a deeper blue, which looks splendid against their deep seal-brown fur. I behave they are somewhat hardier than the Royal cats.

I am exceedingly sorry to hear that the cat classes at Dublin had to be cancelled. Irish fanciers have always wailed so over their lack of opportunities for exhibiting, that Mrs. Robinson naturally expected a good entry, and many people must have been disappointed at the absence of the cats.

A COMMITTEE and general meeting of the Cat Club will be held at 3, Carlton House Terrace, S.W., by kind permission of Lily Duchess of Marlborough, on Thursday, March 30th, at 2.30 p.m.

MRS CLAUD ALEXANDER tells me of a new and highly valued acquisition in the shape of a freshly-caught wild cat from Inverness. Mrs. Alexander is determined to come to the front in the cat fancy, and at Westminster Show she claimed the first prize Manx, a magnificent black cat, named Jim Crow. This cat's success caused some indignation among his disappointed rivals, who had expected to carry all before them; but he is a splendid cat, with a better head than is usually seen on a Manx, and magnificent yellow eyes.
DICK WHITTINGTON.

DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."

CAT GOSSIP. April 1, 1899, pg 123.

MISS WHITE ATKINS tells me that she has just purchased a charming Siamese female kitten, which she has named Chikai, from "The Jungle Book." This little person weighs, at the age of five months, 6lb., which weight is surely a record for a Siamese, as, in my experience, they are usually smaller than other cats. Miss Atkins is once more on the move, and hopes to get a house at Farnham, but as yet nothing is settled, which is trying, as several families of kittens are expected shortly.

I HAVE a letter from Miss Winifred Beal, of cream Persian fame, in which she tells me that her cats have come most successfully through their show season, without illness of any kind. Their best wins have been at the Crystal Palace, Westminster, and the two Brighton shows; they also took some prizes at Edinburgh a fortnight atter Westminster, but Midshipmite returned from Scotland with his coat so dreadfully tangled that he will not be able to appear in the show pen again for some time.

FULMER POWDER-PUFF is a white with deep blue eyes. She formerly belonged to Mrs. Marriott, for whom she took second at the Crystal Palace in 1896. Since coming into Miss Willoughby's possession, she took third at Brighton L.K.A. Show, and at Westminster would most likely have held a higher position, had she not, unfortunately, been entered in the male cat class by mistake.

MRS. GREENWOOD has joyfully shaken the dust of Salisbury from off her feet, and taken Peace Marsh House at Gillingham, Dorset. I hope to hear shortly that she has gathered some more cats around her, as while living, in Salisbury she had to part with nearly all her pets.

ZAIDA has a brother (from the same litter, I believe), who has won even more prizes than the little champion herself, though he has not yet appeared at the large shows. This cat, whose name is Silver Gift, is a silver tabby of quite unusual beauty, and as his owner, Mr. Spurry, of Cardigan, says, he is a worthy son of Silver Laddie.

II has been suggested by breeders of experience that by mating a chinchilla cat with a black, the old-fashioned, heavily-barred silver tabby might be produced. Miss Tayler tried this cross last autumn, and her black queen Blinks had a fine family of seven kittens by the chinchilla Silver Chieftain. Three of these kittens I have had excellent opportunities of inspecting. King of the Silvers, a Westminster winner, is a magnificent pale smoke, owned by Mrs. H. B. Thompson, and this lady has just sold his sister Belinda to Miss Cochran, who owns a third kitten from the litter named Thistledown. Belinda is a beautiful, clearly-marked silver tabby, and Thistledown is a charming silvery smoke. Blinks this spring has four silver kittens by the same sire, and the best was bespoken months ago by Miss Cochran, while two others go to Mrs. Mills and Mrs. Oman respectively.

FULMER SILVER KING was mentioned in these columns as a handsome young chinchilla male. He is the property of Miss Gertrude Willoughby, and I have an impression that he comes from the same strain as Miss Packham's Ting Ting and Elsa. Silver King has a fine head and a grand frill and thick woolly coat, but shows just a trifle too much marking for the present fashion. He took second to Mowgli at Brighton Aquarium.

MRS. KENNAWAY has a capital pair of blue queens in Mopps and Mia. One is by Patrick Blue and the other by Blue Royal, but they are much alike, and both own the same mother, Sheila, who was bred by Mrs. Cartwright from her magnificent old blue stud cat, Timkins. Timkins is the sire of many celebrities, the best, perhaps, being Ch. Upwood Toby, who took the cup at Clifton. He was a real gem, with a head and shape equal to those of any cat I have seen. Alas! he died when still quite young.
DICK WHITTINGTON.

CAT GOSSIP. April 8, 1899, pg 173.

WHILE there is so much illness prevalent in the cat world it may not come amiss to speak of a simple yet common cause of illness among cats. I have a smooth tabby, which lives in the kitchen and acts as foster to Persian kittens. Until last autumn she was never sick or sorry, but about November she began to mope and would not eat. She got frightfully thin and melancholy, and I thought she would die, but could not think what ailed her. In January she began to mend and was soon quite well again, but a fortnight ago she suddenly became seriously ill. Some time before I had a cat with diphtheria, but it had recovered without infecting any other, and I supposed all danger past, but this old cat's symptoms were exactly like the diphtheria patient's. She could not eat, and a lay with her mouth open and saliva running from it all the time. She is a difficult cat to handle, but I was determined to make a careful examination of her mouth and throat, so held her and forced her mouth open, though she yelled as if in pain. I at once thought I detected a slight irregularity in one back tooth, so I pushed it gently and she screamed, and I soon saw that a tiny piece of bone was wedged under the tooth, and an abscess had formed. A match stump soon removed the bone - I fear it slackened the tooth too - and the minute I put the old lady down she went to her plate, and having demolished her neglected breakfast went on to her dinner, and has been perfectly well ever since.

THOUGH the story has not been made public, most cat-fanciers have heard rumours of "the great ear-cropping case," and therefore I think it only fair, now that the mystery is explained, to make the real facts known. Some months ago, Mr. Witt, of Birmingham, purchased from Mr. Horril a litter of four blue Persian kittens by Ch. Locksley ex Ismene. The kittens were to be delivered when eight weeks old, and Mr. Witt to take all risks. On arrival Mr. Witt discovered that the ears of all four appeared to have been trimmed, and he wrote to Mr. Horril about the matter, and was informed that the mother had nibbled them, which statement he not unnaturally, did not believe. Several well-known fanciers, when appealed to, gave it as their opinion that a cat would not nibble her kittens' ears, and the vet's verdict was that they had been trimmed with a sharp instrument. Both parties were inclined to fight the matter, but finally it was settled out of court, and then the real culprit was discovered, for Ismene has now been detected performing the same operation on a younger litter. In order to satisfy herself about the matter Miss Taylor took charge of the cat and boarded it with a vet at Parkstone, and she is now armed with two veterinary certificates and the testimony of her own eyes and those of another witness to say that Ismene is the culprit.

MISS WHITE ATKINS has so many orders for the males from her blue female Syren's next litter, that it is doubtful if she will be able to fulfil them all. These kittens are in great demand, being from the same parents as poor Bitterne Cuckoo.

THE two fascinating photographs on this page represent Ch. Lord Southampton, one of the many beautiful Persians owned by Mrs. Greenwood, of Salisbury.

ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENT.
MOUSTACHES. - -Sponge the cat's ears out gently with carbolic acid and water - one part of carbolic to eighty of water. Dry carefully, and put in a pinch of boracic acid powder. If this is done once a week for a short time the cat will soon be all right. DICK WHITTINGTON.
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."

CAT GOSSIP. April 15, 1899, pg 278.

A COMMITTEE meeting of the Cat Club was held at 3, Carlton House Terrace, on Thursday, March 30th, by kind permission of Lily Duchess of Marlborough. There were present: Mr. Gambier Bolton (in the chair), Lady Marcus Beresford, Mrs. Bagster, Miss Simpson, Miss Cochran, and Mr. Hawkins. The minutes of the last meeting were read and signed, and the following new members were elected: Miss Virginia Leech, Mr. J. McCarthy, Mr. Claud Alexander, and Mr. A. V. D. Rintoul. It was announced that the number of members whose subscriptions were paid up to date was 153. A general meeting was then held, and besides those mentioned above, the following were present: Mr. A. E. Bateman, G.C.M.G. (in the chair), Lady Maitland, Mrs. Robert Locke, Mrs. Hill, Mrs. Hardy, Mrs. Brodie, Miss Shapcott, Mrs. Falconer Sinclair, Mrs. Herring, Miss Kerswill, a representative of Mrs. Marion Grey, Mrs. Etheridge, Mrs. Davies, and Mrs. Campbell. Mr. Hawkins read over the balance sheet, which showed that, after paying all expenses and handing over a cheque for £53 odd to the Deptford fund, the club had a balance in hand of £188 4s. 8d. The question as to the advisability of providing separate classes for shaded and for self-colour silvers was discussed, and the decision postponed to a later meeting. Mrs. Herring suggested that in future special judging pens should be provided at club shows, each judge to be provided with a light wheel table, on which two pens should be fixed. This matter was left for the committee to decide upon. A hearty vote of thanks was accorded to Mr. Hawkins for his services as hon. treasurer, also to the show executive, and especially to Lady Marcus Beresford, for all their trouble, and finally to Mr. Bateman for presiding at the meeting.

THE accompanying photograph of Topso of Dingley is of great interest to all cat fanciers. He was the property of Miss Anderson Leake, and was born in May, 1886, and died in October, 1895. Miss Leake purchased him from a caretaker in London when eight months old, through an advertisement in the Bazaar, which described him as a "grey Persian female cat," and he was then known as Topsy. At a later date it was discovered that he was of the male sex, and henceforth he became Topso. In 1887 Topso took first at the Crystal Palace, and in 1888 his son Felix took his place, which he kept until 1891, when his son and Topso's grandchild, Abdul Zaphir, was first, as he has been six times, In fact, these three cats have won in twelve years eleven first prizes at the Crystal Palace, two gold and three silver medals, besides numerous firsts at other shows, the most recent being Westminster, where Abdul Zaphir took first and challenge cup. Nearly all our leading silver tabbies have been nearly related to this strain, and such names as Lady Grey, Climax, Trappee, and Huz of Dingley reflect further glory upon the illustrious Topso. The family is celebrated for their clear silver ground colour with strong black markings, and all have a lovely texture of coat and show lots of quality.

MRS. ROBERT LOCKE has been visiting England, and is taking back to her mother, Mrs. Clinton Locke, of Chicago, some really fine cats. These include an orange male from Lady Marcus Beresford, and a pair of Siamese from Miss Sutherland.

MRS. CLINTON LOCKE, of Chicago, is a leading light in the cat fancy "on the other side." She is an enthusiastic member of the Cat Club, in whose register her cats are entered, and many of her pets have been sent to her from England. She is now, to use her own words, in the throes of forming a cat club in America. Her tastes are varied, but white, chinchilla, and orange are the colours she most favours among Persians, and she is also going in for a pair of Siamese cats.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.
MRS. IBBOTSON. - It is impossible to say from your description if an operation is necessary for the cat's eyes. If they have been scratched they will probably be inflamed, and look as if a blue film had grown over the eye. In this case bathing with boracic lotion would do good, but everything depends on the cause of the trouble, and a clever vet. could certainly operate if necessary. There is little likelihood of the cat's getting lost, as his instinct will bring him home. The sooner he is shown to a vet. the better.
PETE. - The matted hair must be carefully cut away with a pair of scissors. Snip the lump in every direction, and comb gently with a coarse comb, and pull them out with your fingers. He will look rather ragged for a time, but this cannot be helped. Next year when he begins to moult comb him regularly, so that the hair does not get matted. DICK WHITTINGTON.
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."

CAT GOSSIP. April 22, 1899, pg 278.

MISS FRANCES SIMPSON'S beautiful brown tabby stud cat Persimmon is now at Bishopsgate, as Lady Marcus Beresford has kindly consented to take charge of him. Miss Simpson is unable to have him at home, and he has been with Mrs. Seton, who is, however, leaving home, and so cannot keep him any longer. Persimmon's first kittens have just arrived, their mother being Miss Simpson's sable Dawna. There are three promising brown tabbies and one jet black baby.

MRS. MACKENZIE STEWART has had the misfortune to lose her beautiful blue female Marie Louise. This cat is a great loss to the cat world generally, for I have always maintained that her shape and coat were unique. She had taken several prizes, and had bred, I think, two kittens last year. I can only hope, tor Mrs. Stewart's sake, that she has not parted with these. Poor Marie caught cold while away from home and died of pleurisy.

I HEAR that Miss Willoughby has had a beautiful orange Persian male presented to her, so I shall expect to see her exhibiting some fine specimens of this beautiful, if somewhat unpopular, variety. The Fulmer Catteries will soon be busy, as litters are expected from Ch. Zaida, Blue Dora, Jetterina, and a Siamese.

MRS. ANDERSON LEAKE'S beautiful silver, Countess of Dingley, has one magnificent pale-coloured son. She is devoted to him, but has no intention of spoiling him, and therefore growls when he is not polite.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD tells me that this year she means to keep the pick of her litters for showing, and this is what I think all true fanciers should do - that is to say, they should keep their best kittens till they are eight or ten months old at least, not necessarily for exhibition, as many fanciers object to exhibiting young stock, but to see what they will turn out, and to get an idea of the type their cats are producing. It is very little easier to judge an eight weeks kitten than a puppy of the same age, and they both alter so much.

THE charming specimen of the feline race depicted on this page is one which will excite the envy of many readers. The Bogie Man has many virtues, among which may be counted - in spite of his name - a great love of children, with whom he is most gentle. He is also a first-class mouser.

I HEAR rumours of four or five large cat shows to be held during 1899, so we shall all have opportunities of covering ourselves with glory.

WHY does not some enterprising Irish fancier get up a show for Irish cats? There was one in prospect in connection with the dog show, but when the L.K.A. took the matter up it was allowed to drop, and so between two stools our neighbours fell to the ground. If some private individual would start a subscription list and hold a small show in Dublin merely to make a start, it would be a great thing. I think it a pity, as the N.C.C. claims to be so well off, that the cat classes at the Dublin L.K.A. Show were cancelled. The club is supposed to exist for the help and advancement of the cat, but it seems this is only the case when profit is likely to result from its generosity. Surely the surplus funds could not be spent in a better manner.

CAT GOSSIP. April 29, 1899, pg 324.

MISS ANDERSON LEAKE is so far improved in health that she hopes shortly to go away for a change, consequently some of her cats have, temporarily, to find new homes. The well-known Winsome of Dingley is going to Miss Cochran on breeding terms. Winsome is expecting a family by Bitterne Silver Chieftain. Her former kittens have been by Lord Southampton, and all turned out well, and included such winners as The Seraph, Lovely Lad of Dingley, and Madame Delicieuse.

THE Scottish Rabbit, Cat, and Cavy Club has been reformed under new and enthusiastic management, and is now busy collecting subscriptions for a cat challenge cup to be competed for by long-haired cats, the club already possessing one for short-hairs. The Scottish fanciers are most energetic, and seem able and willing to support an enormous number of shows in the year. One of the largest is usually held in Edinburgh in the month of May. In England this would be impossible, as breeders would stand aghast at the idea of showing their cats in one of the busiest months of the year. Another institution is the Scottish Cat Club, which seems to be a very well-managed and prosperous society.

ROMALDKIRK, Midshipmite, and Admiral have a lot of new relations, for their mother has just produced eight kittens by the sire of the Heavenly Twins. Ismene, the blue Persian female who caused such trouble by biting her kittens' ears, is now the property of Miss Scilla Bartlett. Miss Bartlett was pleased to think that she had cured Ismene's unpleasant and cannibal-like trick by painting the kittens' ears with bitter aloes, but, baulked here, the too affectionate mother took to nibbling her children's toes! From Miss White Atkins I hear that Syren has three exquisite blue kittens by Blue Royal, and that Fairy has four silvers by Silver Chieftain.

BY THE WAY, the Cat Club's Register, which has been in the printers' hands for some time, will appear very shortly. It should be of great use to breeders, containing as it does the correct pedigrees of about seven hundred cats.

MISS PACKHAM'S chinchilla Silver Charm has three kittens by Blue Robin. These kittens were, at first, dark and mixy in colour, but, though only a week old, they are already getting lighter, so will probably end by being pale chinchillas, as Charm is of pure pale silver ancestry and Robin is a first cousin of Zaida. Miss Packham''s silver Jessamine, who was first at Westminster, has five very pale -coloured kittens.

MIS BEAL informs me that of Romaldkirk Fluffie's eight kittens seven are alive and doing well; three are good creams and the rest pale self-blues. Miss Beal is anxious that in future classes should be provided for cream and fawn females, for, as she rightly says, their chance when competing against male cats is very poor.
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.
MRS. PEARCE. - Your cat's case is a one which is difficult to prescribe for without seeing the animal, but I should think he has got low in condition and has then caught a cold in his eye. Get your chemist to make up some 1 grain quinine pills (coated) and give one night and morning. Bathe the eye with hot boracic lotion made by dissolving a teaspoonful of boracic acid in half a pint of water. The oftener the eye is bathed the better, but it should be done at least four times a day. For the bare patches on the sides rub in a little sulphur and vaseline. Please write again and tell me how the cat is. You do not say if his appetite is good or if he seems dull. Has he worms?

MRS. PELLIER. - I should call the kittens unusually pale blues; but in writing to purchasers you should describe them as you have done to me, to save misunderstanding. The self-silver is, almost invariably, quite white at the roots of the hair. Their pedigrees are excellent, and if the markings of shadings you describe disappear, they should be worth about £3 3s. each; but otherwise they will not fetch so much. By the way, you are wrong in thinking that a smoke can be too pale. King of the Silvers, who won at Westminster, is the palest self-silver colour possible, and it is only his dark face which causes him to be called a smoke.
DICK WHITTINGTON.

CAT GOSSIP: HOW TO START A CATTERY. May 6, 1899, pg 373.

HAD I been instructed to write an article on "How to Start Keeping Cats" I should have recommended the purchase of a couple of good females, their number to be added to as experience was gained. "How to Start a Cattery" is a different matter, and seems to indicate a more ambitious commencement. In the first place the matter of houses must be considered. Almost any building - cow-house, stable, granary, hayloft, or even pigstye - can be converted into a nice cattery at a small cost, no matter how hopeless it looks at first. The walls, if dirty and not particularly substantial, can be lined with matchboarding, a wood floor laid down, and wire and wood partitions fixed up. Each division should have a window where it will catch the sun, with a shelf for the cat to sit on; and a liberal use of lime-wash will make things complete. I am no believer in stoves or hot-water pipes for English or Persian cats, and I believe that Siamese, if properly acclimatized and strong, will do well without artificial heat.

If there is no outbuilding suitable for a cattery, wooden houses will have to be erected. The best, I consider, are made of double matchboarding, packed between the boards with either sawdust or roofing felt. The roof should be of corrugated iron, lined with wood and felt to keep the sun off. The floor should be raised at least five inches from the ground. Each house should be six feet square, or even larger, and it is an advantage to have a wired-in grass run to each house. Where this is impracticable a plot as large as possible should be enclosed with wire netting, so that the cats can be put out on the grass when the weather permits, a procedure which will have a most beneficial effect on their health.

One point I had almost forgotten to mention is the hospital. It is quite necessary to have one house or room apart from the other catteries for the accommodation of sick cats. It should be easily warmed - a good oil stove will suffice - and should be near the house, so that invalids can be attended to constantly.

The stocking of the cattery is the next important consideration, and the beginner naturally imagines that if he buys a well-known stud cat all will be well. This I strongly advise him not to do. A ready-made stud cat is not, as a rule, to be purchased reasonably it he is entirely satisfactory, in which case some of the old hands are sure to snap him up. If he is going cheap, there may be a hundred reasons for this. He may have a villainous temper, chronic eczema, or some other serious drawback. Moreover, fanciers do not care to send their queens to visit a stud cat which is in inexperienced hands, not knowing what treatment they may receive. My advice is to buy a young male of between six and twelve months, not younger; and until he is old enough to breed, send the queens away to be mated. Halt-a-dozen female cats are quite sufficient to start with, and it is far better to select one colour and make a speciality of it than to indulge in a variety.

ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENTS.
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."
POPPY. - Your cat is a silver tabby, but you do not say if she is long or short-haired. Her colour and markings seem to be good, but in judging cats quite as much importance is attached to formation and coat as to colour. If you can let me see a good photograph of your pet, I will give an opinion. A Persian cat should have a short tail, and that of a short-haired cat should certainly not be thick.
CATHERINE. - I am sorry, but it is against the rules to reply by post. Your kitten seems to have had distemper, The first thing is to get up pussy's strength, and for this purpose feed her entirely on lean raw beef or mutton, and give quinine pills - one grain twice daily. When she is a little better she should have a worm powder. But not just yet.
DICK WHITTINGTON

CAT GOSSIP. May 13, 1899, pg 432.

MRS. H. B. THOMPSON has bought a very fine pale silver stud cat, which has never been exhibited. He is now the sire of two litters of light unmarked kittens.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD'S Sweetbriar was much admired at Westminster, and I now hear that she has been mated with Ch. Lord Southampton, so her kittens should be something out of the common.

MRS. MACKENZIE STEWART'S pretty blue Persian Gloria has five unusually fine blue kittens by Florian, Florian, though unlucky in the show pen, seems to be a particularly good stud cat, and every kitten of his that I have seen has shown great promise, even when the mothers were indifferent specimens.

CH. FULMER ZAIDA is a charming little chinchilla lady, the property of Miss Gertrude Willoughby. Her first appearance in public was at Holland Park in 1896, where she took third, Miss Packham's Ting Ting being first, and Southampton Duchess second. Zaida has since then been three times first at the Crystal Palace, and has twice taken the challenge cup for best long-haired cat in the show. She was also first at the Botanical Gardens, and first at the Brighton L.K.A. Show, and second at the Brighton Aquarium Show in 1897. Zaida's colour is her strong point, as it is light and clear and unusually free of markings.
DICK WHITTINGTON.
Owing to extreme pressure on our space Answers to Correspondents are held over till next week.

CAT GOSSIP. May 20, 1899, pg . 482

FROM all accounts it seems that the breeding season has opened most auspiciously for cat fanciers, and I hope that the disappointments of last year will be amply atoned for.

MISS PACKHAM'S Silver Jessamine has five lovely kittens by Lord Southampton, and Silver Dew has five by Silver Lambkin. Miss Packham has, however, had the misfortune to lose her lovely blue-eyed white cat, which succumbed to the after-effects of influenza.

MISS SCILLA BARTLETT possesses a very pretty long-haired brown tabby cat with blue eyes. She now has a family by Mrs. Herring's Prince Adolphe, and Miss Bartlett quite hopes that the blue eyes have been reproduced in the kittens.

MISS COCHRAN'S Dimity has two fine kittens by Lord Southampton. The close inbreeding (Lord Southampton being Dimity's sire) made the result of this mating a matter for speculation, but as it was practically certain to produce the desired colour, and as both cats are very strong, Miss Cochran decided to risk it, and the kittens are quite satisfactory both as to health and appearance.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD'S Silver Lining has six kittens by Lord Southampton, four pale silver and two smoke. Cambodia, the Siamese, has three beautiful babies, and Stelletta has a promising family of blues by Azure.

THE singular persistency with which brown tabby kittens appear makes one associate them with the blue rock pigeon. I know of a smoke cat of chinchilla ancestry which invariably has a brown tabby in every litter, and I have lately seen two instances of brown tabby kittens turning up in families where nothing but blue and silver blood had been known for two or three generations.

MISS ORITA ROSE has sold her handsome King of the Blues to Miss Kerswill, and Mrs. Ransome has purchased the well-known Darius. This cat was once the property of Mrs. Foote, and in her hands he made one of the team which won a £25 cup at Cruft's.

MR. RINTOUL'S dark smoke Monarch had an easy win the other day at Ayr, where he took first in the long-haired male class.

THE NATIONAL CAT CLUB has decided to hold its summer show in connection with the L.K.A. Dog Show in the Botanical Gardens, 7 Regent's Park, on June 29th and 30th, and July 1st. I hope the little kittens are to be sent home on the evening of the first day, as I fear but a few would survive a three days' outing, which to some would mean five days from home!

THE HON. MRS. GREEN-WILKINSON is going in tor Siamese cats and has a fine pair, and a nice family of kittens descended from King Kesho, Lady Betty, Tachin, and Minita.

A NEW recruit to the cat fancy in England is Mrs. Barker, formerly of Newburgh, on the Hudson River. Mrs. Barker is quite an authority on feline matters, and particularly on feline diseases. She has now settled down at Skipton, in Yorkshire, and has purchased several good cats. Her beautiful brown tabby, Humbert, has safely arrived in England, none the worse for his long journey. Humbert was quite a celebrity in America, and took first at New York and at Newburgh, besides siring a number of winners.

I AM pleased to hear that Mrs. Gordon Stables intends to start breeding cats again, and is buying several good young females.

MRS. DAVIES has sold her silver tabby queen, Roly Poly San, to Mr. A.V. D. Rintoul, of Glasgow. This little cat had, I believe, won sixteen prizes. She has a very nice head and beautifully clear markings, but whenever I saw her was much too short of coat.

WINDSOR LIFEGUARD is a well-known winner. His bright orange colour is unrivalled, and he is really self-coloured. He has a magnificent head, with eyes a shade darker than his coat, and his pretty round shape is seen in the accompanying photograph, though at the time it was taken he had unfortunately lost his frill. He was bred by Mrs. Spackman, of Bath, and shown by her as a kitten at Windsor, where he took first and six specials. He was then purchased by Lady Marcus Beresford, and shown at Holland Park and the Crystal Palace, taking first and championship on both occasions, and at the recent Westminster Show he took the challenge cup for the best orange male. He has recently changed hands at a high figure, and is now the property of Miss Cartmell.

CAT GOSSIP. May 27, 1899, pg 538.

I SHOULD be glad to hear if any breeders of either dogs or cats have known them to nibble the ears or paws of their young families, and, if so, whether they have been able to discover a reason therefor. Miss White Atkins's Fairy was, until last autumn, a most exemplary mother, and had had four families of which she reared a large proportion herself. Since coming into Miss Atkins's possession she has acquired a trick of chewing up the left ear of every kitten she rears. She is in no way a nervous or delicate cat. I have heard of pigs biting off their offspring's tails, but I fancy this is done all at once and not half an inch a day.

I HAVE received a letter referring to *the great ear-cropping case," from a lady near Norwich. She says: "I at one time tried breeding, canaries, and was terribly shocked over the ill-fortune of the first little brood, who began to disappear mysteriously, and much conjecture failed to discover the cause, till one morning I peeped and found the little mother busily engaged eating her own unfledged offspring. One claw had already gone and the toes of the other claw were being greedily nibbled, much as a particularly tempting sprig of green food is devoured. I was much distressed, and at a loss to understand such horrible cannibalism in a grain-eating bird like a canary, and the thought of any future little broods troubled me greatly. However, the remedy of salt was suggested by a friend who had large experience in sheep-farming in Australia, and who had known instances of sheep eating their young when not properly supplied with rock-salt. I tried it with my canary when she began laying again, treating her to plenty of salt with her food during sitting and after the hatching, and had the satisfaction of rearing a healthy brood. I have never heard of a similar case occurring among canaries, but that it should have happened and been prevented so simply, and again in the case of sheep, seems to show that some animals are naturally deficient in salt."

I HAVE been all along under the impression that the ear-nibbling trick arose from a craving of some sort, the nature of which I could not determine, and my correspondent is very likely correct in her theory. Horses, goats, and sheep are certainly much the better for a regular supply of salt.

AYRSHIRE BLUEBELLE, the property of Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart, is a charmingly shaped little cat by Blue Jacket ex Stella. She has won a number of prizes, and when she has taken second place it has generally been in a class where male and female cats competed together, to the great disadvantage of the weaker sex.

CAT GOSSIP. June 3, 1899, pg 626.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD'S cottage at Bishopsgate is a veritable cats' paradise. The charming house, which has recently been much enlarged and improved, is situated in one of the loveliest gardens I have ever seen, on the borders of Windsor Park. Lady Marcus is as enthusiastic and as successful in her garden as she is with her cats, and in the summertime Bishopsgate is a dream of beauty.

GENTIAN, the pretty little blue Persian queen which took second at Westminster, makes a charming picture. Her sire was the huge cat, Goliath, and her dam, Lady Leila, was bred by Miss Taylor, and is litter sister to Ch. Locksley. Gentian is a pale blue with a perfect head, huge dark orange eyes, and a flowing coat. She was bred by Mrs. O'Brien Clarke. BLUBELL, another of the Bishopsgate queens, is a large, handsome blue cat, who must have made her name in the show pen, had it not been for her most attractive, but incorrect, emerald eyes.

CAMBODIA is a typical specimen of the short-faced Royal Siamese cat. She is a living contradiction of the statement that all Siamese cats darken with age, for, though the mother of numerous families, including Cuss, she is as light and clear in colour as a six-months' kitten.

I am sorry to hear that Mrs. Claud Alexander has had a bad attack of influenza, but, notwithstanding, she has been making extensive purchases from Mr. Woodiwiss, who is dispersing his famous collection of smooth cats. Mrs. Alexander has bought the Russian Blue King, a black female named Black Queen, and two tortoiseshell females, Bountiful Bertie and Upminster Rosie. All these cats are prize-winners. Mrs. Alexander's wild cat will already eat off a fork, though it has only been caught about six weeks. The black Persian, Inky, has two nice kittens by Blue Robin. They are a smoke and a silver tabby, thus throwing back on the mother's side.

MISS GERTRUDE WILLOUGHBY has had some terrible misfortunes in her cattery. The celebrated Roy has succumbed to gastritis, and the chinchilla Silver King is dead; also two promising young silver tabbies.

MRS. KENNAWAY has had several disappointments over expected kittens, but the tortoiseshell Russet has four babies by Romaldkirk Midshipmite. Two of these are brown tabbies, and two, a male and a female, are orange and cream.

MRS. MARRIOTT'S Seraph has five perfect silver kittens, absolutely unmarked, by Fitz Eustace; and Mouflon, the blue, has four, which are described as "dreams," by the same sire; while Madam Brilliant has four beautiful pale self-blues by Blue Robin; so Mrs. Marriott has not much to complain of, though, as she has not yet found a house to suit her, she is still travelling about, and the cats are distributed among her friends.

MR. RINTOUL, of Glasgow, has purchased the celebrated orange Prince Charlie, also the cream Zoroaster.

MISS HESTER COCHRAN is going in for Siamese cats, and is now the owner of Kras, formerly the property of Mr Gambier Bolton. Kras is a very large cat of the Royal breed. He has a grand head and coat and good blue eyes. By the way, can anyone tell me the meaning of his name? I believe Kras is a Siamese word.

MRS. HARDY has purchased Lady Marcus Beresford's charming blue Persian female, Bouncette; while Cobalt, a most promising male, is going to Mrs. Barker.

AFTER all, Mrs. Greenwood finds that she has not time to attend to her cats, so she seriously thinks of parting with Ch. Lord Southampton. From a purely selfish point of view I must admit that I hope a purchaser will be long in appearing, as such a valuable stud cat, and in such good hands, is a boon to the fancy, while ft he became the property of some undesirable person it would really be a public calamity.

THERE seems to be a lack of good black Persian males. The other day I received a letter from a lady about an orange queen, which she said she would like to mate with a black; but the only one she could hear of was Johnnie Fawe, who was her half-brother.

MISS WHITE ATKINS not yet having found a house to suit her, has taken Miss Ford's cottage at Bassett, near Southampton, for a month or two. Miss Ford is not leaving many cats behind, so Miss Atkins expects to find her houses and runs most useful, as she has six mothers with kittens, besides Silver Chieftain and some young queens.

CAT GOSSIP. June 10, 1899.

THE death of the blue Persian, Lord Wimborne, is quite a serious loss to his owner, Mr. Garrett, of Wimborne. Apart from the prizes he had won, this cat was particularly valuable for his breeding. He was a son of Mrs. Cartwright's Timkins and Mater, and this alliance almost invariably produced unusually good kittens. As far as I can make out, Lord Wimborne was the only representative left, unless his brother, who was purchased by Lady Hothfield as a kitten, be still alive.

MISS TAYLOR'S Blinks has become nearly as celebrated a dam as her mother, Tawney. Already the best kitten from her next litter is bespoken, and the chinchilla kittens in her last family were sold long before they were born. Meta, another of Tawney's daughters, is celebrated as the dam of the beautiful Princess Bagh, and I hear that she has a charming family of five now, and of these several have already been sold.

MISS HESTER COCHRAN has repurchased from Mrs. Marriott the pale silver male, FitzEustace. Miss Cochran bred and sold him as a kitten; and as he is by Silver Lambkin out of the same mother as Dimity, he should be valuable. He is a very pale shaded cat, even lighter than Dimity, with no markings on head, body, or legs, and has huge emerald eyes.

BY the way, I often hear of people who have quite unexpectedly been bitten or scratched badly by a male cat which has always before been quite good-tempered. I think some people are not aware of the danger of handling one tomcat after another. Many cats will furiously attack a person who has just been stroking a rival, and I have known quite sweet-tempered males who would smell my hands and then spit if I had been stroking one of the other stud cats just before.

There is a prevailing idea that it is difficult to breed cream and orange female kittens. At one time I started breeding these colours, as I thought that if the female kittens could be produced they would be valuable. In the first litter there was an orange male and two cream females; in the second, two orange males and two fawn and one cream females; and in other litters orange females predominated. I gave up these colours because the kittens were then, some two years ago, very hard to sell.

MISS CARTMELL is, perhaps, the most enthusiastic breeder of orange cats we now have. She has two orange stud cats, Lifeguard and Rough, and a fawn named Ronald. This year she has, I think, nearly twenty orange and cream kittens, and most of them are females.

I HEAR that the cats which Mrs. Robert Locke took out to her mother-in-law, Mrs. Clinton Locke, of Chicago, arrived quite safely. The one which bore the journey best and was most admired on his arrival was the orange male Rudolph, which was purchased from Lady Marcus Beresford.

I SAW Miss Frances Simpson's fine sable tabby, Persimmon, the other day, and thought he had grown and filled out tremendously since Westminster Show, where, it will be remembered, he won many honours. He is an immense cat, with a capital round skull, and good coat and markings. At present he is living at Bishopsgate.

AYRSHIRE BLUEBOTTLE, whose portrait we give, is a famous cat, the property of Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart, and also a prize-winner. She does not appear to advantage in the photograph, but her little family by Tuan has come out well. Bluebottle is an unusually pale, sound blue, and was bred by Lady Marcus Beresford from Zulu and Fatima.

MISS TAYLOR'S Tawney, though she has never been shown, is one of the most celebrated cats of the day. She is now eight years old, and was bred by Mrs. Carew Cox from the blue Lindfield Bootles and a tortoiseshell, named Brenda. Tawney was, in her youth, a blue, with slight orange shading, but when I saw her a week or two ago she was a very red tortoiseshell, showing no sign of blue. She has a beautiful head, with fine eyes and nice little ears, and is a very large cat, with a lot of bone and substance. To give a complete list of all her winning children and grandchildren would take up too much space, but the following are a few of the best known: Ch. Locksley, Gentian, Faun, King of the Silvers, Pat Paw, and Princess Bagh.

ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENT.
MOUSTACHES. - I distinctly remember replying to your query, so I think you must have missed the answer. Sponge the cat's ears out carefully with carbolic and water, one part of the acid to eighty of water; then dry, and put in a pinch of boracic acid powder. If this is done once a week the cat will soon be ail right. - DICK WHITTINGTON
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."

CAT GOSSIP. June 17, 1899, pg 46

OVER two hundred cats, some of them really fine specimens, appeared in the Waverley Market, Edinburgh, on May 18th. This is never a cheerful spot, and the fact that it was a pouring wet day did not add to the hilarity of the proceedings. Mrs. Young and Miss Re judged the blues and smokes, and Mrs. Tindall blacks and whites; all these judges were new to the work. Miss Packham took the chinchillas, tabbies, A.O.C., and Russians; and Mr. Gairn the short-haired English classes.

BLUES were a very poor class, and we could not follow the judging. Mrs. Grieve's Gilderoy, the winning male, was not sound in colour, and has green eyes; either Lord Collis 3rd or Romaldkirk Laddie 4th would have made a more worthy winner, as both have good eyes and colour. In the female class, again, Romaldkirk Flora, which was first, is shaded in colour and has green eyes, though she had a nice coat. Mrs. White's Sweet Violet is a better cat all round, being of a really good sound colour, with lovely dark orange eyes. Mr. Page's winning blue kitten has good eyes, and shows promise.

In the smoke class, Mr. Rintoul had entered his well-known smoke, Waverley Monarch, but the judge announced that he was "too dark for a smoke," and marked him wrong class. We are glad to hear that a protest is likely to be raised against this ruling, as we know the cat well, and have no hesitation in pronouncing him to be a smoke, and so say all judges of experience. Mr. Congleton's Olga took first in this class, with Mr. Rintoul's cats second and third.

Blacks were a good class, and the winner, Tim Tom, a real good one, but the best of the long-haired classes was that for whites. Miss R. Clarke's cat is a good one, with nice blue eyes, but he might well have given way before Mr. Gairn's Scotland's Prince, who is a better cat all round. The chinchilla classes were well filled. Mr. Whitley's Tibbins, which took first, shows a little too much marking, but was well shown and has a nice head, and is good in colour. Mr. Rintoul made all the entries, and of course took all the prizes, in the chinchilla kitten class with a promising family. In the variety class Romaldkirk Admiral, carrying less coat than usual, beat the grand orange Prince Charlie, while the cream Zoroaster, in wretchedly poor form, took third.

THE smooth cats were a good turn-out, Miss R. Clark and Mr. Forsyth doing most of the winning. In tabby males Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart's Silver Lancer was awarded first; but after the judging, Miss Willoughby's new purchase, Ch. Xenophon, was discovered, and awarded an extra first and the N.C.C. medal, for which he was the only cat eligible. Miss Bedford's blue kittens are a charming little family, by Ch. Locksley ex Kissa. Perhaps the best of the lot is Love-in-a-Mist, a jolly, fat little cat, in spite of his ethereal-sounding name.

THE "Cat Club Register " is now in circulation, and as it contains the pedigrees of over 700 cats, it should be most useful ta breeders. The first volume oft the "Stud Book™ will shortly be put in hand.

ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENT.
MRS. MILLER. - The rule against replying by post is most strictly kept. Some really good blue kittens have been advertised in these columns recently, and I am sure you would be pleased with them. I think the price asked was £3 3s. each. DICK WHITTINGTON.
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."

CAT GOSSIP. June 24, 1899, pg 101

MRS. MACKENZIE STEWART has sold her young blue Persian male, Mark Antony, to Dr. Longwill, of Rutherglen, for £9. Mark is a very large, heavily-coated cat, with a fine head and magnificent orange eyes. He took first at Glasgow in a tremendously strong kitten class, and several specials. He was bred by Mrs. Hardy, and is a son of her Iver Wooshoo, who is by Ch. Woolloomooloo ex Ch. Queen of Sheba. Lady Maitland's Nino is litter brother to Mark.

CH. TURKISH DELIGHT is one of the finest blue male cats in the country. He isa light blue, and a huge cat, weighing somewhere about 14lb., and he has dark orange eyes. He was bred from imported parents, and was for some time the property of Mrs. Marriott, who sold him to Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart two years ago. He took first and cup at Bath and third at Cruft's, and is the sire of several Crystal Palace winners.

I AM delighted to hear that the N.C.C. mean to limit their show at Regent's Park to two days, and will be held on June 29th and 30th. I am sure this will make the greatest possible difference to the entries, as few people would care to risk their cats for three days under canvas. The judges appointed for this show are Mrs. Bluhm, Miss Manley, Mr. Welburn, and Mr. S. Woodiwiss.

MRS. SUTHERLAND, whose home is in the Alps, has sold a very fine Royal Siamese queen to Miss Hester Cochran, and it will be sent to England at the end of the month. Susa II. is the lady's name, and her mother is the beautiful Kinck, who was imported from the King of Siam's Palace at Bangkok. The sire is descended from Puppy, Susa, Tiam o Shian, Siam, and other celebrities.

MISS HESTER COCHRAN'S Blue Robin is the large, heavily-coated cat which took first, two specials, and the challenge cup at Westminster. He is considered to have one of the finest heads ever seen on a cat.

MISS WHITE ATKINS'S Goldie-locks has four fine well-marked tortoiseshell kittens by The King's Own. Is it possible that any of these kittens are males? No such luck, I fear.

CAT GOSSIP. July 1, 1899, pg 152

MRS. LESLIE WILLIAMS'S pretty shaded silver, Princess Bagh, has grown into quite as charming a cat as she was a kitten on the day when she carried all before her at Westminster Show. She has, I think, the most perfect head I have ever seen on a silver cat. Her face is round and sweet, with huge intelligent eyes and neat little ears. Unfortunately, Bagh is a restless young person, and has given her mistress much cause tor anxiety by her rambles abroad in a neighbourhood where evil-minded dogs abound. She has therefore been sent to Miss Cochran for a time on breeding terms, and will be mated with her FitzEustace.

I HAVE been asked why it is that tom cats are fond of eating flowers. A correspondent, of considerable experience with cats and other animals, tells me that she knows of several gentleman cats, and one or two neuters, who will on every possible opportunity steal the table flowers out of the vases and eat them, but that she has never known a female cat to do so. Personally, since my earliest essays in the cat-fancying line, I have never kept a tom cat of any great age running about the house; but I have found that male kittens of six to twelve months are always in mischief of some sort, and are far more enterprising than their sisters, and also more intelligent and affectionate.

BREEDERS of Siamese cats will be interested to hear that I know of a genuine candidate for the A.O.C. class. This is a little fawn female with blue points. Her head, shape, and coat are like any other Siamese cat, but her colour is quite peculiar, and is very soft and pretty. Her eyes are a curious greyish green, like a stormy sea. Her sire is a handsome Royal cat, and her dam is a [solid] blue Siamese, and has green eyes. Her litter sister, now dead, was jet black. Menam, as_ this new beauty is called, will make her debut at the next Cat Club Show.

THE Cat Club proposes holding a general meeting on July 5th to settle finally the question of silver classification. The majority of the committee were in favour of the proposed reform, so at the last committee meeting a definition of the suggested threefold division was drawn up, to be submitted to the general meeting.

MISS ANDERSON LEAKE'S Winsome of Dingley has a charming family by Silver Chieftain. Two males promise to be very pale silver, while one is silver tabby at present, but so light at the roots as to suggest a possible change of colour in the near future. The one female promises to be a pale silver also. Miss Leake has unfortunately not yet sufficiently recovered her health to be able to attend to her cats, so Winsome is staying at Witchampton with Miss Cochran, and some of the other cats are in the care of Miss White Atkins.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD'S pretty orange-eyed black queen, Dinah, has four jet black kittens by Nemophyla. These should be most valuable for producing, in future generations, sound-coloured and dark-eyed blues.

I HEAR that Mrs. Young is removing with her well-known blue cats from Baillieston to Dunblane.

MRS. THOMAS ARMSTRONG'S Mike is the beautiful smoke which took second in the local long-haired class at Watford.

MRS. FRASER WOODCOCK tells me that she has purchased a cream male kitten, brother to Miss W. Beal's celebrated fawn cats, and hopes to win some prizes with him later. Mrs Woodcock, like most fanciers, has a tender feeling towards Siamese cats, and hopes to possess one some day.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENT.
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."
L. C. A. - There are no regular intervals, some individuals being much more troublesome in this respect than others, and this is often hereditary. All you can do is to keep a sharp look out, and take precautions when necessary. It is never advisable to let male cats run free. - DICK WHITTINGTON.

CAT GOSSIP. July 8, 1899, pg 176

THE NATIONAL CAT CLUB SHOW.
THE entries for the N.C.C. show came up wonderfully well for the time of year, and I was amazed to see how really well the cats looked. The female cats, of course, were quite out of coat, but some of the males looked very fit, and the short-hairs were at their best.

In whites Mrs. Herring was first with Zangi, a fine big cat with blue eyes and promise of fine coat, and Miss Packham's Scotland's Prince is perhaps the best white male in existence. He has a grand head and deep blue eyes. The winning black was Mrs. Butler's Orchardleigh Boy Prince, while the honours in the blue male class fell to Viscountess Maitland's Nino, a grand young cat, very large and heavily coated, with a fine head and orange eyes, but not quite sound in colour. In the blue female class Miss Jay took first with Holmwood Minnie and Miss Fritz.

In smokes Ranji was again successful. The chinchilla class was, as usual, headed by Zaida, and Miss Beal took all the prizes for creams and for braces and teams of long-hairs. Madame Portier's Blue Boy was the first prize neuter. Mrs. Kennaway took first with a pair of exquisite blue kittens, and in the single kitten class Miss Rose was first with a fine-headed kitten, which promises to have green eyes. The Siamese were a fine class, first going to the Hon. Mrs. Green Wilkinson's Bennie, and second to Mrs. Vyvian's Tiam O'Shian III.

The best smooth cat in the show, by a long way to my thinking, was Mrs. Brookes's Bonhaki, a typical Manx of beautiful silver-tabby colouring, and with a truly magnificent head. Mrs. Herring's tortoiseshell male, King Saul, took first, and, of course, all possible honours were showered upon Ch. Xenophon.

Mrs. CHAMPION'S chinchilla Persian male kitten, Argent Moonbeam, is a son of Lord Argent, one of the most valuable silver sires of the day, and promises to grow into a beautiful cat.

MISS HESTER COCHRAN has an addition to her cattery in the shape of two little Manx male kittens, both white with brilliant blue eyes. They are genuine and typical specimens, with knobs instead of tails, and the regulation Manx style of moving - like rabbits.

CAT GOSSIP. July 15, 1899, pg 261

MRS. MACKENZIE STEWART has two fawn female kittens by Zoroaster. She is looking for a really high-class light silver male to replace the blue Mark Antony. Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart has sold her smooth tortoiseshell, Miss Peggy, which she purchased from Mrs. Herring at Westminster, where it took first in the novice class.

THE schedule of the Rotterdam International Cat Show will be a revelation to English fanciers, and should make them feel how terribly behindhand they are in their show classification.

THE Rotterdam executive provide eighty-six classes for common house-cats, for foreign long-haired cats (Angoras), and for foreign short-haired cats. Classes are given for grey-striped or Cyprus cats, and for whites with red eyes, with grey eyes, and with blue eyes. Blue or mouse-grey cats are provided tor, but the most puzzling classes are those for black, red, or grey chequered cats! These must not be confounded with tortoiseshells, tor which other classes are provides. Amongst the long-haired classes, I notice one for North Chinese long-eared cats, and amongst the foreign short-hairs are included East Indian cats, Siamese, and Manx. The list also includes a class for the rarest cat, one for the heaviest male cat, and one for the smallest adult cat. ese Oe

It is rather a blow to find that our cherished long-haired chinchillas, and our oranges and creams, are left out in the cold. In fact, the long-haired cats are worst treated in this respect. No classes are provided for brown tabbies, either long or short-haired, and there are no variety classes unless the class for the rarest cat may be taken in substitution. Taken all round, it should be a marvellous and most interesting exhibition It will be held on July 14th, 15th, and 16th.

MRS. CHAMPION'S Lord Argent is one of the most valuable silver sires of the day. As a kitten he took first at Brighton, and later on was second in a cat class at the same place. Though not a particularly pale-coloured cat, he is the sire of the palest chinchillas that have yet been bred, and his kittens have won a number of prizes.

THE photograph below is of Nino, Viscountess Maitland's beautiful blue Persian, winner of the championship in his class for blues at the National Cat Club Show, held in the Royal Botanic Gardens. He also won first for blue males, first in the novice class, and two specials, so that he may certainly be said to have distinguished himself. His mother and Amazon won third prize for the best litter. - DICK WHITTINGTON.

CAT GOSSIP. July 22, 1899, pg 288

I AM exceedingly sorry to hear of the loss Lady Marcus Beresford has sustained in the death of her two beautiful Siamese cats, Tachin and Cambodia. Tachin died of pleurisy, which was evidently the result of a cold caught in the spring. A week or two after her little husband's death Cambodia was suddenly taken ill, and, in spite of every care, died. A post-mortem showed the cause of death to be ulceration of the stomach. Both these cats were beautiful specimens, being light in colour with dark, clearly-defined markings. Both had short faces and kinky tails,

MRS. HAWKINS'S Cuss was bred from these cats, and I hear that his first family consists of five beautiful kittens.

MISS TAYLOR'S Tawney has produced yet another family of three fine kittens, by Blue Robin. They are all males - a black, an orange, and a smoke. Blinks has five silvers and smokes, by Silver Chieftain.

MRS. NEILD has had the misfortune to lose her beautiful cream cat, who has been poisoned by a malicious neighbour. Mrs. Neild is going in tor Siamese cats, and has some fine specimens.

MISS SUTHERLAND has sold her Siamese male, Moon Chow, who was second at the N.C.C. show, to Lady Marcus Beresford.

AT the meeting of the Cat Club on July 1st, the question of the silver classification was thoroughly threshed out, and it was decided that an extra class was desirable. There will in future be a class for silver tabbies, spotted or striped, one for shaded silvers, and one for self silvers.

A DESCRIPTION of these cats was drawn up and carefully worded, and we learn that a self silver should be an absolutely unmarked and unshaded cat; eyes to be green. A shaded silver should be free from marking, the coat shaded or flecked at tips, dark spine line admissible, eyes green. The silver tabby, as we all know, should have decided dark lines or spots on a light, but in this case the eyes may be either green or yellow.

THE question of an autumn kitten show was discussed, but it was decided not to hold one this year.

MRS. FRASER WOODCOCK tells me that her tortoiseshell, Psyche, winner of a challenge cup at Westminster, has a beautiful family by Miss Cartmell's Richmond Ronald. There are one cream, two orange, two black, and one tortoiseshell.

MISS TAYLOR has sold four out of Meta's five kittens by Silver Chieftain. Two have gone to Mrs. Neild, and the other two have been purchased by Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart.

LADY ALEXANDER writes me that she has registered the cats she purchased from Mr. Woodiwiss under new names, which are certainly prettier than the old ones. Bountitul Bertie becomes Ballochmyle Dignity; Upminster Rosie and Sedgemere Black Queen are now Ballochimyle Beehive and Ballochmyle Nightlight; while Sedgemere Blue King becomes Ballochmyle Blue King. Lady Alexander is on the committee of the Cat Club, of which she is a most enthusiastic member.

A CAT but little known to fame is Miss Phayre's Silver Bar, a son of Topso and Lady Pink, and, therefore, full brother to Ch. Felix. I saw a number of his kittens the other day, and was much struck by a heavily-coated, handsomely-marked silver tabby female, with the most enormous eyes I have I ever seen. Another handsome cat was a lovely red sable tabby neuter, by the same sire.

ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENT
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."
M.E.B. - Has your cat hurt its tail in any way? If not, I advise you to write to M.A. Ward, 17, Peel Grove, Longsight, Manchester, to ask for a box of hie worm powders, and administer one according to instructions, Thanks for your note about the flowers. - DICK WHITTINGTON

CAT GOSSIP. July 29, 1899, pg 336

THE accompanying photograph of the Hon. Mrs. Maclaren Morrison's Ch. Satan is of unusual interest, as the old cat is one of the two best blacks which have appeared in the show-pen, Ch. Neptune being the other. Satan is now eleven years old, and has to his credit five first prizes, tour seconds, two thirds, and a championship and premiership. He was three times first at the Crystal Palace, the last time being in 1897, on which occasion he was granted the title of champion. He is a grand-headed cat, with deep orange eyes.

MRS. DUFFUS, of Halifax, Nova Scotia, is going in for Persian cats. She already has a handsome female, and is having a chinchilla male sent to her from England.

MRS. SUTHERLAND writes from her home in the Alps that she has twelve beautiful Siamese kittens. One of these is going to the Zoo at Nice, in exchange for a baby lemur, which was born in the gardens. Mrs. Sutherland does not say if this little creature is to associate with the cats!

I HEAR that Miss Sidney Cunninghame adheres to her determination to give up cats in favour of dogs, and is going to part with Dot (winner of first and six specials, Crystal Palace), and her three beautiful kittens by Lord Sapphire.

MISS HAMILTON, of Pomeranian fame, has some blue Persian cats, including a male named Cupid, and a family of nice kittens.

ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENT.
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."
A CORRESPONDENT, who signs herself "Heather," writes to me on a subject of such general interest that I propose to answer her rather fully. She asks for advice as to the housing of a male Persian cat and two or three females. If economy is not necessary I advise that the houses should be built of brick, lined with match-boarding, and the floors bricked, cemented, and boarded. If possible let them face south, and have a window to open on the south side, and a hermetically sealed window with a wide sill to the east. Each house should be at least six feet square, but this is not nearly large enough unless the cats are to have daily exercise either free or in a large grass run. The male should have a private house, but two females may live together if they are good friends. Most female cats can safely be allowed their liberty between 10 am. and 5 p.m. It is in the early morning and in the evening that they are apt to go off hunting. Some males will not wander if let out for an hour or two, and all can be trained to go on a chain like a dog. Do not have any artificial heat in the houses except in case of illness, but give large boxes full of rather soft woolly hay to sleep in. Have false doors and windows of wire netting, so that even on damp days fresh air can be supplied. The point to remember is that the more fresh air and exercise cats have the better they thrive. A home should readily be found for a healthy, well-trained cat as a foster-mother, and I have mentioned "Heather's" pet to one or two correspondents. - DICK WHITTINGTON

CAT GOSSIP. August 5, 1899, pg 386

I HAVE OFTEN been told that the faces of Siamese cats get pale during illness, and I now know that this is a fact, as I had excellent opportunities oF watching a Siamese through a serious illness. He was a two-year-old cat with a very dark mask, and about a fortnight after his illness began a number of light hairs appeared all over his face and nose. He was at that time quite convalescent, only having been in danger for four or five days, but presumably the light hairs began to sprout when he was at his worst, and took a little time to become noticeable. At present he looks as if his face had been powdered! I presume the original colour will return in time.

AN interesting fact has lately come under my notice. I find that the eyes of short-haired blue-eyed cats get quite pale in colour when they are ill. I have never possessed a long-haired cat with blue eyes, but I have noticed this change several times in smooth white cats and in Siamese.

SMOKE cats seem to be coming into favour again, and Miss Shapcott tells me that she has a most perfect little smoke kitten from her black Aphrodite by Silver Laddie. One of the finest smoke cats in existence is Mrs. James's Backwell Jogram. He is a large cat with an extraordinary coat of a fleecy texture, and of a length and thickness such as is rarely seen on any cat but a smoke. Mrs. James now has a litter of five beautiful smoke kittens, which seem to have inherited their father's coat.

MRS. KNOWLES has purchased from Lady Marcus Beresford a pair of really beautiful blue kittens by Azure ex Stelletta. Miss Packham is going in strongly tor blue-eyed white Persians. Her male, Scotland's Prince, is certainly the best I have seen for some years, and the female kitten Aisha, late White Empress, is already a well-known winner. Miss Packham made a good offer for Mrs. Davies's beautiful Monk, but I have not yet heard if it was accepted.

MRS. PAUL HARDY is a most enthusiastic cat fancier, and is remarkably clever in nursing her pets through illness. Last winter the cattery at Chobham was laid low by influenza or some kindred fiend, but Mrs. Hardy, by her constant care and nursing, succeeded in saving most of the invalids. Iver Wooshoo, the father of the family, was bred by Mrs. Nicholay, and when in coat is a magnificent cat. Strange to say, he lives in perfect peace with his fine son, King Tony. Tony is the best of a marvellous litter, his two brothers being Lady Maitland's Nino and Dr. Longwill's Mark Antony.

MANY people will remember the handsome silver tabby kittens, Bangle and Paillette, with which Lady Marcus Beresford did so well at Westminster. Bangle is now with Mrs. Herring, and has produced one pale unmarked silver kitten; while her litter sister, Paillette, the property of Miss Anderson Leake, was mated with Abdul Zaphir, and has seven fine kittens. This hardly seems a fair distribution.

MRS. BARKER did well when she purchased Miss Ward's pale silver queen, Peggy, at Westminster. Peggy was renamed Silver Moon, and sent to visit Lord Southampton, and has produced four nice kittens. One female at three weeks old is very light, with no marks at all, and grows lighter. The other three, all males, are slightly darker, but all seem likely to be eventually pale silvers. Another promising litter of pale silvers are four little silver ladies from Sweetheart and Miss Saunders's lovely little Pixie of Charterhouse.

I HAVE a little Persian queen which is an indefatigable mouser, but unfortunately she does not care to eat mice, neither does she care to see the bodies lying about. When she has a young family all goes well, but at other times she is frequently rather awkwardly situated. At last she has discovered a means of disposing of her prey; she bestows it upon one of the two strange kittens [pugs] that are running about the house. As a rule, she will not let them come near her; but when she has a tiresome mouse to get rid of, she summons them as if they were her own children and presents it to them with a lordly air, and then stalks off to catch another.

I HEAR that Mrs. Davies's Monk, the blue-eyed white kitten which caused such a sensation at Regent's Park, has changed hands, and is now the property of Miss Packham. It was generally conceded that Monk was by far the best kitten, if not the best long-haired cat, in the show, and Miss Packham was so bent on securing him that I believe she offered £15 for him then and there. What the price eventually paid was I have not heard. It is strange what a number of our best Persian cats have passed through Mrs. Davies's hands. Ch. Woolloomooloo, Ameer, and Talhairan were at one time her property, and Ch. Gwen and the wonderful chocolate cat, Sin-li, were still with her when they died.

ANOTHER handsome blue-eyed white cat is the rather aptly named White Knight, a recent purchase of Miss White Atkins. I hear that he is an enormous and heavily coated cat, bred from a blue-eyed white sire and a pale silver dam. "Zaida." Fur and Feather, tells of her first introduction to the White Knight and his brother, who were announced as "baby's pet kittens"; her breath was somewhat taken away when two quite unusually large tom cats stalked into the room! Miss White Atkins has mated her pale silver, Sprite, with the White Knight, and anxiously awaits results. Personally I am inclined to think that a mixture of white and silver blood is not likely to be a success where the silver cats are concerned, for the beauty of their faces is largely
dependent on the black rims round their eyes, and if their noses are not black they should, at any rate, have a black edging, but, of course, all this is likely to disappear with the white cross. So far as the eyes themselves are concerned I think it quite possible that they would be improved, and assume a deeper sea-green shade than formerly.

I AM exceedingly sorry to hear that the well-known blue Persian, Lillington Bogie, has come to an untimely end by a shot. This cat had done well in the show pen, and had also sired a number of winners.

MRS. DOYLE, of Brighton, has sold her blue Persian queen, Gallitzia to Lady Marcus Beresford. Gallitzia, though only eleven months old is an enormous short-legged cat, with magnificent eyes, and is bred from Waterloo and Hazel, thus combining some of the best blood in the country.

THE cat fancy in America seems to be looking up, and I have had a number of applications for cats to go to that country, no fewer than three in the last week. Blues and pale silvers are the colours most frequently asked for, but I have iso had enquiries for blacks, blue-eyed whites, silver tabbies, oranges, and creams. Of course, only cats of the very strongest constitution should be subjected to the trials of a sea voyage, and it is generally stipulated that they shall not be less than six months of age.

THERE used to be a marvellous strain of smoke and silver-tabby cats in died neighbourhood of Southsea and Portsmouth. which, I fear, has almost died out, but a few representatives are left. Miss Manley's Bayadere and some of her other well-known cats come from this strain, as do Mr. Silk's Ben and Joe and Mrs. Thring's Ethel. Other names I can recollect are Mrs. Besant's Tee and Minette, Miss Marshall's Rob Roy, also King Felix, afterwards called Lord Sandwich. These cats were all large and heavily coated; they had magnificent heads, and the tabbies had beautiful markings quite of the Felix type. My recollections of them were aroused by the sight of Miss Ward's Squaw, a daughter of Tee and Minette. She is a pale silver, and quite the largest female cat I ever saw, and would, in fact, make a most imposing male. She is already the mother of some fine kittens, notably Mrs. Barker's Silver Moon and Lady Marcus Beresford's Beetle.

I AM sorry to hear that Mrs. Vyvyan's Siamese kitten, which has been ailing ever since Regent's Park Show, is dead. I regret this kitten particularly, as I considered him the very best Siamese I had ever seen, and had I been in funds at the time the loss would now be mine and not Mrs. Vyvyan's. Evidently these cats cannot stand the strain of a show until they have reached years of discretion, for I can recall a number of kittens - Rimo amongst them - which, after doing brilliantly in the show pen, have gone to new homes only to die. What might be merely a slight cold in a Persian kitten seems to fly straight to the lungs of a Siamese, and almost invariably proves fatal.

MRS. FLEETWOOD'S beautiful silver tabby, Argent Laird, was the winner of the second prize in the novice class (grown-up cats) at the Botanic Show last June, when only four months old. He is own brother to Argent Fairy and Argent Sprite, who were winners of first and two specials at the same show last year, their sire being Lord Argent and dam Lady Busie.
DICK WHITTINGTON.

CAT GOSSIP. August 12, 1899, pg 431

LADY MURIEL FOX-STRANGWAYS is in some degree a cat fancier, though she has never yet exhibited her pets. Brenda, a pretty blue queen, bred by Mrs. Cecil Curwen from Ch. Wooloomooloo and Sheba, was bought by Lady Muriel as a kitten, and she has a very nice blue daughter by Sweet Boy. Miss Packham has just supplied a promising blue male kitten which is to be the future mate of these little ladies, so perhaps their mistress may be represented at some of the cat shows o! the future.

I HEAR glowing accounts of Mrs. Barker's brown tabby Persian male, King Humbert, who recently came over from America. I understand that he is a large and heavily-coated cat with quite unusually short legs. Mrs. Barker is particularly anxious to breed only cats which excel in shape and show no signs of coarseness. When living in America she kept what is to our stunted British minds an enormous cattery, boasting, I believe, about fifty inhabitants. Some day I must try and gather further information about this cattery. My experience shows that twelve to fifteen cats, if well cared for, will keep one active and able-bodied person hard at work for about ten hours a day.

A GOOD cat which has recently joined the majority is Mr. Swanson's Lord Clyde. He was a dark blue cat of perfectly sound colour, with capital eyes and a beautiful head and shape. At Glasgow last year he took second; while Blue Boy II., whom he somewhat resembled in shape, was first.

A SOMEWHAT new recruit to the cat fancy is Mrs. Vernon Neild, of Beechfields, Bowdon, Cheshire. Like the rest of us, she has had her share of ill-luck, the most recent misfortune being the poisoning of several of her cats by a malicious neighbour. One of the victims was the beautiful Devonshire Cream, who was bred by Miss Taylor. The best of the long-haired cats at Beechfields is Musk, an enormous young blue, of Miss Bray's well-known strain. I am told that at ten months Musk weighed 15lb., which, I fancy, is a record weight. I saw him at Regent's Park, where he was second. In shape, coat, and colour he is first-class, and if his face is a trifle narrow, time will remedy that, as he is only a kitten yet. Mrs. Neild tells me that her favourites among the cats are the Siamese, "far and away." Chula, the female, was born in the King of Siam's palace, and is a most charming little cat, with a sweet face and nice light colour. Prince Vodiki, also imported, is the only kitten Chula has ever had. His father, Toto, who died before his birth, had five kinks in his short tail, and I'rince Vodiki has three in a tail not five inches long. He is a really beautiful cat, very pale in colour, with densest points and beautiful blue eyes. Like all his race, he is charming to his own wives and to human beings, but a perfect fiend to long-haired cats.

THE photographs of Azure and Nemophyla might easily be meant for the same cat, but the originals, though litter brothers, are not so much alike as they appear. They are the property of Lady Marcus Beresford, and are the sons of Blue Robin; their mother, unfortunately, is dead. These cats are a beautiful pale, sound shade of blue, they have perfect heads, very short legs, and profuse coats. Both have good eyes, but Nemophyla's are the deeper orange in colour, while Azure is a slightly larger cat than his brother. Lady Marcus has several times been offered large sums lor these cats, but cannot be tempted to part with them.
DICK WHITTINGTON

CAT GOSSIP. August 19, 1899, pg 479

MRS. GRAHAME MENZIES is well - known as an enthusiastic and successful breeder of cats. She has done well this year, and bred a number of beautiful kittens, including two magnificent blue males by Darius ex Mist, and one by Zulu ex Bluebell, while Darkie has had a fine family of six kittens by Kingfisher. Mrs. Menzies has a fine young cream male cat by Ch. Bundle ex Buttercup. He is nearly a year old, and is a great beauty, with hazel eyes and the shortest of tails. Mrs. Menzies has just parted with the blue male, Kingfisher, to Miss Packham.

NEVER have I heard such a tale of woe as this year from almost every well-known cattery. Bad luck seems to have prevailed, not, as usual, among kittens only, but half of the best cats have come to untimely ends. The latest sad news is of the death of Mrs. Leslie Williams's lovely silver, Princess Bagh. This little cat was so well-bred, so strong and healthy, and had had such a successful career that great things were expected of her kittens, and her loss is a terrible misfortune.

MISS BENNET'S Blue Alpha and Blue Gamma are bred from Mrs. Hill's celebrated strain. Their sire, Peter of Tovil, son of the lovely Ch. Violet Blue, was bought from Mrs. Hill, and their dam, Blue Patricia, is daughter of Patrick Blue. As will be seen from our Sale and Exchange column for August 12th, Miss Bennet is parting with some of her pets.

MR. WOODIWISS has been successful in breeding three smooth tortoiseshell and white male kittens in one litter. The sire is the well-know tortoiseshell Samson, and the dam, Sedgemere Otter, is also a winner.

THE HON. MRS. MCLAREN MORRISON is expected home from Calcutta in the autumn. She intends, I understand, to part with a number of her beautiful cats, as naturally her little daughter now a takes up a large share of her time and attention.

ON SIAMESE CATS.
For many months I have been racking my brains to try and find out what was "the coming cat," and at last I am r rewarded. For a time blues were the fashion, then they gave way to chinchillas, which, in their turn, will shortly have to give place to Siamese, for these weird creatures are, I am convinced going to be the fashion of the future. Having assured myself upon this point, I, of course, immediately set to work to collect Siamese cats and information about their "points." The cats were hard to obtain, but nothing to the information. I certainly contrived to gather up a variety of so-called facts, but of such a varied and contradictious sort as to "make contusion worse confounded." My ideal Royal Siamese cat is of a clear, warm shade of cream, with very dark seal points, deep blue eyes, a short round head, and a double kinked tail, but, alas! the only points now left undisputed are the blue eyes and the dark points.

Miss Forestier Walker tells me that she has bred Siamese cats for fifteen years, has lived in Singapore and Hong Kong, and that her two first Siamese cats were procured for her by the English Consul at Bangkok. She tells me also that the natives of these parts consider the kinked tails a superiority, and in Siam they tie ribbons below the kinks to show them off. Miss Forestier Walker likes the warm-tinted cream, and prefers the round-headed cats; she does not consider the long heads a fault, but says that both types are equally correct. Mrs. Sutherland will not have a kinky-tailed cat, and when one was born with a double kink she promptly had it destroyed. She had two females sent to her direct from the Palace at Bangkok, and both had straight tails. When Mrs. Sutherland met the King of Siam in Edinburgh he informed her that the true Royal cat had a straight tail, and that the kinks showed a cross with the common cat of Siam, which is white with blue patches. This sounds conclusive, but who can say that it was not a case where a little fable, such as ‘The Fox and the Grapes," or "The Fox who Lost his Brush," might be appropriate? In my despair I turned to Harrison Weir's cat book, and find that he quotes largely from Darwin, to the effect that "throughout an immense area, namely, the Malayan Archipelago, Siam, Peguan, and Burmah, all the cats have truncated tails about half the proper length, often with a sort of knob at the end."

Yet another authority on the breed says that a round head shows a cross of English blood, and that the warm cream colour is incorrect, as the right colour is a cold stone-grey; moreover, that in Siam the light-coloured cats are not admired, but the duns are considered the most valuable. All this is most confusing, and it certainly seems time or one or other of the cat clubs to lay down some rules for breeders and judges to go by. At present no unfortunate owner can state with confidence whether he possesses a very good cat or a very bad one.

CAT GOSSIP. August 26, 1899, pg 527

MRS. NEILD is going to take charge of Ch. Wankee and Rynda while their owner, Mrs. Robinson, is [away] from home, and means to try the experiment of crossing Wankee with a blue-eyed white English cat. Mrs. Neild was at one time a great dog fancier, but is now only able io keep three dogs. She tells me that her two tox-terrier puppies are grandsons of the celebrated Go Bang, and one of them, who is exactly like him, has just been sold for a very big price.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD has been buying Siamese cats, and has purchased, amongst others, a pair from Mrs. Vyvyan, by Tiam o'Shian III. ex Polyphema. The male is one of the pair shown at Regent's Park. To make room for the Siamese, Lady Marcus is parting with some of her Persian cats, but she has been unable to resist the temptation to repurchase the enormous blue Persian male Goliath. This cat was sold last year to Mrs. Brough, and after all trace of his whereabouts had been lost, his kittens took upon themselves to develop the most startling beauty, and carried all before them in the show-pen. Notable examples were Gentian, Lady Violet, and Blossom. When Goliath was eventually discovered, figuring in an advertisement in the Stockkeeper, Lady Marcus lost no time in securing him, and he is now once more in her possession.

AZIM, a fine young blue, was for some time in Miss Taylor's hands, but has now gone to Miss Bartlett as a pet. He is a son of Romaldkirk Laddie, and was bred by Miss Beal.

MRS. MACKENZIE STEWART'S Darkie was, I consider, the best sable tabby cat I ever saw. He was an enormous creature, with a grand head und flowing coat, the groundwork of which was bright golden sable with dark markings. He won many first prizes, medals, and specials, including first Crystal Palace, 1898. He died early in this year.

CAT GOSSIP. September 2, 1899, pg 609

I PAID a flying visit recently to Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart's cattery at Irvine, where I saw fifteen or sixteen lovely kittens, principally blues; so the young stock have evidently done well, though, like the rest of us, Mrs. Stewart has had bad luck with her female cats. The pick of the cattery is General Hunter, a four months old blue male kitten. His pedigree is an interesting study, for his sire, Florian, is bred from Blue Jacket and Moth, thus going back to the Blue Ruins and Grande Chartreuse, while Gloria, his dam, traces her pedigree back to Beauty Boy and Mater. The General is a great, fat, short-backed, pale blue kitten, with a perfect head and ears, and a face exactly like his lovely mother's, but his huge eyes are an even deeper shade of orange than hers. Two females from the same litter should make grand cats, and another, bred from Nemophyla and Lady Williams's Beauty, has a wonderful coat.

LADY ALEXANDER has sent me some charming photographs of her smooth cats. First in order of merit comes Ballochmyle Bumpums, the magnificent orange-eyed Russian male which took first and challenge cup at Westminster. The two little kittens, aged only five weeks, are by Bumpums ex Mother Bunch, and they show great promise.

MISS WHITE ATKINS tells me that her little Fairy has another litter of five lovely Kittens by Silver Chieftain. Three are very pale unmarked silvers, and the other two are silver tabbies. Fairy is bringing up two herself, and, strange to say, has once more nibbled the left ear of each.

I HEAR that the N.C.C. show at the Crystal Palace will probably be held on October 24th and 25th. I am glad to know that the N.C.C. is likely to follow the example of the Cat Club and provide movable pens for judging. These are quite necessary when judging blues and blacks particularly. The Cat Club intends having light tables on wheels, and at each end of the tables will be a pen, so that two cats can be compared in a strong light.

MRS. WYLIE writes from Midlothian of her two beautiful Siamese cats, Romeo and Juliette. They were procured for her by Dr. Nightingale, who is the King of Siam's medical adviser. Romeo came from the King's Palace, and Juliette was a sacred temple cat, Mr. Nightingale says that he has seen none so good as these two, and Mrs. Wylie is justly proud of the health and condition of her pets. They are about eighteen months old, and have three lovely kittens. They are very strong and healthy, and are allowed to run out of doors in fine weather.

MRS. NEILD has just purchased Miss Dresser's chinchilla cat Milverton Sylvie. Svivie is a very pretty light-coloured cat, and was for some time the property of Miss Bagster, who sold her to make room for Miss Taylor's Meta, dam of poor Princess Bagh.

CAT GOSSIP. September 9, 1899, pg 624

I HAVE been travelling about lately with a Siamese kitten in tow, and no more pleasant little companion could be imagined. I provided her with a large, well-lined basket, and she is as quiet as can be until near her meal times, when, if she hears my voice, she begins to make remarks. I carry a tiny box of minced-up meat, and give her about a tablespoonful when she is noisy, and she soon settles down again. In a strange house, or in a hotel, she is quite happy, for she loves change of scene and is never shy, and always clean, and if I go out I can shut her in her basket till my return. She is immensely popular wherever she goes, and one advantage she has over a dog - on most lines she can travel without a ticket!

The recent warm weather has been most trying for cats, and particularly for those which are fat and over-fed. I notice that the cats which seem least upset among my own are the stud cats, which are fed once a day only, their meal consisting of a huge plate of meat mixed with Spratt's dog cakes (soaked). They have a little boiled milk to drink in the morning, and then have nothing until their meal at Six p.m.

MISS BENNETT'S Blue Alpha and Blue Gamma are a most promising couple of young blues from Mrs. Hill's well-known strain.

MISS COCHRAN has been most unfortunate lately, and has just lost her smoke queen Thistledown, who died during her mistress's absence from home, having apparently met with an accident of some sort. Her death is the more to be regretted as she was shortly expecting a family by Fitz-Eustace. Thistledown and Princess Bagh were half-sisters, and much alike except as to colour. They were great friends, and lived together, and became ill within twenty-four hours of each other, but while Bagh died in a few hours Thistledown survived for a fortnight.

The name of The Seraph is so well known to all breeders of silver cats that my readers will be amused to hear that someone has recently disputed the fact of her winnings at the Crystal Palace in 1896. The mistake has arisen in this way. The Seraphs were shown by Miss Leake in the pair kitten class, and took V.H.C., but the better kitten, purchased in the show by Mrs. Marriott, took five specials as the best chinchilla kitten exhibited. I believe that no official list of specials was issued that year, which, of course, was a mistake, and one which has not been repeated.

I am sorry to hear of the death of Mrs. Ransome's Bogey Man. This blue Persian male was sent to Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart on approval, but on his arrival he seemed ill, got rapidly worse, and died next day. He was a promising young son of Woolloomooloo, and took V.H.C. at Westminster, though he was quite a juvenile - in fact, only a month too old for the kitten class. He was bred by Mrs. Knowles.

It is news to me that cats and dogs must fight, yet I read in the Stockkeeper that Mr. Astley is selling his two Siamese queens, winners at Rotterdam, because they cannot get on with his dogs, and it is not two months since their predecessor, Jun, was returned to Miss Sutherland for the same reason. I think Mr. Astley's dogs must be more bloodthirsty than most others of their kind.

I UNDERSTAND that the well-known light silver queen, Dimity, winner of a number of prizes, is likely to change hands shortly and become an inmate of Lady Marcus Beresford's cattery at Bishopsgate.

I am pleased to hear from Miss Bedford that she has sold her two blue Persian kittens, at good prices, through our private advertisement columns. The kittens were shown at the N.C.C. Show, but unfortunately were wrongly penned, and not discovered till after the judging, when they were awarded V.H.C.

MRS. VERNON NEILD'S little daughter Meryll is devoted to the cats, and in her photograph she is accompanied by Prince Vodiki, the Siamese gentleman who has been commented upon in these columns as having three kinks in his tail.

Miss Taylor had, as usual, some charming families of kittens running about when I went to see her the other day. Old Tawney looked as young as ever, and her three kittens by Blue Robin have already found new homes. The beauty of the litter, a smoke, has gone to Mrs. Sinkins, a fine little black is in the same cattery as his sire at Witchampton, and the third kitten is also sold. This is a most curious little creature, white with yellow stripes, and, odd though it sounds, is really quite pretty. The charming Blinks has not produced one of her very light babies this time, but has two jolly and mischievous little smokes, a silver tabby, and a shaded silver. Miss Taylor's kittens are always so clean and healthy that they are a pleasure to behold, and Miss Taylor prides herself on not admitting one single flea to the cattery! The amount of trouble this exclusion involves can only be appreciated by those who have conducted a number of Persian kittens through a hot summer.

CAT GOSSIP. September 16, 1899, pg 8

THE Brighton Cat Show, always a popular fixture, will take place on November 15th and 16th. Exhibitors will be pleased to hear that Mr. Andrews will be manager as heretofore, but the names of the judges have not yet transpired.

MISS PACKHAM has purchased a very lovely light silver female kitten, by Lord Southampton ex Dimity, from Miss Hester Cochran. The price paid was £10 10s., and as I understand the kitten could have been sold several times for this sum it should turn out something out of the common.

MISS SHAPCOTT'S smoke kittens Cupid and My Campaspe make a charming picture. They are the children of Silver Laddie and Aphrodite, and the little lady who is to the front of the picture is expected to make herself a name in the show pen.

MISS WHITE ATKINS has lost a number of her best kittens, and her vet says their death is caused by the use of milk containing boracic acid and other preservatives which upset their livers. Miss Atkins is determined to avoid a repetition of the trouble, and so is going in for goats to provide the kittens with milk. The goat fancy is one which can most advantageously be run in connection with the cat fancy, for it is an undoubted fact that no milk agrees so well as goats' with cats and kittens alike. It is quite unnecessary to boil it, and goats have this advantage over cows, that they are practically free from tuberculosis.

LADY ALEXANDER seems to be going in heavily for blue Russian males, as, besides Bumpums, whose portrait recently graced these pages, and Mr. Woodiwiss's Blue King, she has just received a further addition to her cattery in the shape of yet another gentleman, whom she describes as "enormous, and having, without exception, the largest and deepest orange eyes she has ever seen." Lady Alexander feeds her Siamese cats almost entirely on raw rabbit, and finds it suits them excellently. Some of her cats, notably the tortoiseshells bought from Mr. Woodiwiss, and I suppose some of the Russian gentlemen, will be at the Crystal Palace Show. The picture of her wild cat is not very successful, but it is truly marvellous that an animal so recently caught should have been got to "face the footlights" at all. It is# a most interesting photograph, and the first I have seen of a genuine wild cat.

TALKING of the Crystal Palace reminds me that it is high time for intending exhibitors to devote their energies to the extra feeding and grooming necessary to ensure their cats looking well thus early in the year. Personally, I can survey the fuss and excitement of preparation with calm indifference. I had fully hoped and intended that things should be otherwise, but the unkind fates have left but two of my show cats alive, and neither of these has quite finished moulting his last year's coat, and therefore I don't expect they will be fit to be seen till well on in the new year. Well, so much the better; I shall be all the freer to criticise other people's cats with an unbiased mind. The mention of fate reminds me that I shall soon be in a position to give my readers some authentic information as to what foundation there is for the most common catty superstitions. I had a charming black cat, but he was so unmanageable that I parted with him, though I must confess that at the time I felt it was a reckless act. Soon after this a perfectly lovely orange kitten was given to me. A friend said, "What do you expect if you take in a sandy kitten?" True enough, everything went wrong. The sandy kitten died, and bad luck followed the rest of the cattery right through the summer. Those animals which could conveniently manage it died quietly, and the rest deliberately took themselves to violent ends. Now I have made a fresh start. I have invested in an inky black kitten; I have forbidden anything yellow in the shape of a cat to cross the threshold, and to "mak siccar" I have planted a rowan tree to "keep away the bogles" as they do in Scotland, so we shall see.

MISS FRANCES SIMPSON'S numerous friends and correspondents will be interested to hear that she has left London and is now residing at Durdans House, The Avenue, St. Margaret's-on-Thames. Miss Simpson is thinking of parting with her magnificent brown tabby Persian, Persimmon. This cat won first, challenge cup, and two specials at Westminster, and, since the death of Darkie, there is no doubt that he stands alone amongst cats of his own colour.

MRS. DOYLE writes to me in rather low spirits. She has sold her cottage, and so the cats must go too, and will be offered for sale in these columns. Mrs. Doyle's blues are well known, and Ronald is a most promising young cat. The females, Minca, Moser, and Lobelia II., are good breeding cats, and are offered at very low prices, and there are some other cats and some kittens well worth enquiring about.

MRS. G. P. TYRWHITT DRAKE, of Scawby, Lincolnshire, is advertising for sale in our columns a chinchilla Persian female kitten by the well-known Ch. Lord Southampton ex Lady Jane Grey, and she tells me she has another litter of five beautiful chinchilla kittens by the same celebrated sire. The price asked is very modest, and I expect they will be very quickly sold.

MISS WHITE ATKINS has had a disappointment over Syren's litter, as the kittens were all born dead or dying. As, however, Miss Atkins is on the point of removing to her new and permanent home, a large family of Kittens would have somewhat added to the trials of the "flitting." Syren, at any rate, appears to think so, as she does not regret her lost babies in the least.

CAT GOSSIP. September 23, 1899, pg 55

THERE is an enterprising project on foot to establish a system of supervision over the health of stud cats. It is a well-known fact that many kittens start life seriously handicapped through the indifferent health of their parents I know of a queen which was sent to visit a stud cat, and on arrival she proved to be covered with eczema, so was promptly returned. Her owner was most indignant, and immediately dispatched her to the home of another well-known stud cat, where she was received.

ANOTHER celebrated stud cat was suffering from such a virulent attack of mange that he eventually died of it, and his owner concealed the state of his health, and he was freely bred from. These tales, selected from a number which I know to be true, prove that some reform is necessary, and the idea is to have a register in which the names of stud cats can be entered, and remain so long as each cat is inspected every three months by a qualified vet, and passed as thoroughly healthy and in good condition. Moreover, the stud cats' houses and the quarters provided for their visitors must also be inspected and reported upon.

MISS FRANCES SIMPSON is justly celebrated as the first exhibitor of blue Persians at the Crystal Palace. In those days they were known as ‘ London smokes." Miss Simpson had a magnificent brown tabby named Rajah, and he and the celebrated blue female, Mater, were the parents of many of her celebrated blue cats, amongst the number being Beauty Boy, Fanny, and Bounce. The kittens in the photographs are all children of Beauty Boy. Miss Simpson is still faithful to the old strain, and for a kitten to claim relationship to Beauty Boy is a sure road to her heart. Though unable to keep many cats at home now, she always has a few boarded with friends, and keeps well in touch with the catty world, for she is a leading member of the Cat Club committee. There being no accommodation for a stud cat at her new home, the well-known brown tabby, Persimmon, is to be for a time in the care of Miss Cochran at Witchampton.

MISS COX writes enthusiastically of her Ruth's litter by Sweetheart. There were four kittens, all equally beautiful, but two died while their mistress was in Scotland. The survivors are lovely pale silver tabbies with the sweetest of faces, and their mistress feels sure they are good enough to win at any show. They are now over four months old, so the chief dangers o! childhood are over.

MISS LEAKE has a charming and somewhat curious pair of kittens from her silver tabby, Abdul Zaphir, and Countess of Dingley, a pretty chinchilla. The male is an unmarked and very pale silver kitten, while the female is distinctly marked with dark spots on a pale clear silver ground.

CAT GOSSIP. September 30, 1899, pg 111

LAST week I had a long list of births to record, and this week purchases seem to be the order of the day. The principal sale is of Mrs. Doyle's Ronald to Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart. The price paid was a high one, but Ronald is one of the finest blue males I have ever seen. Though only eighteen months old, he is a big, heavy-boned cat, with a massive head. His colour is the purest pale blue, and his eyes are deep orange. By the time he is two years old he will be a magnificent creature. At the N.C.C. Show, though only nine months old, he took two first prizes. Mrs. Fraser Woodcock has bought the blue, Nankipoo, from Mrs. Bluhm. Nankipoo is a big, strong cat with a good head, and as a kitten he took first and the Howard challenge prise at the Crystal Palace; some of his kittens also have taken first prizes. Mr. Ward's chinchilla, Tibbins, has found a new home, and Lady Marcus Beresford's Sweetheart has gone to Witchampton.

MISS SIDNEY CUNNINGHAME writes to tell me that she has sold her blue queen, Dot, to Mrs. Dring, of Cork. Dot was bred by Miss Cochran from Ch. Turkish Delight and Moth, and was for some time in Miss Beal's hands. She won several prizes, including first and three specials at the Crystal Palace in 1896.

My latest information with regard to Siamese cats is that the Temple cats are of the purest breed in existence. They, I am told, have never been allowed to stray, whereas the Palace cats, which are not so carefully guarded, have been known to escape and form mesalliances with Malay cats, and in this way the much-discussed kink in the tail bas been introduced.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD has purchased Mrs. Chapman's well-known Siamese, Klinkie. This is a big, strong, heavily-built cat, and though a little dark in colour should be valuable for breeding. Moon Chow, her cattery mate, is an enormous cat with beautiful bright blue eyes, which, in conjunction with his nice light colour and dense points, have won him several prizes. Lady Marcus has a most choice collection of silver cats, and they and their descendants should account for some prizes in the future. The palest cats are two young males named Beetle and Prince of the Fairies, and Dimity, already known to fame. Whiskerandos and Silver Lining (commonly called The Girl), though darker, are unmarked, and are quite eligible for the shaded silver class. This pair excel particularly in head and shape. All the cats at Bishopsgate look well and happy, but the blues and the Siamese are still the greatest favourites with their mistress.

I HEAR that Miss White Atkins has parted with her blue-eyed white, The White Knight, to Mrs. Grahame Menzies, of Hallyburton, who is going in for this now popular colour.

MISS FRANCES SIMPSON tells me that she has had several offers for her brown tabby, Persimmon, but as he has now quite settled down in his new quarters at Witchampton she has decided not to sell him at present.

MIILVERTON META was formerly Miss Taylor's property, but she has always lived with Miss Bagster, and now belongs to that lady. Meta is justly celebrated as the dam of Princess Bagh. She has just had six kittens by Silver Chieftain.

I HOPE Mrs. Doyle will have no difficulty in finding homes for her blue cats. Nothing short of a removal would have induced her to part with them, as she has had a lot of trouble in collecting such a nice little team, and there are some winners and some promising youngsters among them. In writing of Ronald, the stud cat, Mrs. Doyle informs me that he "likes to play with a piece of string tied to a pug puppy." I wonder if the puppy enters into the joke.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."
MISS WYLIE. - Will you write to Mrs. Stennard Robinson, 5, Great James Street, Bedford Row, London, W.C., and ask for schedule and entry form for the Crystal Palace Cat Show, also for a registration form, as your cat must be entered in the club register before he can be shown? The fee for registration is 1s, each cat, and the entry to show is, I think, about 3s. 6d. for every class the cat competes in. I expect your Romeo is eligible for open, novice, and limit classes, and he should stand a good chance in each. I will recommend your Juliette if I hear of anyone wanting a lovely Siamese lady, but the price (£15) is more than most people will give for a pet, and cat fanciers are careful as a rule. I daresay Juliette is worth far more if you could chance upon the right person to buy her.
MISS RUCK. - Write to Fur and Feather office, Idle, Bradford, Yorks, enclosing 1s, 2d., and ask for Miss Taylor's ‘Show and Pet Cats." Your kitten is very well grown, and his coat will begin to come soon; most Persian kittens are nearly smooth between three and seven months, but different strains vary in this. I advise you to give lean meat instead of fish, as cats thrive better on raw meat than anything. It is their natural food. There is no charge for answers through this column.
MISS INGLES. - You will not get a very high-class blue for 30s., I fear, but if you do not get one from the sources you mention I can give you other addresses. Feed the kitten four or five times daily. Let at least two of the meals consist of minced raw meat. He may also have arrowroot, milk puddings, bread and gravy, fish, etc. The kitten cannot come by post, but, if carefully packed in a warm box, will travel all right. I have often sent kittens to Dublin.
DICK WHITTINGTON

CAT GOSSIP. October 7, 1899, pg 169

MRS WELLBYE'S chinchilla cats are well-known, and among them are some of the best in England. Dossie has won a number of prizes. She is a prettily-shaped short-legged cat with a nice head, and she is a good clear colour and quite free from markings. Silver Lotus and Silver Veronica are daughters of Dossie by Silver Squire, who was one of Mrs. balding's celebrated cats. I believe squire was never exhibited, but I was told that he was very lovely, and I have seen a few really beautiful kittens of his. Th seven little kittens sitting in a row are a promising young family, and they make a charming picture; but what an amount of labour and patience it must have taken to get them all to sit still at once!

LADY ALEXANDER has now been making further purchases from Woodiwiss's cattery, and is now the happy possessor of the tortoiseshell tom, Ch. Samson; also the the tortoiseshell and white Ch. Otter and Sedgemere Blue Queen. The cattery at Brock Hall must indeed be a large one to accommodate so many champions. Russian eats are most largely represented and are Lady Alexander's favourites, but she also keeps a number of English cats, some Siamese, and a few Persians.

MRS. WYLIE has sold her beautiful Siamese cat, Juliette, to Lady Marcus Beresford. Juliette being a Temple cat must be accepted as the correct type of Siamese beauty, so a short description of her will be of general interest. Her head is small and weaselly, with the forehead round and ears set low and facing rather downwards, and smaller than the ears of most Siamese cats. Her coat is very fine and sleek, and the colour a warm rich yellowy cream, which, when, as at present, she is in kitten, shads into seal brown. She is fine in bone and exceedingly graceful, and her tail is straight.

MISS WHITE ATKINS - has just purchased a very handsome young smoke male, named Prince Twilight; he is a son of Blue Royal, and his mother is a lovely smoke daughter of Princess Ranee. I think I am right in saying that the only kittens of Princess Ranee's that survived were her last litter of three, which were, I think, by Felix Mottisfont. Ranee I never admired tremendously. She had a fine head and a wonderful coat, but her colour was dull and mixey, and not at all the ideal silver tabby, and she had a smutty mouth. She was a great favourite with Miss Freeland, who actually took her all the way to California when she and her aunt left England I had several cheerful letters from Miss Freeland after she got to Los Angeles. saying that her health had improved, and that Ranee was well and had been mated to a Maltese cat; but suddenly her letters stopped, and I have heard no more of her from that day to this. I have often wondered where she is, and if she has set up a new cattery.

A COMMITTEE meeting of the Cat Club will be held on October 19th to discuss the date and other particulars of the next show.

MRS. WALDEGRAVE BRODIE - has long been renowned for her black pugs, and of late years she has also taken to cats, and is going in for oranges and chinchillas from prize strains. Mrs. Brodie's third fancy is for white fan-tailed pigeons, and of this hobby the kittens quite approve, and spend their days in trying to catch the young pigeons; one kitten, indeed, was lucky enough to succeed, but was deprived of her prey before she had even hurt it.

MRS. KENNAWAY writes me an account of a number of promising kittens which she is trying to sell to make room for more. Amongst them is the brother of those exquisite blue kittens which took first at the Botanic Gardens. Beetle, as the young gentleman is called, was selected as the best of the litter, and if he is anything like as beautiful as his sisters he is a most desirable possession. Mrs. Kennaway bought his mother a few weeks ago, and was quite delighted with the purchase, but, alas! her satisfaction was short-lived. The poor cat being shy and frightened was shut in a pen by itself, but by some wonderful means it made its escape next morning, and has not been seen or heard of since.

AUTTUMN kittens are arriving in shoals, and Miss Anderson Leake tells me that Winsome of Dingley has four by my friend Mowgli. Mrs. Neild writes of expected families by Silver Lambkin, Silver Tod Sloan, and Chs. Wankee and Midshipmite, so variety is evidently the order of the day in her establishment. Miss Cartmell has three new orange babies from Trilby, and her other kittens are all doing well. Miss Cartmell is really indefatigable in her quest after good orange cats, and has just purchased from Miss White Atkins a pretty little daughter of Prince Charlie, named Goldie-locks.

SEVERAL CORRESPONDENTS. - As several correspondents have written concerning Lady Alexander's cats and dogs, I think it better to state that she does not dispose of her cats or dogs, neither do they stand at stud.
TAURUS. - On no account wash the white kittens or they will have weak eyes. It they play about on the lawn their skins will become white and lovely. They were rather too young to take away from the mother.
BOTH OF US. - Many thanks for your kind appreciation of the paper, "and especially the cat column." If you will submit the photographs the Editor will let you know whether the portraits are good enough for reproduction.
FAY. - Yes, that diet is supposed to cause the fur to be very glossy and smooth, but I do not consider it altogether advisable. The finest and really nicest cats I have known have never been those that prefer their food au naturel,
GRIEF. - Do not attempt the miserable work of euthanasia yourself. Send the creature to a chemist, who will put it out of its pain in a few seconds. Personally I prefer the idea of prussic acid to the "lethal chamber."
DICK WHITTINGTON

CAT GOSSIP. October 14, 1899, pg 216

THE PRINCESS ALEXIS DOLGOROUKI has, I understand, joined the N.C.C., and become a vice-president, so also have Lady Walter Lennox, Lady Alexander, and Lady Rivers Wilson. The schedule of the Seventh Championship Show is now shut, entries having closed on the 11th. All particulars can be obtained from Mrs. Stennard Robinson, hon. secretary, 3, Great James Street, Redford Row, W.C.

I HEAR on good authority that the following judges have been appointed tor the N.C.C. Show at the Crystal Palace on October 24th and 25th: Mrs. Balding, Mrs. Vallance, Mr. Wain, Mr. Gresham, and Mr. House. Mrs. Balding will judge the whites, blacks, blues. And chinchillas, so her post will be no sinecure. Mr. Gresham will take the long-haired kittens, and Mrs. Vallance the long-haired silver tabbies, always her speciality. At Brighton Show in November Mr. A. A. Clarke and Miss Frances Simpson will judge.

Mrs. H. V. James, of smoke Persian fame, has been more lucky than her neighbours this year, having lost but two kittens, though one of these was Jogram's most promising smoke kitten.

Mrs. Champion's lovely Argent Moonbeam is growing into a large, handsome cat, but he now has a formidable rival in his mistress's admiration, for Mrs. Champion has just picked up a very fine pale chinchilla male kitten bred from chinchilla parents, and most valuable to her, as he is not related to Lord Argent's strain. This kitten has been named Moonlight Blossom, from the play of that name.

I am exceedingly sorry to hear that Mrs. Neild has lost some of her best Siamese cats, the cause of death being an internal parasite hitherto unknown in this country.

MISS WHITE ATKINS writes to tell me that the "lucky black" is a delusion and a snare. And so I think, for my black kitten has so far failed to break the horrible spell which at present hangs over me and all my doings. Still, Miss Atkins has hardly given the matter a fair trial, as she bought a black kitten in July and it immediately died, whereupon all the other kittens followed suit - naturally they did - there was no other course open to them, for there could not possibly be a worse omen than the death of a black cat; any sailor will tell you that! Had that black kitten lived there might have been a different story.

Mrs. Fraser Woodcock is very full of her new purchase, Nankipoo. She tells me that he is enormous and in grand form, and that his eyes are a very deep orange.

Miss Cox thinks of going to Cannes for six months, so she will probably not be represented at the winter shows, and her smoke queen, Lady Marjorie, who has just been mated to The White Knight, will be sold, if a good price is forthcoming, to save the trouble of boarding her out. Were I in Miss Cox's place, cats and kittens should all go to Cannes with me, as I am certain the climate would suit them, and surely no horrid quarantine regulations would interfere with their comfort. This seems a bright idea, and in future I shall advise all owners of delicate Siamese cats to winter them on the Riviera.

Miss Derby Hype writes enthusiastically of the new stud cat register and so do a number of other fanciers. This is well, as I understand the enterprise is well under way, the leading spirits being; Mrs. Vernon Neild, Miss Packham, Miss Jay, and Miss Cochran. Miss Derby Hyde tells me that she has procured a lovely little Siamese queen to replace Sooa, who died after the Botanical Gardens Show.

The well-known silver queen, Southampton Duchess, is now the property of Miss Bartlett, of Bexley Heath. Duchess has won a number of prizes, having in her day beaten Lord Southampton, Zaida, and other well-known cats. She is also the dam of various celebrities, including Lord Southampton and Southampton Duke.

CAT GOSSIP. October 21, 1899, pg 263

MISS KIRKPATRICK'S cats are amongst the lucky ones which are kept primarily as pets. Dinah and Peggotty, her two old favourites, are the mothers of all her prize kittens, and have been in her possession since they were purchased at the Crystal Palace Show, seven and six years ago respectively, Dinah was the first Persian cat Miss Kirkpatrick ever owned, and Peggotty is distinguished as the mother of no fewer than seventy-two kittens, most of these being blues. These two old ladies are also remarkable for their health, size, and beauty. Miss Kirkpatrick tells me that she has several most promising kittens to dispose of, including a blue, a black, and a pale silver, all of which will be duly advertised in these columns.

MISS WHITE ATKINS tells me that she thinks of parting with Fairy, as her daughter Sprite is so pretty, and she wants a little more room Fairy is a silver tabby, and was bred by Miss Freeland. She is the dam of Dimity, FitzEustace, Silver Sheen, and a number of other good cats, and during the year she has been in Miss Atkins's possession she has had some most successful litters. Miss Atkins is much amused by the appearance of a kitten belonging to one of her smooth foster cats. At the age of three weeks its body and ears are the colour of a rat and its head black, its body is slightly marked, and its tail distinctly ringed. A foster cat of my own once had a kitten like that, but, sad to say, it moulted into a plain, common black before it was three months old. Silver Chieftain is better known by his progeny than by his winnings, as he was only once shown at the Crystal Palace as a kitten, where he took a first and a second. He is the sire of innumerable lovely silver and smoke kittens, the best known being Princess Bagh and King of the Silvers, both first: prize-winners at Westminster. Sultan, a silver tabby from the same litter as Chieftain, was sent to Mentone as a pet when still quite a kitten.

As this paper appears on the second day of the National Cat Club Show, I can only draw attention to the two pretty silver prizes offered by THE LADIES' FIELD for the best blue-eyed white Persian male and Royal Siamese female respectively.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD has purchased a remarkably fine black Persian male from Mrs Green, of Upper Tooting. The Bishopsgate cattery is getting somewhat overcrowded, and so several really good cats are offered for sale at low prices. Azure, the the much admired blue male, would be an excellent investment tor any cattery. His shape, coat, and colour are perfect, and he shows an amount of quality which will always win admiration. He has a good head and yellow eves, and his been proved an excellent sire. Stelletta, an orange-eyed blue female, and Dinah, a really good black, are also great bargains at the prices asked.

MISS WINIFRED BEAL writes to tell me that her cats are all flourishing, and there is only one kitten from the spring litters left 2 on unsold. There are, however, three young families at Romaldkirk now. Calliope, the cream, has produced three orange and one brown kitten, and the tortoise-shell Torpedo has one pale cream, two blue tortoiseshells, and a black. Daisy Bell, true to her own colour, has tour pale blues by Midshipmite. Miss Beal is most anxious that classes should be provided for cream and fawn females, and promises two entries at Westminster if such can be arranged. She has sent three kittens out to the Cape, where they are much admired, particularly a cream one.

I hear that Mrs. Vernon Neild has a most lovely silver kitten from her recent purchase, Milverton Svlvie, and Mrs. Balding's silver Tod Sloan. This kitten has a lovely head, which, with his face and legs, is absolutely unmarked silver.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."
MRS. BOUSFIELD. - If you will write to me again fully I will see if I can help you. There are some good blue kittens advertised in our columns at 35s. each, which is cheap. You would really like to take in a cat to board, no doubt lots of breeders would be glad to send you one if you can supply references, and you will let me know hat you would charge weekly. A little advertisement in out private sale columns would probably bring answers. I don't think the lady you mention has any kittens to board out at present, but no doubt lots of other people have. Write to me again please.
CHINA CAT. - The Crystal Palace Cat Show is October 24th and 25th, and the secretary Mrs. Stennard Robinson, 5, Great James Street, Bedford Row, W.V., and cats must be registered with the N.C.C. There will also be a show held by the C.C. at Westminster in January, I hope, and cats must also be registered - with the C.C. this time. Your cat must be entered as a smoke, and he is too old for a kitten class. I think it is easier to win at a big show than a small one, as the classification is so much better.
MIS JOHNSON. - The pedigree is good, and if the kittens are equally good they are remarkably cheap. A good blue or silver kitten at the price you name will be rather difficult to get, but Miss Thwaites, 283, Harrow Road, W., advertises some chinchillas, and Mr. Ursinus, 18, Morpeth Mansions, Victoria Street, S.W., some blues that might suit you. If not, try Miss E. Phayre, Ormond Lodge, Weston Road, bath. She tells me she has cheap silvers an smokes to advertise immediately. - DICK WHITTINGTON.

CAT GOSSIP. October 28, 1899, pg 311

CAT GOSSIP. November 4, 1899, 360

THE Crystal Palace Show is still going on while I write, and reflects the greatest credit on the management. One or two errors, of course, there were, but the worst was that the judges were too heavily tasked and could not get through their work in the allotted time. Complaints of the judging, as usual, were rife, and in a few cases were certainly justified. Miss Packham showed a grand couple of blue-eyed white males. Monk, who took first, is the best yet exhibited. Though a small cat, his shape is exquisite. He has the shortest, snubbiest possible nose, tiny ears, and glorious dark blue eyes. Scotland's Prince is another really fine cat, with good head an eyes, but quite out of coat. In the white female class Mr. Smith's Chiswick Snowflake had an easy win. She is a charming little cat, with a sweet face and forget-me-not eyes.

The black male class was disappointing, but the winning female, Mrs. Little's Lady Bruin, has a nice head and deep orange eyes. In the blue male class nothing striking appeared. Mrs. Young's Blue Jackets were too late for competition; Skellingthorpe Patrick took first. He is a big, heavily coated cat, but rusty, and his face is plain and his eyes are pale. Mrs. Hill's Ruin V. is a better cat all round, though he, too, is very rusty. The female class was well filled, and here appeared the sensation of the show, Miss Jay's Mighty Atom. This cat is absolutely perfect but for her green eyes. She has the broadest head I have ever seen on a queen, with tiny ears and a ridiculous little nose. Her colour is sound and she is in grand coat. The second prize-winner, Mrs. Joyner's Stella, is a huge fine blue cat with magnificent orange eyes. A cat I thought hardly treated was Viscountess Maitland's Cheeky Blue, a sweet little cat with a round face and splendid dark eyes, her only fault being a slightly smoky tinge in her frill. In my opinion the first in smoke males might have gone to Mrs. James's Backwell Jogram, who, though out of coat, is a grand cat, but he was beaten by Miss Rose's Judge Bruin, a pretty kitten, but showing markings.

In the chinchilla male class Mowgli was lucky to win, as he is out of coat and looking very dark. Mr. Champion's Argent Moonbeam has splendid eyes and is a beautiful colour, and was my choice for first place. In the female class Zaida won, closely followed by Miss Packham's Silver Charm and Mrs. Wellbye's Silver Lotus, both good in head, colour, and shape. The Romaldkirk fawns, as usual, took first and second. But Admiral, though put behind his brother, is undoubtedly the best cat in head and colour. Mrs. Wellbye took first with Creme d'Or, a pretty little female.

Miss Derby Hyde's handsome silver tabby, Thames Valley Silver King, took first, as did Mrs. Champion's Argent Dainty, a beautifully marked little cat. The judging of the brown tabby males was puzzling. Miss Southam's Master Ruffie took first. He is a glorious colour, but the less said of his nose the better. he second and third have the same fault, and fail also in colour. Persimmon, who was unnoticed, has a magnificent head and fine markings, and his reverse is a mystery to me.

Mrs. Herring's smooth tortoiseshell tom, King Saul, won over Lady Alexander's Samson, being younger and, possibly tor that reason, better in colour. Mrs. Herring also won easily with her grand old silver tabby, Ch. Jimmy.

In brown tabbies Ch. Xenophon was first, with Mr. Newland's Jim Shelley second, but I understand the competition was so close that even the judge was a little mixed with regard to the winner. Mr. Towlerton, as usual, won with his orange tabbies. In short-haired whites I should have put Master Biddy Blue Eyes first and Ballochmyle Snow King second, but Miss Harper's Prince Chat Blanc and Monkstown White Queen did the winning.

In the Russian classes Lady Alexander took first with Blue King, who is a grand cat, but I thought not quite equal to Bumpums (second) in head or eyes, though beating him in colour. Lady Alexander also won with a Russian female, Blue Queen, and took second with Jim Crow, a handsome black Manx, first going to Mrs. Brooke's lovely brown tabby, Katzenjammer. Mrs. Robinson's Wankee once more led the Siamese classes, with Mrs. Patton Bethune's Stengah second. Mrs. Robinson also won in the female class with Biba, an exquisitely coloured daughter of Wankee; and Perah, a sister to Stengah, took another second for her mistress. Amongst kittens, Chiswick Snowflake again took first in a class of fifty-three; and she also took the white championship, though here she was very lucky to beat Monk.

There was a splendid turn-out of chinchilla kittens, and Mrs. Martin's General deserved his position, as he ha sa lovely face and colour. Mrs. Kennaway took first with a lovely pair of pale blue babies. The ring class was quite a success, though the cats declined to walk, and were gently propelled round the ring by the toe of Mr. Gresham's boot. Madame Portier's Blue Boy took first in the ring class, as well as in his own, and I believe Zaida also took a first. Miss Jay's Mighty Atom took the cup for best long-hair in the show, and right well she deserved it. That for best cat went to Ch. Xenophon, but I heard rumours of trouble over this award.

Mrs. Balding was unfortunately prevented by illness from fulfilling her engagement to judge, but her place was ably filled by Mrs. Bridgewater. On the whole the show may be need a great success. In only one section have I heard any complaints, and that is the Siamese. Only two classes are provided for Siamese cat; and some of the owners feel slightly ill-used. It is only fair, however, to remark that the Botanical Gardens was the first show where the Siamese classes have really filled well. The Cat Club made a valiant effort on their behalf, but were so poorly supported that three out of the four classes had to be cancelled. If they are once more sufficiently enterprising to give a class for Siamese, any other colour, I can say that, bar accident, there will be several entries for it this year. Perhaps in a few more years Siamese will have taken more kindly to this climate, and then we may hope to see an increased classification and a better turn-out of cats, but at present owners are too nervous to risk them at shows.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.
DICK WHITTINGTON will be pleased to give advice on all matters concerning cats and their ailments, and will be glad to receive for insertion in the above column any interesting items of cat news that her readers may send her. Letters should be addressed, "DICK WHITTINGTON, care of Editor, The Ladies' Field."
FUZZY. - Examine the cat's ears carefully, and if there is an sponge them out carefully with warm water with a little carbolic (one part carbolic to eighty parts water) in it twice dally, afterwards dropping in a pinch of boracic acid powder. If the ear seems dry inside, put o occasionally, with a feather, a drop of f carbolic oil. I do not think it likely that he has caught it from the fox-terrier.
F. PERRY. - It is the feeding which is at fault; give raw meat instead of fish, a little milk, and let her have coarse dog-grass to eat. If she gets lots of grass, vegetables are not necessary. Continue the sulphur ointment, but have it made with vaseline instead.
MRS. WRANGHAM. - Please write direct to Mrs. Kennaway, Garboldisham Rectory, East Harling, Norfolk, for particulars. The correct name for what you term "blue chinchilla" is "blue tabby." Try a little advertisement. which would no doubt bring what you want.
MRS. MORGAN. - You must please write direct to the advertiser, Miss Kirkpatrick, The Gables, Harrow. I have nothing to do with the sale of cats or kittens advertised, and do not know the particulars you ask for.
LEMONADE. - If you wish to show your cats you should certainly join one of the fanciers' clubs. There is the Cat Club, sec. Mrs. Bagster, 15a, Paternoster Row, E.C.. entrance fee £1. subscription 10s. 6d. per annum; and the National Cat Club, sec. Mrs. Stennard Robinson, 5, Great James Street, Bedford Row, W.C., subscription 21s. per annum. Seven is a large litter for your cat. Please let me know more about your stud cats, as I cannot recommend them without knowing their colours. Please also tell me their ages, names, pedigrees and if they have won any prizes, or if their kittens have done so. I certainly consider orange eyes essential in a blue cat, and people will not buy green-eyed ones now. Smokes are beautiful, but, strange to say, not popular. Chinchillas have had s long run, but are not now fetching as high prices as they did. Why don't you try Siamese? They are fashionable, and most fascinating, though the kittens are rather delicate.
MRS. MAJENDIE. - Your cat has got into a low state of health, and nothing would do him so much good as fresh air and exercise. Can you not send him to the country for a month or two? Give him a grain of quinine in a pill twice daily, and also give him a dessertspoonful of cod-liver oil every morning. These abscesses are very common in cats. When they are forming, and after they break, bathe well and frequently with hot water to which a few drops of carbolic or Condy's Fluid have been added. Do you think the cat has worms? If so I will prescribe further.
GENOA. - I expect the cat you sew was chinchilla and white. A true chinchilla has all the fur white at the roots, and shaded to pale silver at the tips. They are the most expensive to buy of all Persian cats. If you can afford the price, £4. 4s., I strongly recommend to write to Miss Kirkpatrick, The Gables, Harrow, about a kitten she is advertising, but if you must have a cheap one, Miss Taylor, Ingleside, Parkstone, Dorset, told me the other day that she knew of some nice ones which were to be sold very cheaply to an immediate purchaser, as they were too inbred for fanciers to care about.
SIAMEE. - You could not possibly have a kitten from a better strain, and I think you most wise hot to risk sending it about. Mrs. Wylie's male is not sold, but I rather think she has decided to keep him. I believe her kittens have all found homes. The other lady you mention has none now old enough to sell, but it is not tree that her prices high; they are most reasonable. I think if you write to Mrs. Sutherland, Chateau de la Pinede, Juan les pins, Alpes Maritimes, France, she has several young Siamese males to sell at £6 6s. to £8 8s., and a number of kittens. Your kitten is very large for her age. I think the Cat Club gives a better classification for Siamese cats, and if well supported it will of course improve in this respect.
PAT. - Yes, if you tell me your exact requirements I can recommend a kitten, but there are a number of really good ones advertised in our columns, and one of these ought to suit you.
DICK WHITTINGTON.

CAT GOSSIP. November 11, 1899, pg 408

A COMMITTEE meeting of the Cat Club was held at 3, Carlton House Terrace, by kind permission of Lily Duchess of Marlborough, on October 19th. There were present Lord and Lady Marcus Beresford, Lady Alexander, Mrs. Bagster, Mrs. Hardy, Miss Simpson, Mr. Gambier Bolton, Mr. Hawkins, Mr. Barker, and Mr. Rintoul. Seven new members were elected. It was decided to hold the next club show in the St. Stephen's Hall, Westminster, in the second or third week of January. 1900, The following show committee was elected: Lady Marcus Beresford, Mrs. Bagster, Mrs. J. Davis, Miss Simpson, Miss Cochran, Sir Claud Alexander, Mr. Ridley, and Mr. Gambier Bolton. A sub-committee was appointed to draw up briefly the points of the various breeds of cats, that the same may be printed on show schedules for the guidance of visitors and exhibitors. It was decided not to subdivide the blue classes into cats over and under two years, but rather to give extra prizes, if necessary, in the existing classes. It was also decided not to provide judging tables, as there seemed to a be a fear of their carrying infection. Miss Slater and Miss Lister resign from committee through inability to attend meetings, and Mr. Barber was elected on committee. A silver and a bronze medal were voted to the Brighton Show for best male and female long-haired cats. The committee gave authority for the first volume of the stud-book to be commenced.

Miss White Atkins asks me to say that the rumour that she had sold The White Knight is quite without foundation. She is much too pleased with the Knight to have any thought of selling him. Miss Atkins tells me that none of her Persian cats were in good enough coat to appear at the Crystal Palace, but I believe she showed a pair of short-haired tabbies.

Lady Alexander is such a staunch admirer of short-haired cats that she has decided to give up Persians altogether, and stick entirely to the smooth varieties. Russians are her favourites, but she also has some Siamese and English, besides a Manx and the wild cat recently illustrated in these pages.

The cat world usually suffers from a sense of flatness after the Crystal Palace Show is over, as it comes at a time when all the amusement of small families is past for the year. Now, however, cats are being drawn into a perfect whirl of gaiety. This month the Brighton Show is held, and the Cat Club will have its annual function at Westminster in January. The L.K.A. is, I understand, to have a big dog show in London in December, but no announcement has yet been made that cats are also to be catered for. I fancy, however, that we may take it for granted that Mrs. Stennard Robinson will make at least one further effort on behalf of the felines during the winter.

Miss Anderson Leake is going to sell her lovely silver, Countess of Dingley, as may be seen from our private advertisement columns. I can strongly advise anyone to buy this cat, as, besides beings a charming and beautiful person, she has pale chinchilla kittens even when the father is a silver tabby.

Mrs. Martin tells me that her silver kittens won outright, at the Botanical Gardens, the challenge trophy model of Silver Lambkin. By some error it was again offered for competition at the Palace, so Mrs. Martin allowed it to remain on view, though it was not competed for. It must have been a great satisfaction to her to know that her kitten, The General, would have won it again had this been possible.

CAT GOSSIP. November 18, 1899, pg 459

I AM exceedingly sorry to have to announce the death of Mrs. Brookes's celebrated silver tabby Manx, Bonhaki. This was, without doubt, the best Manx cat in existence, and I considered him by far the best smooth cat at the last Botanical Gardens Show. His head was magnificent, and his colour and markings perfect. At four shows he won four championships, four premierships, four firsts, and fourteen specials. Mrs. Brookes refused an offer of £20 for him in July. Her grief is not from a mercenary point of view, however, but solely on account of the cat's charming nature, as she says she has lost ‘'a most affectionate chum." Bonhaki was not yet two years old, and he was only ill for one day. Mrs. Brookes's handsome brown tabby Manx, Katzenjammer, is, since the death of his companion, Bonhaki, probably the best of his kind now shown. He has won a number of prizes, and would certainly have been a champion ere this had not Bonhaki always accompanied him to the shows and beaten him. Katzenjammer's latest win was first and championship at the Crystal Palace Show. He has a fine head and is well marked and of a good, rich colour.

A GREAT discussion has been raised upon Manx cats, and the points in question remind me of the captain who had twelve good reasons for not firing a salute, the first being that he had no guns! Well, the first point called in question with regard to the Manx cat is if there is such a thing as a Manx cat at all. One authority states that all the tailless cats come from the East, and are Chinese, Japanese, or anything else according to taste. Again, granted that the Manx cat does exist, the question next arises as to whether any of the cats exhibited are genuine "Manxers." At more than one big show I have heard the judge announce that the entire class consisted of docked English cats! Few people are aware of the great differences there are between a Manx and an English cat, leaving the tail, or want of one, out of the question. The head of the Manx is never so round, nor are the ears so small, as in the English cat, and the coat is quite peculiar, consisting of a soft, thick undercoat, with a rather long, coarse, thin outer covering. The third point in question is the tail, which most authorities consider should be non-existent, but Harrison Weir and others admit the possibility of a kind of stump or screwed-up "fud" appearing in a pure-bred specimen.

Mrs. Tyrwhitt Drake's chinchilla kittens were much admired at the Botanical Gardens Show, where they took first in the "pair" class. They are beautifully clear and pale in colour, with sweet faces and big eyes. They are worthy representatives of their well-known sire, Lord Southampton, and their dam, Jane Grey, is a pretty, round-faced, light-coloured cat.

THE days when a cat with six toes on each foot was valued are past, but it is interesting to hear that this peculiarity is hereditary. The secretary to the Royal Botanic Society at Bath has a common mouser with twenty-four toes, and he has had several generations in his house, and all, without any exception, were equally well provided with standing accommodation.

Mrs. A. F. Young tells me that her Bijou, sister to Kingfisher, has had a lovely litter of blues by Blue Jacket III. These kittens, though only three months old, are quite experienced show-goers, having taken first and special at Milngavie, first and medal at Milnathort, and second and special at Bonnyrigg.

Lady Alexander has purchased Mr. Woodiwiss's well-known smooth, blue-eyed white Snow King, so now all the big winners from Sedgemere, with the exception of Xenophon, are reunited at Brock Hall. Lady Alexander tells me that her cats and kittens all told number twenty-three. They are housed in movable wooden chicken houses and runs. The houses are periodically washed out with paraffin, which has been found most efficacious treatment so far as the destruction of fleas is concerned, for not one has been seen during the long hot summer. Cats returning from shows and new arrivals are cooled off in an empty cottage.

Mrs. Vyvyan has five lovely Siamese kittens from the same parents as those shown at the Botanical Gardens - Tiam o' Shian III. and Polyphema. Mrs. Vyvyan and her sister, Miss Forestier Walker, were amongst the very first people to bring Siamese cats to England, and they have never since been without them; their present cats are descended from the original strain.

My readers may remember my description, about two months ago, of a curious kitten bred by Miss Taylor from Blue Robin and Tawney. When eight weeks old, this kitten was orange and white, the curious part being that the ground-work was white with orange markings, in the same way that a silver tabby has a silver ground with black markings. I have had a letter from Miss Taylor saving that she has seen the kitten for the first time since it left her, and it is "quite unrecognisable," being now the loveliest pale cream, with hardly a trace of orange, except on its head, and no white at all. His coat is the longest and of the finest texture possible, his ears are hardly to be seen, and his face is broad, short, and round, and his eyes are becoming dark hazel. Miss Taylor says she has never seen a kitten in her life that changed so much in so short a time, and she regrets deeply that he is to be kept only as a pet and not shown, for she thinks that there are few creams to equal him.

Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart bought the blue kitten which I fancied most of any at the Crystal Palace. Curiousiy enough, it is a daughter of my old love, Blue Boy II., and was shown by Messrs. Drury Brothers. It has all its sire's charm of face and shape, and his deep orange eyes, and its colour is beyond reproach.

Mrs. Egerton asks me to say that her beautiful blue Persian neuter, Beauty Boy Junior, took equal first with Madame Portier's Blue Boy at the Crystal Palace. Beauty Boy Junior also took a silver medal and the Duchess of Bedford's silver candlesticks. He is a son of Mrs. Herring's King David, and his dam is the property of Miss Tyler.

CAT GOSSIP. November 25, 1899, pg 506.

AT Clerkenwell, quite a number of the Palace winning cats appeared. Ch. Xenophon took first and five specials, including the one for best cat in the show. Miss Packham's pretty little Silver Charm took first and special for best female cat in the show, and Miss Jay won in the self-coloured class with a dark blue cat, with a fine head. Madame Portier's Blue Boy was another first prize-winner, and Romaldkirk Admiral was wrongly classed. Miss Rose's smoke, Judge Bruin, which won the championship at the Crystal Palace, was second to Silver Charm, and Mr. Hughes's Una, the "bicycle cat," took another first prize. Messrs. Drury Brothers sent another of their exquisite blue kittens, which was not long in finding a purchaser at the catalogue price of 25s. Chiswick Snowflake also put in an appearance.

I hear a rumour that there is to be an N.C.C. Show held in London on January 5th and 6th. I hope this is not the case, as, the Cat Club Show being on the 9th and 10th, the shows would be certain to spoil one another. I can hardly believe that it is true, as the Cat Club announced that their show would be held in the second week of January before the idea of another N.C.C. Show was even mooted. It is, of course, to the disadvantage of everyone concerned that they should be held so near together, as neither cats nor owners will feel equal to the two outings.

It will be a terrible blow to the N.C.C if Mrs. Stennard Robinson gives up the secretaryship, as she threatens. I think the committee will be well advised to use every means in their power to induce Mrs. Robinson to stick to her post.

CAT GOSSIP. December 2, 1899, pg 564.

LADY ALEXANDER writes to say that she has purchased Mrs. Heslop's smooth tortoiseshell and white female Callow Herring, which took second at the Crystal Palace. The chief reason for this purchase is that Callow Herring, who is to be renamed Ballochmyle Mermaid, is litter sister to Ballochmyle Bountitul Bertie, and these two queens, being daughters of the tortoiseshell male Samson, Lady Alexander hopes may, when mated back to their sire, produce tortoiseshell males in untold numbers.

MRS. HERBERT RANSOME has got a lovely litter of wonderfully pale blue kittens of which Darius and Dossa are the parents, which are advertised in our Sale and Exchange columns.

I HEAR of the death of several kittens since the Crystal Palace Show. I had hoped all would have been well this year as the weather was so mild, but I suppose a cat show which is not followed by considerable mortality will never be heard of. More serious is the announcement that one fancier received a wrong kitten from the show, while at Cheltenham Show a valuable blue cat was lost.

MRS. KENNAWAY tells me that she has sold several kittens through her advertisement in our columns, and she is only waiting to see what she has left to advertise the remainder of her surplus stock, but one or two would-be purchasers are still trying to make up their minds.

MRS. CLINTON LOCKE, writing from Chicago, tells me that Rudolph, the handsome orange Persian which she purchased in the summer from Lady Marcus Beresford, was developing beautifully, but suddenly, the other day, he fell ill and died. Mrs. Leach, the other American Cat Club member, proposes going in for chinchillas or silver Persians, and is having a fine male sent to her from England.

MISS WHITE ATKINS tells me that she thinks of selling her handsome smoke male, Twilight, to go abroad. This cat is a particularly lovely specimen, being perfect in shape, round and cobby, yet not clumsy; he has a huge square, black face, with eyes like saucers. He is a son of Blue Royal, and that reminds me that I have just heard of Royal's death. He is a cat with a history, for he was first heard of in the Mottisfont cattery, and he was asserted to be a long-haired Chinese cat, his parents having been brought home from China. I have no hesitation in saving that, though they may have come from China last, they were originally taken to that country. Royal was nothing more or less than a blue Persian, and when in coat was, I believe, very handsome. Unfortunately, he was much neglected, and after Miss Atkins bought him she had to cut off most of his hair, which, sad to say, never grew again, and so he was never seen in the show pen. Miss Atkins sold him last year to Mr. Coffin, in whose hands he was till he died. Royal bred some
magnificent kittens, the best of the lot being Bitterne Cuckoo, who did so well at Westminster, but unfortunately died soon after.

MISS TAYLOR has sold Meta's last family of six lovely pale silver kittens, brothers and sisters to Princess Bagh. One has gone to Miss Row and two to Mrs. Naish, of Bristol; the destinations of the others I have not heard. Miss Taylor is advertising in our columns several lovely kittens, including a couple of really exquisite silvers and a little black lady which has a coat of quite remarkable length.

I AM sorry to hear from Miss Phayre that she has had illness among her house cats, though, luckily, it did not spread to the outdoor people. Miss Phayre is, as a rule, lucky with her pets, for she attends to them entirely herself.

A NEW rule of the Cat Club will be of interest to exhibitors. A length of narrow scarlet ribbon is to be sent out with each metal tally, and the cats will be permitted to wear no other decoration. This is a step in the right direction, and when it is carried Into effect we shall probably hear less complaints of large bows concealing white spots, and broad ribbons being used as substitutes for absent frills Another suggestion which will probably be carried out is that if a cat is turned back by the vet for any infectious complaint, the vet may, if he likes, refuse to admit any other cats from the same cattery. This I consider a most necessary rule, for supposing three cats live together, one may develop influenza, and therefore remain at home, while the other two are despatched to the show. Another may develop the complaint on the journey, and then the betting is ten to one that No. 3 will be stricken down before the close of the show. Of course, if both No. 2 and No. 3 wait till they are in their pens before showing suspicious symptoms the rule would have been useless, but we cannot expect perfection even in cat shows, and can only do our best. The Cat Club have decided to hold their show for two days, the second being entirely with a view to raking in extra gate-money to swell their donation to the War Fund. Surely exhibitors will not object to sacrificing their cats so far for such an object, especially as they will be allowed to take them away on the second day in time to catch the country trains.

MISS PACKHAM has sold her pale silver cat, Elsa, to Mrs. Young, of Dunblane. Elsa, it will be remembered, was only shown once, and then took first at Brighton. She is full sister to Ting Ting and Lord Silverhair. Miss Packham has also sold her beautiful blue-eyed white male, Scotland's Prince, who took first at the Botanical Gardens and second at the Crystal Palace.

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD has parted with her blue Persian male, Azure, recently advertised in our columns, and he is now the property of Miss Hester Cochran.

CAT GOSSIP. December 9, 1899, pg 611

LADY MARCUS BERESFORD has now a really fine collection of Siamese cats, all being of the Royal breed. Moon Chow, the gentleman of the establishment, was purchased from Miss Sutherland. He is a huge cat, with splendid colouring, brilliant blue eyes, and very good coat. He has won several prizes. Klinkie, who came from Mrs. Chapman, is a little dark in colour, but is a big fine cat of a good shape and with lovely sapphire eyes. Juliette, the Sacred Temple cat imported by Mrs. Wylie, has been recently described in these pages, and is certainly the most rare and valuable animal in the cattery, and her two daughters promise to be equally valuable.

MRS. NEILD tells me that she has bred an extraordinary little kitten from Romaldkirk Admiral and Belle of New York. It is exactly the shade of lavender, with a splendid head and a snub nose. Already several substantial offers have been made for it, but Mrs. Neild is inclined to keep it to show at Westminster. Another promising kitten in the same cattery is a little blue lady from the same parents as the lovely Musk - that is to say, one of Miss Bray's breeding. It is quite extraordinary what a number of the best blue cats come from Miss Bray's stock.

MISS ATKINS speaks with joy and pride of Princess Flavia, a young sister of poor Cuckoo. She is a beautiful pure light blue with orange eyes, but even her beauties are eclipsed by those of a young blue male, with a wonderful coat, and altogether boasting of such exquisite beauty that, as yet, no worthy name pe can be found for him. I wish Miss Atkins all good luck to make up for her terrible losses last year.

MRS. MARRIOTT is advertising a very promising young silver male by Fitz-Eustace out of the celebrated Seraph. She tells me that he is a huge, strong youngster, and very good-looking, and that she does not want an extravagant price for him.

CAT GOSSIP. December 16, 1899, pg 47.

MISS KIRKPATRICK is successful both as an artist and a cat-fancier. Her Chili is a lovely smoke neuter with an immense fleecy coat, and though he shows a good deal of marking, that, though incorrect, certainly adds to his charm, and his other points are so good that he has taken fourteen first and special prizes and three seconds. Blue Phyllis is a large and very fine blue daughter of Woolloomooloo and Miss Kirkpatrick's old cat, Peggotty, while the little black kitten, another of Miss Kirkpatrick's breeding, is a son of Darius, and at the age of six weeks he took first in the kitten class at Harrogate, and special tor the second best cat in the show. He was afterwards sold to Lady Marcus Beresford, who bought him for a friend, and who was quite enraptured with his beauty.

MISS CHAMPION sends me a budget of news of her pets, and a little photograph of General Buller, a kitten she is advertising for sale in our columns. Unfortunately the kitten spoilt a charming picture by moving his head, so that it is impossible to reproduce it, but it represents a very nicely-shaped little cat of an exceedingly pale colour, and at three months the young man weighs 3lb. 14oz. As he is from the same parents as the much-admired and much-discussed Argent Moonbeam, he should soon find a purchaser. Miss Champion claims, and I think rightly, to have broken the weight record with a kitten of four and a half months who turns the scale at 6-and-three-quarter Ib.!

THE Glasgow Show is giving a good classification for cats, and a challenge cup and numerous specials are offered tor competition. The Cat Club is giving a silver medal for the best cat in the show. Mr. Dewar and Mr. Garrow are judging.

I HEAR from the Hon. Mrs. McLaren Morrison that she hopes to return to England in the early spring. She has sold a number of her cats, Miss Packham having purchased several of the white ones. Mrs. Morrison sends me news of some wonderful Cabul cats which she now has, and promises me their photographs for reproduction in these pages.

MY readers will be interested to hear that the popular judge of dogs and cats, Miss Manley, whose portrait recently appeared in these pages, is to be married shortly. I am sure all her numerous friends will join in offering their heartiest good wishes.

AT the Cat Club Show at Westminster, on January 9th and 10th, THE LADIES' FIELD offers a special prize for the best Manx cat, male or female.

I AM glad to hear that Miss Beal is inclined to question the decision of the judge who disqualified her cat at the recent Finchley Show, as now perhaps some explanation of the matter may be forthcoming. Romaldkirk Midshipmite, as is well known, is an unmarked fawn cat and an N.C.C. champion. He has won a number of prizes in classes for self-coloured cats, and his right to do so has never been questioned; in fact, it is not open to doubt, and yet when he was entered in the self-coloured class at Finchley Mr. Gresham marked him "wrong class." I can only conclude that some mistake was made, but still it was hard on Miss Beal after having sent her cat such a long way, especially as he was one of the best in the show.

A LITTLE celebrity who has recently joined the majority is the blue Persian queen Moth, who was once well known in catty circles. Moth's name appears in the pedigrees of many of our best blues, and in the direct line come Kingfisher, Roy, and Skellingthorpe Patrick, all winners at the Crystal Palace. For the last few years Moth has lived a peaceful lite in Dumfriesshire, being the only cat her mistress, Miss Cochran, owned. The other night the poor little creature got caught in a trap, and was so frightfully mutilated that she had to be destroyed. Moth was seven vears old, but as young and fresh in appearance as a kitten. She was bred by Mrs. Marriott from Grand Chartreuse and Pearl.

CAT GOSSIP. December 23, 1899, pg 58.

A SUB-COMMITTEE of the Cat Club has drawn up, for the assistance of exhibitors, a general description of the colours and general characteristics of the various breeds of cats. Of course, only the briefest outline of the points is given; as, for instance: White, colour pure white, eyes blue or yellow. Manx, any colour, coat rather long and soft; no tail; but no doubt novices will find it of great assistance in classifying their '‘mowlers."

The following judges have accepted the invitation to judge at the Westminster Show on January 9th and 10th: Miss Forestier Walker, Miss Jay, Miss Packham, Mrs. Herring, Miss Manley, Miss Kirkpatrick, Mr. Barker, Mr. Astley, Mr. Mason, Mr. House, Mr. Ward, and Mr. Dewar.

I expect by the time these notes appear the schedules of the Westminster Show will have been sent out. The classification is most liberal, and the Royal Siamese cats are, by a new and most excellent arrangement, to be divided into those over and those under eighteen months. It is well known that an old cat has no chance against the delicate colouring of an eight months kitten, and Siamese breeders have long hoped for some such classification. Another great attraction at Westminster is that lunch, as well as tea, will be provided "on the premises."

Miss Rosamond whitney, writing of her litter of brown tabby kittens by Persimmon ex Fina, says that one of them took a first, a third, and three specials at Bristol, and his brother a second; this before they were four months old. Miss Whitney adds: "They do their father credit, and I am more than pleased with them; their coats are wonderfully long."

Mrs. Kennaway tells me that she has not yet disposed of her young blue Persian male, Beetle, recently advertised in these columns. He is an unusually promising kitten of eight and a half months, and a litter brother to the winning pair of kittens at the Botanical Gardens. Mrs. Kennaway has had the misfortune to lose Mia, a pretty blue queen, from congestion of the lungs, but she has sold the blue stud cat, Knave of Hearts.

Miss Cartmell is advertising a number of most desirable kittens in our columns, and as they are all of the highest pedigree, and the prices are not ruinous, they should soon be disposed of. Miss Cartmell is one of the most enthusiastic and successful breeders of orange Persians, and, though she never shows her pets, she has bred some kittens better than any I have seen in the show pen.

Miss Eggett's Maida and Cleopatra are both exceedingly handsome cats, and both have done very well in the show pen. Maida is a prettily shaped blue, full sister to Blue Jacket II, being by Champion Blue Jacket ex Bijou, and Cleopatra is a large, heavily-coated brown tabby.

Cat fanciers in general have been praying for a frost, and at the time of writing it is cold enough to please anyone. It is curious, but quite true, that in a mild winter Persian cats do not come into as full coat as in a hard one, and when there is no frost they start moulting almost before the hair has done growing; while if there is a long, hard frost the coats seem to set, and retain their full beauty during a comparatively lengthy period. Of course, in its own country, the Persian cat is used to intense cold and plenty of snow, but not to damp. Imported cats never moult so much as those bred in this country, and their voices, as a rule, are much more powerful.

PETERKIN. - Let your little cat have as much liberty as possible until January, as it will encourage his growth and keep him healthy. He is small for fifteen months. When the spring comes you must watch him carefully and see that he is in before dark, and if he persistently wanders he must be shut up, as, apart from the dangers of traps, guns, and poison, he will become a wreck, and fight till his ears are in ribbons, besides, in all probability, catching mange or some other charming complaint.
FLUFF. - I cannot think how anyone can be so cruel as to turn cats, or indeed any animal, out of doors at night. You really deserved to lose your kitten. There is no animal more easily trained than a kitten, and at night it should be shut in one room with a tray of ashes, mould, or sawdust, and, if it has been properly brought up, it can quite be trusted to behave well.
PUNCH. - Cod-liver oil usually agrees with cats, but it is advisable to commence with small doses, say a teaspoonful twice a day, which may be increased to as much a tablespoonful if found necessary. I think, however, your cat's case is more one for a tonic, so give him one grain of quinine in a pill twice daily, which will improve his appetite, and therefore his condition.
DICK WHITTINGTON.

CAT GOSSIP. December 30, 1899, pg 109

MRS. MARTIN has long been known as one of the most successful breeders of chinchilla cats. Her stud cat, St. Anthony, though his owner does not care to risk him in the show pen, is well represented at all the leading shows. Mrs. Martin has won herself about twenty prizes and over twenty specials with his progeny. He is in appearance a very handsome cat, with a broad head and short legs. St. Anthony's son, The General, took first among the chinchilla male kittens at the Crystal Palace, and there was certainly not one kitten present with such a fascinating appearance. His colour was absolutely perfect, and he had a sweet face and huge dark eyes. On the first day of the show he was ticketed as the best chinchilla kitten in the show, but on the second day this was altered, and the prize went to Mrs. Barnes's Nourmahal, a handsome kitten of nearly three times The General's age.

Mrs. Crampton made a most successful debut as a cat exhibitor at the Crystal Palace, when her very prettily marked and shaped silver tabby, Silver Foam, whose photograph we give, took second in the open class, though only eight and a half months old. Mrs. Crampton bred Silver Foam from Lord Argent and her own Blackie.

Miss Taylor has been purchasing cats for Mrs. Mix, of New York, and is sending out Miss Bartlett's Sylvia, and Miss White Atkins's beautiful smoke, Twilight.

I HEAR from Mrs. Greenwood that she is going to give up breeding cats altogether. Alter the sale of Ford Southampton she purchased his lovely son, FitzRoy, who took first for Mrs. Tyrwhitt Drake at the L.K.A. Show. FitzRoy has now been sold to go to America, to which country Mr. Barker has also sent Baby Flossie, the smoke queen which he bought from Mrs. Falconer Sinclair.

From the Globe I copy this paragraph: "A Corner in Cats.- Following the announcement of the creation of Belgian hare and skunk trusts in Indiana comes the report, according to the Chicago Tribune, that Herman Eular, of Posey County, has succeeded in almost cornering the supply of Angora cats. During the last year he has raised and sold no fewer than 3,000 Angoras. For some he received as much as fifty dollars each, and in no case did he part with one of his treasures for less than twenty-five dollars, the total amount approximating 100,000 dollars."

MISS SUTHERLAND has had a great loss in the death of Chiarmi Kum, the Royal Siamese kitten with which she did so well at Brighton. It is a sad fact that Siamese cats, and particularly Royal ones, seem positively to enjoy dying. I cannot recall a single instance of a Royal Siamese under twelve months making a sensational debut in the show pen and surviving its triumph for more than a week or two. Fortunately, as they get older their lungs seem to become less delicate.

I HEARD recently of a litter of Persian kittens, belonging to Miss Gray, of Morecambe, in which there were three male tortoiseshells. These had reached the age of between three and four months, and were strong, healthy, and beautiful. If the fortunate owner should wish to dispose of them she should be able to make her fortune by the sale of such rarities.

The Stud Cat Register is now an accomplished fact. It was started with a view to improving the general health of stud cats, which are much neglected as a rule because they are not often to be seen in the show pen. The idea has "caught on," and it seems likely that if a cat is to have any standing in the feline world he will have to produce his health certificate three times a year, and if he is unfortunate enough to fall a victim to any disease report the fact at head-quarters.

MRS. LEACH is a member of the Cat Club, and one of the founders of the Beresford Cat Club in Chicago. She intends to breed white Persians and silvers, and tells me that she already has a blue-eyed white male of great beauty and a highly-bred silver female, and that she expects shortly from England a young silver son of Lord Southampton, who is described as a duplicate of his sire. I imagine this to be the kitten with which Mrs. Tyrwhitt Drake took first at the Botanical Gardens, and which she afterwards sold to Mrs. Greenwood. He was then known as FitzRoy, but has since been registered as Lord Southampton II.

It is funny to notice in what a small circle the "catty" fashions revolve. Ten years ago white cats were much admired and sought after, though blue-eyed specimens were comparatively rare; then for a time they seemed to drop quite out of favour till last year, when blue-eyed whites began once more to tickle the popular fancy. The principal breeders at present are Mrs. Champion, owner of White Friar, White Tsar, and White Witch; and Miss Packham, whose Scotland's Prince, Monk, and Aisha have done well in the show pen. Lady Marcus Beresford has a good blue-eyed queen in Nourmahal, and her Nada the Lily is perfection, but has yellow eyes. Mr. Smith's Chiswick Snowflake and Miss Hunt's Crystal are both exquisite little ladies, and have done a good share of winning, and I hear good accounts of Miss White Atkins's White Knight. It is worthy of note that Scotland's Prince, Aisha, and Crystal were bred by Mr. Gairn, of Edinburgh. I believe the dam of all three was the handsome odd-eyed Lilywhite, while Prince and Crystal, at any rate, were sired by Ch. Blue Jacket. By the way, I hear that Crystal has just had three blue-eyed and two odd-eyed daughters by White Friar. Personally, I confess to a liking for odd-eyed cats, though I know it is rank heresy to say so. I have heard that the Shah of Persia valued them more than any other variety, but one hears such various and conflicting accounts of the Shah's tastes, all "on the best authority," that it is difficult to know what to believe. His views on the essential points of Persian cats seem to have been wrapped up in as much mystery as those of the King of Siam on the tails of Siamese cats.

BEE.- I am always so pleased to hear that my remedies have been successful. The symptoms are those of strychnine poisoning, and rat poison takes longer to act because the strychnine is usually mixed with something else. The poor cat must be suffering frightfully from paralysis of the throat, and it is too late for me to advise remedies, as he is either dead or better by this time. The usual treatment is to give an emetic at once, and follow it with quantities of butter, lard, and other fat, but a great authority tells me that a teaspoontul of syrup of chloral every few hours will do wonders. You should have given the poor beast milk constantly with a spoon. For the kitten, if you want a very good one, apply to Mrs. Kennaway, Garboldisham Rectory, East Harling, Norfolk; she has a beauty, eight months. Or Miss Cochran, Witchampton, Wimborne, has a younger, very pretty blue at 30s.
PURR.- Certainly the houses, earth pans, etc, should be attended to daily, and if necessary oftener. Every second day is not sufficient it you wish to keep your cattery pleasant and the inmates healthy. Use disinfectants freely, but be careful with carbolic or anything else which is poisonous. If applied where kittens are likely to lick it, the place should be washed with plain water afterwards A little camphor in the bedding will be found to be excellent
DICK WHITTINGTON.

MESSYBEAST - OLD CAT BOOKS

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