REPORTS FROM EARLY BRITISH CAT SHOWS (1874)

These are reports of the early British cat shows that I've collected from various newspapers and show catalogues. The earliest reports reflect the novelty of cat shows and describe only a few of the entrants.

1874 CANNOCK CAT SHOW

DOG, POULTRY, PIGEON, AND CAT SHOW AT CANNOCK. Birmingham Daily Post, 1st January 1874
The first annual exhibition of dogs, poultry, pigeons, and cats for the above district commenced yesterday, in the Covered Market of this small, but picturesque, town Cannock: and the show will extend over to-day (Thursday). [. . .] The dogs and poultry were the two best features of the show, and after them came tire pigeons;: the cats being but few, and, except in one or two instances, of inferior description. [. . .] Among the curiosities was a pen of pigeons with a dark-grey cat sitting quietly in their midst. Miss Sprague's cat attracted much attention, but the first prize animal was sulky and did not show himself well to the public, however he might to the judges. Considering that the show is a first attempt, it is highly creditable to the committee, and to the secretary, Mr. Gilbert.

CATs (Tortoiseshell): 1st, Miss A. Cox, Penkridge 2nd, Mr. C. R. Gilbert, Cheslyn Hay.
Any other variety: Mr. Baxter (Lion), Goswell Road, London, gray striped: 2nd. Miss Sprague, Evesham (Rodney), Persian, winner at Birmingham; 3rd prizes (extra), Mr. S. A. Pocock and Mr. W. Dyer, Tamworth.
The judges were: Dogs and cats, Mr.Hinks, Birmingham.

1874 WOLVERHAMPTON CAT SHOW

A CAT SHOW FOR WOLVERHAMPTON. Birmingham Daily Post, 8th January 1874
During the forthcoming Dog, Poultry, and Pigeon Show in Wolverhampton, there will be a cat show. The cats will be displayed at the Exchange, and the arrangements will be under the same direction as the late Birmingham Show; and inasmuch as there will be more available space in the room than there was in the former case, it is inferred that the exhibition will be of even a more satisfactory character than that of Birmingham. There is a tent likewise being made to add a still further attractive feature to the exhibition. Mr. Darwin has been communicated with in the hope that lie may consent to come to Wolverhampton and deliver a lecture on both shows, to be given in the place where the cats will he exhibited.

A CAT SHOW AT WOLVERHAMPTON Birmingham Mail, 8th January 1874
Following the example of Birmingham, Wolverhampton is to have a cat show in connection with the Dog, Poultry, and Pigeon Shows. The cats will be shown in the Exchange. Mr Darwin has been communicated with in the hope that he may consent to come to Wolverhampton and deliver lecture a lecture on both shows.

WOLVERHAMPTON AND NATIONAL CAT SHOW. Worcester Journal, 24th January 1874
The Wolverhampton and National Cat Show will be held, as above, on Friday Saturday, and Monday, January 30, 31, And February 2, 1874, same days as the Poultry and Dog Shows. Prizes to a large amount will be given in Money ,Silver Cups, Medals, etc. Admission - On Friday, public cat judging at 9:30, admission 5s or by Ticket. The Show will be open to the Public at Two o Clock. Admission until Five - 2s 6d, after Five till Nine - 1s. Open on Saturday at Ten, admission until Five, 1s.; after Five until Nine, 6d. On Monday open from Ten till Nine, admission all day, 6d Manager, Mr. James Chaplin ; Secretary, Mr. R. Paul, Offices-3, Queen Square.

CAT, POULTRY, PIGEON AND DOG SHOWS IN WOLVERHAMPTON Birmingham Mail, 31st January 1874
The experiment of holding a cat show was tried yesterday at Wolverhampton with the most encouraging result financially, and as regards the quality and number of the exhibits. The exhibition was held in the Exchange, the judges being Mr. Billet of Southampton, and Mr Jones of Fulham, London.

CAT SHOW AT WOLVERHAMPTON. Birmingham Daily Post, 31st January 1874
The first National Cat Show in Wolverhampton was opened yesterday, in the Exchange. The entries numbered nearly 250. The general superiority of the animals not only evoked the warmest commendation from the visitors, but excited unreserved eulogy from the judges. In tortoiseshell-and-white, the only entry was Mr. J. Hurry’s excellent "Tatty," which was awarded a silver cup. There was a good display of brown tabbies and the generality of them were excellent, -Mr. F. S. Savage coming off with the premier prize. In blue-and-silver tabbies, Mr. g. Ellis’s exhibit took the first prize. A very good red tabby, shown by Mrs. T. Bull, gained the first recognition in that department, and Mr. F. Schweiss the second; whilst a splendid long-haired specimen of Mr. H. Allen was disqualified by its entry in the wrong class. In red-and-white tabbies, the same error disqualified a beautiful cat of Mr T. Bamhall, and Mr. Birch came off with the palm. Spotted tabbies mustered in tolerable numbers, Mr. Thomas Beard gaining the first prize.

The array of black-and-white cats was commendable, and in this class Mr. Storeer gained the first prize. In the prize for cats of a black colour, Mr. Mana bore off the palm; and Mrs. Lee and Mr. F. Schweiss were respectively the second and third prize takers. In white cats the successful competitors were Mr. Tooly, Miss Taylor, and Miss Inshaw. Amongst those of an unusual colour the splendid blue-hued and well-developed specimen of Mr. Shaw gained the silver cup apportioned as the first prize in the class, and also another silver cup for the finest short-haired male in the show. In the any variety of colour or singular form of species, Mr. Wilson was awarded a silver cup for a beautiful tortoiseshell Manx; and Mrs. Haslewood and Mr. Ford were the other prize winners in that class. In the red, yellow, and black, Mr. Richards too the first prise, and an extra prize cup for his brilliantly striped cat. In the class restricted to red, yellow, black and white coloured cats, the one shown by Mr. Richards, which is deserving of special note, was awarded the premier prize.

The blue-and-silver tabbies were all meritorious, and Mrs Gem’s first prize gainer was singularly excellent. The only red tabby entered was that by Mrs. Nicholls, which gained the first prize, and was pointed out as the acknowledged premier tabby in England of that kind. In spotted tabbies, the prize-takers were Messrs. Tustin, Reynolds, and Schweiss; and in black-and-white, Messrs. Gossey, Longmore, and Hollingsworth. In those of a blue hue there were some beautiful exhibits, Mr. Schweiss taking the palm. In those of unusual colour, Mr. Lawrence took the primary award with one perfect blue-striped kitten. The show of kittens was extremely good. A splendid red tabby of Mrs. Organ gained the first prize in that class, and also an extra silver cup. For the best Angora cat Mr. Jones gained the palm with a splendid specimen. In the cats of no sex, tabby department, judged only by weight and colour, Mr. Davenport came off with honours with a cat weighing 19lbs. The cat entered as being hybrid was pronounced by the judges to be a Spitsbergen puppy. In the class exclusively limited to working men the general quality and numerical power of the exhibits was satisfactory in the highest degree. The judges were Mr. Billet, of Southampton, and Mr. James, of Fulham, London. Throughout the day there was a good attendance.

THE WOLVERHAMPTON CAT SHOW Birmingham Daily Gazette, 3rd February 1874
Only a week or two the holding of a cat show at Wolverhampton was contemplated, but work was commenced in real earnest by the committee, who had the assistance of Mr. Chaplin, of Birmingham, and whose name is now intimately connected with the recent show in Birmingham. The first Wolverhampton Cat Show was opened on Friday in the Exchange, Wolverhampton – a room most suitable for the purpose, every arrangement having been made of the comfort of the domestic pets that were to be located there for four days. A staff of female assistants were in attendance to look after the feeding and cleansing of the cats, which were exhibited in cages supplied from the Crystal Palace. In the front part of each cage is placed a crimson ottoman, upon which the animal reposes; while the back part is filled with sand and charcoal – a suggestion of Mr. Hood, the enterprising lessee of the Exchange – which prevents any obnoxious effluvium arising, as well as adding to the cleanliness of pussy. There were altogether 233 entries, and those were divided into 58 classes, comprising Manx, Angora, Persian, long fur, short fur, tabby, tortoiseshell, &c., and cats and kittens of all sizes and sexes. All the classes were exceedingly well filled and, as compared with the recent show held in Birmingham, is said to far supersede that exhibition. Mr. J.F. Elwell has lent to the committee one of his Sicker safes, not to confine the cats, but to hold “Sicker” [secure] the money derived from the exhibition. The judges were Mr. Jones, of London, and Mr. Billett, of Southampton.

[WOLVERHAMPTON CAT SHOW] Birmingham Mail, 4th February 1874
The efforts of the originators of the cat show have also been crowned with a success even greater than they anticipated. On the first day the admittances numbered about 2,000; 3,000 on the second; and near 4,000, on Monday, the last day.

PRIZE CAT [WOLVERHAMPTON] Worcestershire Chronicle, 7th February 1874
At the National Cat Show, held at Wolverhampton, on Friday last, Mr. Geo. Shaw, of No. 1, Rose-terrace, Park-hill, this city, took first prize— a silver cup—with a splendid blue-hued and well developed half-bred Manx and English cat, and also, with the same animal, another silver cup for the finest shorthaired male cat in the show.

DEODORISING A CAT SHOW Field, 7th February 1874
The Wolverhampton Cat Show was held at the Exchange Rooms on Friday, Saturday, and Monday last. I wish to direct your attention to the means I adopted to deodorise the show. There were 233 pens of cats, numbering about 240 animals, and to neutralise the effluvium I placed in each cage a layer of moist sand 1 inch in depth, upon which I laid quarter inch of charcoal powder, intermixed with burnt earth, and then added another layer of sand similar to the first application, consuming altogether five tons of sand, twelve bushels burnt earth. and eight bushels ground charcoal, the effect of which was completely to prevent the least smell being perceptible throughout the five days of the show. The results thus effected elicited most favourable remarks from the visitors, who numbered upwards of 6000. – Samuel Hand (Honorary Secretary).

1874 NORTHAMPTON CAT SHOW

NORTHAMPTON POULTRY, PIGEON, RABBIT, AND CAT SHOW. Northampton Mercury, 7th March 1874
The fifth annual exhibition of poultry, pigeons, rabbits, and cats was held in the Corn Exchange on Wednesday and Thursday, under the most favourable circumstances. The arrangements were very satisfactorily carried out by a committee of twelve, assisted by their indefatigable secretary, Mr. William Humphreys, and the success of the exhibition is due to their great exertions. The Society was established 1870, and the first year the entries only numbered 250, but upon this occasion the number was increased to upwards of 1,200. Prizes to the amount of £200 are awarded, and the show now ranks as one of the best in the United Kingdom. As a further proof of this it may be mentioned that only four societies could last year boast of a larger number of entries. These were the Crystal Palace, Birmingham, Oxford, and Glasgow.[. . .] The cat classes were well represented, the long hair and tabbies being particularly fancied. The names given to these pets were, in some instances, very amusing, two or three rejoicing in the name of "The Shah," and one fierce looking specimen was designated " King Koffee." On Wednesday night there was rather an interesting accession to the show, the keeper discovering early on Thursday morning a remarkably lively kitten, about a couple of hours old, in one of the pens, and in another pen a cony [rabbit], which had probably come into the world about the same time.

Cats.
Class 76.—Long hair, any colour, male or female, any age – 1st, 15s5., Mr. E. M. Royds; 2nd, 10s., Mr. W. Prentice, jun., Aldwinckle; 3rd, 5s., Mr. E. Crompton, Pitsford. Highly commended, Mr. J. W. Howard, Northampton; Miss Saull, Northampton.
Class 77. —Tabbies, any shade, male or female, any age. 1st, 15s., Mr. E. Baxter, London (has won five prizes); 2nd, 10s., Mr. Graham Ellis, London (has taken five prizes); 3rd, 5s,, Mr. F. Cole, Northampton.
Class 78. —Any variety or colour not before mentioned, male or female, any age. 1st, 15s., Mr. F. Longland; 2nd, 10s., Mr. F. Turner, Kettering; 3rd, 5s., Mrs. Parker, Kingsthorpe ; extra 3rd, Mr. George Reynolds, Northampton.
Class 79. —For one kitten, male or female, any variety or colour, under four months, 1st and prizes withheld ; 3rd, 5s., Mr. Shipman, Northampton.

1874 GLASGOW CAT SHOW

CAT AND DOG SHOW. Edinburgh Evening News, 4th May 1874
The Scottish National Dog Show opens to-morrow at Burnbank, Glasgow. The entries for dogs number 300 [. . .] The cat show, which opens on Wednesday, promises to excel any of its predecessors, as amongst the entries is the tortoiseshell "Tom" which won first prize the Crystal Palace, and others of peculiar colour.

GLASGOW AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. GREAT SHOW. North British Daily Mail, 5th May 1874
Cat and Bird Show in Grand Marquee, great Western Road, Opposite Entrance to the Cattle Show, on Wednesday First. There will be on exhibition the cat nursing eight young squirrels, a wonderful phenomenon in nature; the Tortoiseshell “Tom,” Winner of the first prize at the Crystal Palace Cat Show; the beautiful Persian, Angora, Manx, and other varieties, pretty and playful kittens. Choice exhibition of Foreign and British Birds. All should see this Exhibition in the Grand Marquee. Admission, One Shilling; Children Sixpence. To be continued on 6th and 7th.

CAT SHOW AT BURNBANK. North British Daily Mail, 7th May 1874
Under the smile (canvas) roof which shelters the Scottish National Dog Show, at Burnbank, there was opened yesterday a Cat Show, in which are included a number of the most beautiful and perfect specimens of the feline tribe that have ever been exhibited in one collection. First and foremost - if we may be allowed an Hibernicism - there is an example of that particularly rara avis, the tortoiseshell "Tom" cat. So uncommon, indeed, is this variety that it might be marked "rarlssimas in catalogues," like Dominic Sampson's scarce folio. The specimen which Mr Martin has been lucky enough to secure for Burnbank took the first prize at a Crystal Palace show, and has walked “over the course" at several other places since. Amongst other notables in addition to Tom may be mentioned a blue tabby, belonging to Miss Middleton, Royal Crescent; the pure coal-black Tom, the property of Miss Malcolm, Strathbungo; the first prize taker in the black and white class, a handsome "mouster" belonging to Mr Turner, South Portland Street; and an equally handsome brown tabby exhibited by Miss Pritty, Western Club. A "lot" which naturally enough forms a centre of attraction, is , that of an affectionate female pussy who does the maternal for one of her own offspring and eight young unweaned squirrels, without the slightest respect of persons. . . . The following is the Cat prize list:
Tortoiseshell Tom: E. Horne.
Tortoiseshell and White: 1st, John Hurry, Norwich; 2d, Miss Arthur, Newtoll, Airdrie.
Brown Tabby: 1st, J. Smith, Glasgow; 2d, Mr. McKnight, Rose Street, Garnethill; 2d, Andrew Leitch, Holmhead Street.
Blue Tabby: 1st, Miss Middleton, Royal Crescent; 2d, Mr. Graham Ellis, Cornhill, London; 3d, A. Benzie, City Poorhouse, Glasgow; highly commended, A. Scott, Great Eastern Road.
Black Tom: Miss M.G. Malcolm, Strathbungo.
Black and white: 1st, J. Turner, 98 South Portland St; highly commended, Miss Fanny Charles, Bedford Hotel.
Brown Tabby, marked with White: 1st, Miss Gertrude Pritty, Western Club, Glasgow; 2d, Miss Black, Burnbank Terrace; 3d, Miss Fanny Charles.
Long-Haired White (Male): 1st, Thomas Weightman, Connaugth Place, Hyde Park, London; 2d, Annabella Watt, Dalry; 2d, Sarah Ann Pocock, Berkhampstead, Hants.
Long-Haired White (Female): 1st, Sarah Ann Pocock; 2d, Thomas Weigtman.
Short-Haired White: Robert Forsyth, wine merchant, 2 Sauchiehall St.
Red Tabby: 1st, Miss Monteith, Ronald Street, Glasgow; 2d, Wm. B. Charles, Bedford Hotel.
Manx Cats: 1st, Peter Davidson, 157 Shamrock Street; 2d, Wm. Howell, 102 New City Road.

1874 CRYSTAL PALACE CAT SHOW

CAT SHOW AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE. London Daily News, 26th September 1874
A private view of this Show, which may now be considered an annual affair, took place yesterday preparatory to the public opening this morning, and established the fact that in general excellence and interest the present exhibition is quite equal to any preceding one. Those familiars of the household, were at first represented at Sydenham by only a few from the neighbourhood. Now all England con tributes to the periodical feline gathering, and both in numbers and variety the present Show is, as before intimated, completely satisfactory. Some of the superior classes include really splendid specimens, and the arrangements made for the comfort and convenience of all the cats are adapted to keep and present them in the best of tempers. There are a great many kittens seen under the caressing care of their mothers, and their gambols, with some special aids, appear not much lessened by the unavoidable limitation of space.

The number of entries for competition is 2S7; but the total number of cats of various ages and sizes on view is about 400. On this occasion, instead of being scattered up and down the building, the animals are all compactly and judiciously ranged for public inspection in the north nave, and their position is such that everyone will have a good chance of gratifying his or her curiosity. The whole Exhibition is under the direct superintendence of the manager of the Natural History Department at the Crystal Palace, Mr. P. W. Wilson, whose experience in his special branch of study has been used to make the present Show creditable in a scientific point of view. The task of judging was completed yesterday by Mr. Harrison Weir and Mr. Tegetmeier. The result of their awards will be best appreciated, so far as the public generally are concerned, by looking at the animals themselves, whose honours are posted up in front of their temporary dwelling.

The classes include, among the males, short-haired brown tabbies, short-haired blue or silver tabbies, short- haired red tabbies, short-haired red and white tabbies, and short-haired spotted tabbies, etc., animals of this familiar and favourite colour being in great force. There are also short-haired black and short-haired white he cats short-haired tortoise-shell site cats; short-haired tortoise- shell and white she cats; short-haired black and short- haired white she cats ; short-haired unusual coloured she cats, long-haired pure white he cats; long-haired unusual coloured he cats, etc. In short, the representation is ample enough for a Parliament of cats. Even size, irrespective of sex or beauty, is well realised in this collection, there being several classes in which weight alone is the standard of merit. The heaviest cat in the show is a short-haired tabby, winner of the 1st prize in class 66, No. 221, belonging to Mr. C. F. Smith, and answering to the name of "Smutt,” the weight of this giant being 15 and three quarter lbs. Next in point of gravity is a cat of the same colour, “ Neil," numbered 227, and owned by Mr. W. Crole. This animal is a second-class prize-wilnor. A third cat, and third prize, given in the same class, registers 15lbs., and is the property of Mrs. H. C. Organ. The two next in point of size are Nos. 217 and 218 in class 35 — the heaviest short-haired white cat — both weighing 13and a half lbs., and being set down, therefore, as "first prize" and " equal first prize." Their respective owners are Mrs. T. W. Minton and Mr. C. W. Fletcher.

Among short-haired tortoiseshell she cats, located in Class 12, is a cat (No. 64) with two kittens — one pure white, the other red. No. 110 is a pure Siamese cat, colour unusual, winner of a first prize, having gained the same distinction last year. "Mynnie " — such is her name —is the property of Mr. Walter. The prize medal for the best Angora or Persian cat, male or female, in the show is gained by Mr. John Brotherton. The entries for the two best marked kittens, any variety, under six months old, are very numerous, and the award of the judges gives the first prize to Mr. W. Selley for two kittens, aged ten weeks, the number in the catalogue being 129. More than 30 of the exhibitors are working men. In this department the single prize of £1 for the best black and white he cat goes to Mr. Charles Vyse for No. 247 ; the one prize in the next class, namely, the best tabby and white he cat, being gained by Mr. John Smith, for No. 257. In each of these cases the prize is given by Lady Dorothy Neville. The first award for cats of all descriptions belonging to working men is made for No. 275, weighing 12 and three quarter lb., the owner of the animal, which, like some of the other heavy weights, looks prodigious, being Mr. Bryant.

Mere size is by no means a leading feature of the show,, there being very many cats of different colours and shades of small and delicate proportions. It is certainly not mere girth that has singled out for special honour “Topsy," No. 169, the property of Miss M. Armitage, and the winner of four first prizes and a silver medal. The same remark applies to “Young Turk,” a short-haired, black and white he cat, No. 40, a first prize winner, owned by Mr. R. Peawill; the equal balancing of black and white having no doubt been the preponderating ground of selection.

Unusual colours and abnormal formations will interest members; but one animal looks something more than abnormal. Class 42, designed for “any wild or hybrid, between wild and domestic, or other cat,” comprises a solitary animal called a “Female Paradox Cat from Mongolia,” age not known. The exhibitor is Mr. Octavius Unwin, a farmer, who it is said, has tamed this creature, and used her for ordinary mousing. She is certainly altogether paradoxical, and she has been excluded from any chance of a prize because no true cat would ever own her for a sister. She is closely, and perhaps prudently, caged up, and does not seem at all to approve of her confinement. Despite this wild-looking interloper, the cats generally now assembled at the Crystal Palace seem quite ready and able to entertain any number of curious and admiring visitors.

THE CAT SHOW AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE. Driffield Times, 26th September 1874 (and many, others)
The Cat Show at the Crystal Palace will open on the 26th inst. There is fairly good story told of preceding cat show. It would appear that the unfortunate mewed-np mousers were lying about their several dens, placid and spiritless, apparently not taking the slightest interest in their own exhibition, when it suggested itself to the mind of a mischievous mimic to imitate the voice of the cat’s-meat man, which he accordingly did, crying out, in the well-known, familiar tones, “Meat! Meat!” Every night-prowler, in that exhibition leaped to his feet, and showed in unmistakable manner that cats are not insensible to the blandishments of human speech.—The Sportsman

CAT SHOW AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE. The Hour, 26th September 1874
Yesterday was the private view and judging of the sixth Cat Show held under the auspices of the Crystal Palace Company, and to-day the exhibition will be thrown open to the public, and will continue open on Monday and Tuesday. It is now some four or five years ago since the idea, singular it was then conceived to be, of having these shows, was first put into shape, and "Poor Puss" allowed to stand on the level of other domesticated animals of which she in her way was quite as useful, and perhaps in every respect as ornamental, and to appear in a public exhibition caged, ticketed, and labelled much to her own discomfort. But sufferance is a badge of all her tribe, though the members of that tribe present in the Crystal Palace Show seemed to have had their lot cast in pleasant places. The youthful mind at one time, and we doubt very much whether things have much. altered of late, was particularly given to exercising its ingenuity upon the household pets. A cat-hunt in the nursery was considered the height of felicity, but, however great the enjoyment which was derived by her little tormentors, "Puss” was sure to have the worst of the business. Her proverbial "nine lives" probably in many cases served her in good stead, and the new milk which followed soon put her again on the most friendly terms with all around. It is to arouse greater kindly interest in these animals that the show is held, and how much in this respect it is calculated to do is impossible to estimate. That a good effect must be produced is perfectly certain.

Cats have a most philosophic habit of resigning themselves to the situations, comfortable or uncomfortable, in which they find themselves. We have an instance of this in the Show. Used to roam at large when and where they please, one would scarcely expect to find them so quietly taking to the cages in which those sent for exhibition are placed, though rather it would not be surprising to hear on a small scale some of those offensive and unearthly noises with which the feline race are too apt to beguile the dull hours of the night in their midnight wanderings. But now, curled up like a ball, the majority of them scarcely deign to notice the many strange forms which purr at them through the wires, and only with considerable coaxing come forward to be fondled by their admirers. Unlike the first exhibition, and indeed some of the subsequent ones, this show partakes more of a national character. Specimens are by no means confined to London and neighbourhood. The Isle of Wight, Birmingham, Coventry, and Bedford are represented, as well as the counties of Gloucester, Herts, Huntingdon, Worcestershire, Kent, and many others. The show is in reality a national exhibition. In number it, will bear favourable comparison with any of its predecessors, while in the quality of the animals it far surpasses them. We may say that it will be found remarkable for the many fine specimens of cats to be seen in it, and hardly any inferior animal is observable.

There are no less than 287 entries, representing 350 cats in every variety of long-haired and short-haired beauties. Another improvement will be noticeable. Formerly the exhibition extended the whole length of the building, but the concentration of it to the northern nave, besides tending to more compactness, is advantageous in many other ways. The whole of the arrangements were under the management of Mr. F. W. Wilson, superintendent of the Natural History. Department. Mr. Harrison Weir and Mr. Tegetmeier were the judges. And to encourage the kind treatment of these animals, the Lady Dorothy Nevill and Miss Hales offer special prizes to be competed for by working men. We should add that the show is under the patronage of her Grace the Duchess of Sutherland, the two ladies we have named, Mrs. F. Cashel Hoey, and many other ladies.

Only one instance of wrong entry has occurred. This is Class 12, for tortoiseshell she-cats - the class for tortoiseshell he-cats - having been abandoned, as so few competitors entered - Mrs. Attree's (Croydon) pet tortoiseshell and white should have been placed in Class 1 where she would most likely have obtained a prize. Class 11 contains several prize-takers, one, No. 7, belonging to Miss A. E. Goore, Sydenham, Kent, described as "an inveterate poacher, and bearing the formidable name of "Tippoo Saib” - but strange to say they are beaten this year by a venerable looking animal, aged ten years, belonging to Mrs. Spinks. Mr. Graham Ellis, in Class 3, exhibits a he-cat, the winner of seven prizes, and whose value he estimates at the modest sum of £50. He is awarded third prize, the winner of the first prize being an extraordinarily fine animal. Mr. F. Tyler's (Penge) Tom, in class 6, is highly commended, while a handsome cat, age unknown, the property of Mrs. Bennett, Bishopsgate-street Without, receives no distinction. Sir James Tartar, or Crystal, better known as the Jemmy Tartar, the son of the late celebrated Sambina, and grandson of the Gramalkin Beartaugh, from all his long pedigree, and notwithstanding that he has already taken three prizes, is an unsuccessful competitor. Yet "Sir James Tartar" is to be a devotee for the benefit of his name. Three guineas have been set upon his head, and if sold part of the proceeds are to be handed to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals by his owner, Miss E. A. Houndle (Upper Tooting). In class 12 (No. 64) a tortoiseshell cat with two kittens - one pure white, the other tabby - belonging to Mrs. J. Penwill, Bickley, Kent, is commended; also Miss Bessie Billett's (Southampton) Dorcas (No. 66), Mr. John Bathurst's (Sydenham) Minnie, and Master A. W. Boatwright's (Clerkenwell) Smutt (Nos. 69 and 60, class 13) are highly commended; also Master Bennett's (Bow) Minnie (No. 73), while Miss Boutright's Loddy (No. 71) is commended simply. The second prize in Class 14 is well held.

Class 17 contains some very prettily marked animals. No. 101 (Class 19), Mr. Edward Perry's (Upper Norwood) specimen is highly commended, a similar honour being conferred upon Miss A. A. Barrett's (Upper Sydenham) exhibit (No. 114); Miss Sprague's (Evesham, Worcestershire) Topsy (No. 118); Miss E. A. and F. Houndle's two kittens (No. 121). Those shown by Mrs. H. C. Organ (Wichcomb, Gloucestershire) (No. 123), Miss Brander (Finchley) (No. 127), Mrs. Mary Willmott (Norwood) (No. 132); the specimens exhibited by Mrs. O. Roebel (Forest Hill) (No. 157); Mrs. Egles (Penge), Jennie (No. 170); Mr. E. F. Edwards (Leatherhead) Angora cat (No. 175); the kittens shown by Mrs. H. C. Organ (No. 189); Miss Eliza Ackland (Great Lawrence, Isle of Thanet) (No. 195); Mr. R. Penwell (No. 205); Mr. J. S. Pocock (Berkhampstead) (No. 201); Tom (No. 225), exhibited by Mrs. G. Humphreys (Norwood); Mrs. T. Odle's (Lower Norwood) animal (No. 251); Mr. M. Scrivener's (Norwood) (No. 255); Mrs R. Day's (Norwood) (No. 261); Mr. M. Odle's Dick (No. 263); Mrs. Scott's (Norwood) Tom (No. 265), and Mr. E. Filler's (Upper Norwood) two kittens, (No. 266); Mrs. J. Rowley's three tabby kittens, No. 269, and those shown by Mr. W. Headdie (Crystal Palace) in the west pen. Commended were the entries of Mr. J.S. Torosk (No. 166); Mr. E. Slather (Lower Norwood) (No. 250); and Mrs. Grayson (Upper Norwood) (No. 267).

Class 12, "for any wild or hybrid, between wild and domestic, or other cat," contains but one entry, a female Huradoxa cat, from Mongolia, which is in a cage, and which the men looking after the animals do not like the appearance of. This animal is the property of Mr. O. Unwin (Abbey Wood). The kittens shown were exceptionally fine. The following are the judges' awards of prizes:-

Class 1.–Short-haired tortoiseshell white he-cat–1st prize, Mr. John Hurry's (Norwich) Totty.
Class 2.–Short-haired brown tabby he-cats.–1st prize, Mrs. Spinks's (Camberwell) Tibb; 2nd, Mrs. E. Ellwood (Norwood); 3rd, Mrs. E. Ellwood.
Class 3.–Short-haired blue or silver tabby he-cats. - 1st,prize, Mr. F. W. Reynolds (Sydenham); 2nd, Mr: E. Davy (Gray's Inn-road); 3rd, Mr. G. Ellis (Cornhill).
Class 4. - Short-haired red tabby he-cats. – 1st prize, Mr. Thos. Stratton (Norwood); 2nd, Mrs. Rowley's (Upper Norwood) Ben
Class 5.–Short-haired red tabby and white he-cats. –1st prize, Mr. T. Newmarch (Upper Norwood); 2nd, Mr. W. Birch (Coventry); 3rd, Miss C. Moore’s (Sydenham Hill) Punch.
Class 6.–Short-haired spotted tabby he-cats.– 1st prize, Mr. Thos. Weightman (Hatfield, Herts); 2nd, Mrs. Newton's (Gipsy Hill) Tom Pouf; 3rd, Mrs. C. Smith's (Lower Norwood) Tinker.
Class 7. - Short-haired black and white he cats.–1st prize, Mr. R. Penwhill's Young Turk; 2nd, Mr. J. Bradden.(West Croydon); 3rd, Miss Ferguson's (Upper Norwood), Snowball.
Class 8.–Short-haired black he-cats.–1st prize, J. Harpin's (Penge), Topsy; 2nd, Miss Terry (Sydenham); 3rd, Mrs. Shuckard's (Clapham-road), Charlie.
Class 9. - Short-haired white he-cats.–1st prize, Mrs. Luckin (Dulwich); 2nd, Mrs. J. Kittlety (Lower Norwood); 3rd, Mr. G. Whalley (Croydon).
Class 10.–Short-haired unusual colour he-cats. – 1st prize, Mrs. Sarah Barnes (Croydon).
Class 11.–Any other variety of colour or singular form of species, Manx, &c.–1st prize, Mr. Peter Williams (Hounslow); 2nd, Mr. Monkton White (St. Albans).
Class 12.–Short-haired tortoiseshell she-cats. – 1st prize, Mr. J. T. Allcock, Old Ford; 2nd, Mr. E. Hornor (Harewood, Leeds); 3rd, Mr. W. Clarke (Upper Norwood).
Class 13.–Short-haired tortoiseshell and white she cats.–1st prize, Mr. H. H. Wood's (Battersea) Kittie; 2nd, Mr. H. Strofton (Streatham Common); 3rd, Mr. H. Strofton.
Class 14.--Short-haired brown tabby she-cats.–1st prize, Mr. A. Hellier (Clapham); 3rd, Mrs. J. Edwards (Norwood).
Class 15.–Short-haired blue or silver tabby – 1st prize, Mr. Monkton White.
Class 16.–Short-haired red tabby and white she-cats. - 1st-prize, Mr. T. Sajer (Sydenham Hill); 2nd, Mr. W. Birch.
Class 17. - Short-haired spotted tabby she-cats. – 1st Prize, Miss M. Moore’s (Annerley) Charley; 2nd, Mrs. Newton's (Gipsy Hill), Madame Angot; 3rd, Mrs. R. Martin (Norwood).
Class 18. – Short-haired black and white she-cats. – 1st prize, Mr. J. Harpin’s (Penge) Tibb; 2nd, Mr. H. Ranson (Lower Norwood); 3rd, Mr. John Gessey (Lower Norwood).
Class 19. – Short-haired black she-cats. – 1st prize, Mr. Thomas Weightman; 2nd, Miss Merchant (Upper Norwood); 3rd, Mrs. Shuckard (Clapham-road).
Class 20.–Short-haired white she-cats. - 1st prize, Miss Shears (Bromley); 2nd, Miss M. A. Willman (Waterloo-road); 3rd, Mr. R; R. Cannon (Upper Norwood).
Class 21.–Short-haired unusual-coloured she-cats. – 1st prize, Mr. Walters's (Plumstead Common) "Mymie;" 2nd, Mr. W. Kidby (Lower Norwood); 3rd, Mr. W. Wookey (Kensington Park-road).
Class 22.–Any other variety, or abnormal formation. - 1st prize, Mr. Francis Palmer (Norwood); 2nd, Mr. Monkton White; 3rd, Mr. Richard Williams (Brentford).
Class 23.–For the two best kittens, any variety, under six months' old. - 1st prize, Mr. W. Selley (Upper Norwood); 2nd, The Misses Wragge (Dulwich); equal with 2nd prize, Miss W. Neve Foster (Wandsworth Common); 3rd prize, Miss A.H. Barret (Sydenham).
Class 24.–Long-haired pure white he-cats.–1st prize, Miss Elsie Fogerty (Sydenham); 2nd, Miss Garbanati (Highgate Rise); 3rd, Mr. Thomas Weightman.
Class 25.–Long-haired black he-cats.–1st prize, Mr. Thomas Weightman.
Class 26.–Long-haired tabby he-cats.–1stt prize, Mr. Samuel King Shadbolt’s (King's Cross), "The Shah."
Class 27.–Long-haired unusual colour he-cats.–1st prize, Miss E. S. Thompson's (Gravesend) "Buff;” 2nd, Mrs. Lee (Penshurst).
Class 28.–Long-haired pure white she-cats. – 1st prize, Miss Nina Quartin's (Sydenham) "Minette;” 2nd, Mr. H. M. Maynard_(Ryde, Isle of Wight); 3rd, Miss S. A. Powell.
Class 29.–Long-haired black she-cats. - 1st prize, Miss M. Armitage's (Honor Oak Park) "Topsy."
Class 30.–Long-haired tabby she-cats. - 1st prize, Mrs. H. C. Organ; 2nd, Mr. W. Huddersfield; 3rd, Mrs. Thompson.
Class 31.–Long-haired unusual colour she-cats.–1st prize, Miss Julia Amor (Covent Garden); 2nd, Mrs. Brander (Finchley); 3rd, Mr. J. Penwill's Czarevna.
Class 32.–For the two best long-haired kittens under six months' old.–1st prize, Mrs. F. Retch (39, St. George's-square); 2nd and 3rd, Miss M. Cottington (Chelsea).
Class 33.–For the best Angora or Persian cat, male or female, in the show. Mr. John Brotherton (Loughborough), (silver Medal).
Class 34. - For the heaviest short-haired cat–black, black and white. 1st prize, Mrs. W. Lemare (Brixton-road), weight 13 lbs; 1st (equal), Mr. D. Taylor (City-road), weight 13 lbs; 2nd, Mr. P. John Harrison (Lewisham High-road), weight 12 lb 8 oz; 3rd, Miss E. Bain (Long Acre), weight 12 lb 4 oz.
Class 35.–For the heaviest short-haired cat, white. 1st prize, Mrs, T. W. Minton (Newcastle-under- Lyne), weight 13 lb 8 oz; 1st (equal), Mr. C. W. Fletcher (Paternoster-square), weight 13 lb 8 oz; 2nd, J. Isherwood (Bromley), weight 12 lb.
Class 36. - For the heaviest short-haired cat, tabby, any colour.–1st prize, Mr. C. F. Smith (City-road), weight 15 lbs 12 oz (heaviest cat in the show); 2nd, Mr. W. Crolee (Sydenham), weight 15 lbs 4oz.; 3rd, Mrs. H. C. Organ, weight 15 lbs.
Class 37. - For the heaviest short-haired cat, unusual colour.–1st prize, Mrs. Scarman (Streatham), weight 14 lbs; 2nd, Mrs. Gunner (Commercial-road, East), weight 11 lbs 8 oz.
Class 38. - For the Heaviest long-haired cat, Black, black and white.–1st prize, Mrs. Halsey, Greenwich; weight, 11 lb 4 oz; 2nd, Mr. Thos. Weightman, weight, 10 lb.
Class 39. - For the heaviest long-haired cat, white.- 1st prize, Mr. F. J. Goodal (Hanley), weight 12 lbs 4 oz.; 2nd, Mr. G. Thompson, weight 10 lb; 3rd, Mrs. Ferdinand Hodgson (Blackheath), weight 9 lb.
Class 40. - For the heaviest long-haired cat, tabby, any colour.–1st prize, Mrs. Daniel Hooper (Trinity-square), weight 9 lb.
Class 41. - For the heaviest long-haired cat, unusual colour.–1st prize, Mr. A. Mongredien (Forest-hill), weight 11 lbs; 2nd, Mr. G. F. Cremer (Lower Norwood), weight 10 lb; 3rd, Mr. H. Kuhlmorgen, weight 9 lbs.
Class 42. - For any wild or hybrid between wild and domestic, or other cat. No awards.
Class 43. - For the best black and white he-cat–Prize, Mr. Charles Vyse (Sydenham).
Class 44. - For the best tabby and white he-cat. – Prize, Mr. John Smith (Lower Norwood).
Class 45. - For the best white she-cat.–Prize, Mr. John W. Gessey.
Class 46. - For the best short-haired black cat.– Prize, Mr. W. Broderick (Norwood).
Class 47. - For the best litter 'of short-haired kittens, of any colour.–Prize, Mr. Shelling,(Croydon).
Class 48. -For the heaviest short-haired cat, tabby, any colour.–1st prize, Mrs. Bryant (Crystal Palace), weight 12 lbs 12 ozs.
Class 49. - For the heaviest long-haired cat, any colour.–1st prize, Mr. John Curtis (Bedford), weight 9 lbs 12ozs.; 2nd, Mrs. Glendenning (Shoreditch), weight 9 lbs.

CATS AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE. London Evening Standard, 26th September 1874
Grimalkin is in high favour just now. Professor Max Muller but the other day vainly tried to shake our faith in Whittington 's good genius, by endeavouring to deduce that Lord Mayor's material wealth, not from a dealing in a cat, but from a dealing in accat — that is to say, in the Arabic tongue, merchandise. But a price current now rules concerning cats. What does the unversed reader think of a thousand sovereigns being asked, and of four hundred being offered, for a cat? Yet that has been the case in England within the last four years. Ordinary cats, though they may not be special pets, range in value, on the feline exchange, from five shillings to fifty guineas , bona fide market rate. The possession of pretty cats appears to be very much an accident. There are not as yet, so far as we can ascertain, any scientific methods of breeding cats so as to secure the transmission of valued points in a hereditary line. Until that is done the relative merits of annual shows must remain what they are — a matter very much of chance.

The show which will open to the public this morning at the Crystal Palace, and will remain open on Monday and Tuesday, is, perhaps, not so extensive as that of last year, and there do not appear to be any notable monstrosities ; but, en revanche [on the other hand], the rising generation of pussies are very finely represented. We have neither knowledge nor space sufficient to deal exhaustively with the present cat show on the judging of which Messrs Tegetmeier and Harrison Weir were engaged yesterday from morn till dewy eve. It must suffice, in genera l to say that Mr. F. W. Wilson, Superintendent of the Crystal Palace Natural History Department , has had charge of all the arrangements, which are, therefore, perfect, and that the cats are very tame, very much reconciled to their lot during their four or five days' imprisonment in the northern nave of the house of glass, while there be among competent authorities very little difference of opinion concerning the decisions of the judges.

In recent shows there has been only one entry — that of the same cat— in tortoiseshell [i.e. male], while there have been several in tortoiseshell and white cats [i.e. male]. This year these classes have been combined, with, strangely enough, the result of producing only one entry, "Totty," to which, as a matter almost of course, the first prize has been awarded. In male short-haired brown tabbies, “Tibb,” No. 12, takes first and Mrs. Ellwood’s two second and third prize. In blue or silver male tabbies, Mr. F. W. Reynolds, Mr. Edgar Davy, and Mr. Graham Ellis, are respectively first, second and third. In red male tabbies, Mr. Stratton and Mrs. Rowley are first and second. In male red and white cats, Mr. Newmarch takes the first, Mr. W. Birch the second, and Miss C. Moore the third prise. Spotted male tabbies are numerous, and Mr. T. Weightman, Mrs. Newton, and Mrs. C. Smith are successful in the order named, it being notable that the cat which takes first prize is priced at £1, while the second is valued at 50 guineas. In male black and white cats there are only three entries, and these win prizes in the order of their position in the catalogue. Similarly in Class 8, black males, Mr. Harpin is first, Miss Terry second, and Mrs. Shuckard third, the order counting from the bottom of the class. Mrs. Luckin wins first prize for white males,.Mrs. Kittlety the second, and Mr. W. Lalley the third. There is only one entry in unusual coloured males, and it takes a prize. In the class devoted to singular form of species Mr. J. S. Chambers shows two cats with six toes on each foot ; but Mr. Peter Williams and Mrs. M. White take the prizes. In tortoiseshell females Mr. J. T. Allcock is first, Mr. E. Horner second, and Mr. W. Clarke third. In the tortoiseshell and white shes Mr. H. H. Wood takes first, and Mr. H. Strofton second and third. In brown tabby shes there is no second prize, Mr. A. Hellier and Mrs. J. Edwards being placed first and third. In blue or silver tabbies, with three entries but only one prize, Mr. M. White is successful. Red, tabby, and white female have only two representatives and both get prizes. Spotted tabby shes have four entries, and the three prizes are taken by Miss M. Moore, Mrs. Newton, and Mrs. R. Martin. In black and white shes and in black shes, as well as in white females, the show is poor. In unusual colour shes the notable cats are those of last year. The kittens, as we have intimated, are very fine, but will be better worth notice when they have grown to be cats.

All the above are short hair felines, but the show of long- haired cats is inferior, though several individual specimens are good. The chief prizes are won by Miss E. Fogerty, with a Persian ; Miss Garbanate, whose cat has blue eyes;: Mr. T. Weightman, Mr. Shadbolt, Miss E. S. Thompson, with a fine orange Angora; Mrs. Lee, Miss Nina Quartin, Miss Armitage, Mrs. Organ, Mr. Appleton, Miss Amor, Mrs. Brander, Mr. Penwill, and in the special class for Angoras or Persians Mrs. Edwin Clark. In cats which, to use the phrase of the turf, "have been added to the list,"Mrs. Lemare and Mr. D. Taylor are bracketed first ; the prizes for the heaviest white cats are likewise divided between Mrs. T. W. Minton and Mr. C. W. Fletcher, whose pussies weigh 13 and a half lbs. each, while the second prize is taken by Mrs. Isherwood's cat, which weighs 121bs. The heaviest cat in the show is a tabby, which takes first prize, scaling 15 and three quarter lbs., the second weighing 15 and one quarter lbs, and the third 151bs. The other heavy cats are but puny -looking creatures after these monsters. Lady Dorothy Nevill and the Crystal Palace Company give prizes for cats belonging to working men, these prizes being won by Messrs. C. Vyse, John Smith, J. W. Gessey, W. Broderick, Snelling, Bryant, Curtis, and Glendinning. Those who are fond of cats may do worse during this dull season than pay a visit to the Cat Show at Sydenham to- day, or on the two first days of next week.

CAT SHOW AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE – London Echo, September 27, 1874
Today there was a private view at the Crystal Palace of the sixth great cat show, which will open tomorrow. It will be found to be well deserving the prefix “national”; for nothing is more indicative of the effect of these natural history exhibitions in arousing interest in objects with regard to which familiarity has bred indifference that the fact that whereas the first cat show was rather a local affair, exhibitors now find it worth while to send cats from a parts of Great Britain. There are no less than 287 entries, the total number of cats being 350 in every variety of long-haired, short-haired, Angola [sic] and Persian, tabby, tortoise-shell, black, white, red, mouse coloured, fawn, etc. The show of kittens is simply splendid. The exhibition is not, as on previous occasions, extended the whole length of the building, but is concentrated in the north nave, an arrangement conducing to greater comfort and compactness. The judges, Mr Harrison Weir and Mr Teggetmeier are at present engaged in their arduous task, which will occupy them till late in the evening.

The increasing popularity of cats – as evinced by the interest taken in the present – the sixth cat show of the Crystal Palace, is one of the most remarkable signs of the times. The perfidious nature of the feline race used to be dwelt upon at great length in the works of the moralizing writers of natural history of our childhood, who were never tired of comparing the slinking and surreptitious cat with the frank and bold dog. Even in more recent times Arteneia Ward asked with much doubt the question, “Is cats to be trusted?” and the answer which rose to the lips of the majority of readers was “No, certainly not.” This long despised and distrusted race has now, however, won its way to the confidence of the public. The 287 competing and 113 other cats now on view at the Crystal Palace afford a clear proof of this. The virtues of cats are of an unobtrusive character. With the exception of the famed cats of Kilkenny, there is not instance of any dashing or heroic deed being performed by a cat. The only other cat which we remember to have obtained a niche in the temple of fame, after the now dethroned cat of Whittington, was the Cheshire cat, and he was only celebrated for grinning. We sometimes see in the windows of public houses the picture of a cat, which is supposed to stand for an especially prized variety of gin. As a rule, cats have not forced themselves upon the public; they save no lives from drowning; they perform no wonderful feats of fidelity or sagacity; there are no watch cats, no pointer cats; no poet sings of his “poor cat, tray.” But if cats go on rising in esteem at the present rate, they may owe it to the Crystal Palace if they soon attract the fatal eye of the chancellor of the exchequer [note: dogs were taxed, cats were not].

CAT SHOW AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE. Huddersfield Chronicle, Monday 28th September 1874
The Sixth Great Cat Show at the Crystal Palace was opened on Saturday. It will be found to be well deserving the prefix "national ;" for nothing is more indicative of the effect of these natural history exhibitions in arousing interests in objects with regard to which familiarity has bred indifference than the fact that whereas the first cat show was rather a local affair, exhibitors now find it worthwhile to send cats from all parts of Great Britain. There are no less than 287 entries, the total number of cats being 350, in every variety of long-haired, short-haired, Angola and Persian, tabby, tortoiseshell, black, white, red, mouse coloured, fawn, etc. The show of kittens is simply splendid. The exhibition is not, as on previous occasions, extended the whole length of the building, but is concentrated in the north nave, an arrangement conducing to greater comfort and compactness.

The heaviest cat in the show is a short-haired tabby, winner of the first prize in class 36, belonging to Mr. C. F. Smith, and answering to the name of " Smutt," the weight of this giant being 15and three-quarter lbs. Next in point of gravity is a cat of the same colour, called "Neil," and owned by Mr. W. Crole. This animal is a second-class prize winner. A third cat, and third prize, given in the same class, registers 15 lbs., and is the property of Mrs. H. C. Organ. The two next in point of size are Nos. 217 and 218 in class 35 — the heaviest short-haired white cat — both weighing 13and a half lbs., and being set down, therefore, as "first prize" and " equal first prize." Their respective owners are Mrs. T. W. Minton and Mr. C. W. Fletcher. Among short-haired tortoiseshell she cats, located in Class 12, is a cat (No. 64) with two kittens — one pure white, the other red. No. 110 is a pure Siamese cat, colour unusual, winner of a first prize, having gained the same distinction last year. "Mynnie " — such is her name —is the property of Mr. Walter. The prize medal for the best Angora or Persian cat, male or female, in the show is gained by Mr. John Brotherton. The entries for the two best marked kittens, any variety, under six months old, are very numerous, and the award of the judges gives the first prize to Mr. W. Selley for two kittens, aged ten weeks, the number in the catalogue being 129. More than 30 of the exhibitors are working men. In this department the single prize of £1 for the best black and white he cat goes to Mr. Charles Vyse for No. 247 ; the one prize in the next class, namely, the best tabby and white he cat, being gained by Mr. John Smith, for No. 257. In each of these cases the prize is given by Lady Dorothy Neville. The first award for cats of all descriptions belonging to working men is made for No. 275, weighing 12 and three quarter lb., the owner of the animal, which, like some of the other heavy weights, looks prodigious, being Mr. Bryant.

[CRYSTAL PALACE SHOW] The Sun, 28th September 1874
Puss is still in the ascendant at Sydenham where the annual Cat Show has become a regular institution, and is, it must be confessed, one of the prettiest as well as most profitable displays of the year. Watching the gambols of the juvenile members of this feline host, the amused spectator readily endorses the old saying, that it is impossible for a kitten to assume an ungraceful position. As for the elders; black, white, red, and "blue," as cat-fanciers call the slate coloured animals which are still extremely rare, they display amazing variety, from the stately monster weighing nearly 16 lbs whose ponderous dignity leaves all his rivals in the rear, to the slender young four-legged acrobats that seem to have neither bones nor fat about them!

By no means the least interesting portion of the exhibition is the class of working men's cats, which do honour to the kindness of their owners. It is an excellent effect of these shows, whether of cat, dog, or donkey, to call attention to the rapid improvement perceptible in every class of domestic animal with good food and kind treatment. The kindness, in fact, is the most important element of the two. An animal may thrive roughing it cheerfully with his master on hard fare and short commons, but neither dog, cat, horse, nor donkey will ever, look his best if harshly and cruelly treated. When drivers and carters are heard abusing horse or ass for stubbornness, laziness, and vice of various kinds, a very different complexion would be given to the story if the beasts could have their say. In the vast majority of cases this evil is wrought by want of thought, and if men once understood what animals suffer at their hands, they would generally be slow to oppress them. The cat is in some respects more fortunate than dog or donkey, but if Puss has been less liable to harsh treatment, her capacities of attachment and intelligence have seldom been brought out. The cat shows have served to exhibit the beauty and docility of our old fireside friend, and now that she has secured a place among the Crystal Palace entertainments of the year she will no doubt make good her hold on public favour.

THE CRYSTAL PALACE CAT SHOW. Sydenham Times, 29th September 1874
The sixth "National Cat Show" was opened on Saturday at the Crystal Palace. Much interest was evinced in the exhibition, which was a remarkably fine one, and attracted a considerable number of the visitors, the ladies contributing by far the largest proportion of its admirers. The entries for the show amounted to 287, and had been forwarded by 228 exhibitors. who, for the most part, were resident in the neighbourhood of London, but several belonged to remote parts of the country. The specimens were catalogued under fifty different classes, varying greatly in the number of individuals which they severally comprised, but apparently including examples of all breeds of the domestic cat. The scene of the exhibition was in the north nave, in which the pens or cages, for the reception of the animals were arranged, in paralleled lines at a convenient height from the ground. Each pen had a front and roof of wire-work, and was roomy and generally well adapted for the purpose. Each cat was supplied with a cushion, and an earthenware pan to drink from. Ample provision was made for the hospitable entertainment of the animals during the exhibition, though their several owners were allowed to take them home each day of the show on certain conditions. Both by the owners and the Crystal Palace Company everything had been done that could conduced to the effective character of the exhibition, and under circumstances so favourable Puss could scarcely fail to present herself to her many admirers–particularly the youngest of them–in the fullness of her natural beauty. For herself, she was, as a rule, entirely unconscious of the admiration she was exciting, or of the laudations that were being bestowed upon her. Many of the animals, particularly among the long-haired varieties, were certainly extremely handsome, and amply justified the praise they received from their visitors, though this was sometimes amusingly extravagant. Puss, however, was in general having her snooze on her cosy cushion, or if she were not, she showed herself nearly as indifferent to the flattering exclamations of her admirers.

Extensive as the exhibition was, it did not contain a specimen of a pure tortoiseshell he-cat among the short-haired, and such an animal is said not to exist. In this and some other respects the exhibition will illustrate peculiarities of the cat race, and to fanciers cannot fail to prove of extreme interest. Very high prices were set upon some of the animals on sale. Thus two short-haired tortoiseshell she-cats were offered at £50, as was a long-haired tabby he-cat, while a long-haired pure white she-cat was offered at £75, and an aged Persian cat at £100. Even these prices were extended in a few instances, and one gentleman required £1000 for his cat "Lion," which last year won the prize for its owner for weight, and has since won eight prizes, one silver cup, and silver-plated tea and coffee pots for the best cat in the show. [Results list given]

CAT SHOWS Huddersfield Chronicle, 30th September 1874
Cat shows have ceased to be a novelty; they have passed out of the domain of experiment, where they were simply attractive, into the more stable one of established institutions, where they may prove immensely advantageous. Already so much importance is attached to them that a lively controversy has been waged on the interesting question of the identity of the individual to whom the credit of having originated cat shows is due. We confess we are not aware in whose favour the dispute was settled, nor do we think humanity will suffer much if the moot point - was Mr. Harrison Weir, or was he not, the first to start the idea-? - is never set at rest.

Some ignorant person writing on cats the other day, apropos of the exhibition now being held at the Crystal Palace, complained that they have not been properly treated by poets and litterateurs. The complaint is unjust. Has not Johnson, in the "Rambler," handed down to posterity the name of Busby, the proctor in the Commons, "immortalised for purring like a cat?" And has not Gray celebrated "The coat that with the tortoise vies, The ears of jet, the emerald eyes," of his favourite cat drowned in a tub of goldfishes? And yet, again, is there not in an ancient song-book, illustrated with steel etchings by George Cruikshank, a lyric to the air of "The White Cockade," called "The Dandy Cat’s-Meal Lass," and another to the air of " Oh ! what a day," descriptive of the sale of a tortoise-shell Tom, to purchase whom crowded, squeezed, nodded, and bidded "Lady Letty Long waist and Mrs. Martha Griskin, Prim Polly Pussylove, Miss Scratch, and Biddy Twiskin, Solemn Sally Solus, who to no man yes had said, Killing Kitty Crookedlegs and neat Miss Nelly Never- wed."

The present show is the most successful yet, although Tommy Tortoiseshell is still such a rarity that hundreds of connoisseurs gather daily in front of his cage, and are happy if he condescends to give them a paw. We have one grievance against the judges, nevertheless. They seem to award premium solely on the grounds of colour and markings, and to lose sight of the virtue of good temper and the accomplishment of a melodious purr, things highly to be appreciated in the feline members of a household. The cat's raison d'etre is not to ornament a hearth- rug, but to kill vermin ; and we respectfully suggest to the naturalists superintending the Sydenham competition that a badge of honour should be conferred on the Tommy or Tabby who vindicates his or her practical utility by a mousing match against time.

1874 BIRMINGHAM CAT SHOW

THE GRAND NATIONAL CAT SHOW. Birmingham Daily Post, 12th November 1874
The second annual Grand National Show of Cats will be held in Birmingham on the same days as the Cattle Show, commencing on November 28 and closing on December 3. The locale of the show will be the same as last year, namely, the Old Wharf, Broad Street Corner, where a special building, 160 feet long by 48 feet wide, will be erected for the purpose. This will be well ventilated by open boards, similar to venetian blinds, along the entire length of the crest of the roof, and disinfectants, the same as at Wolverhampton, will be employed. The floor of the building will be on a level with the street, with double turnstile entrances in the centre, and exit doors at each end. The entries close on Monday next, at the Cat Show Offices, Educational Chambers, New Street, and as the rules and regulations of the show are the same as those adopted by the Crystal Palace Company, another successful exhibition is anticipated; Mr. J. Chaplin being again the manager, and Mr. R. Paul the secretary. The schedule of prices contains 53 classes for short-haired and long-haired cats and kittens, for all the usual and also unusual colours and variety, and cats of no sex (to be judged by weight only). Prizes are likewise offered for cats belonging to working men, and there is a selling class in which the price of no cat must exceed 20 shillings.

THE CAT SHOW. Birmingham Daily Post, 28th November 1874
Neither the "Animals' Friend Society" nor the "Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals" ever did a better day's work than was done by Mr. James Chaplin when lie gave us our first Cat Show a year ago. No number of tracts, no series of speeches, no amount of fines for cruelty could get "Poor Puss" a kinder tenderness than such an exhibition of the rare beauties of the pretty purring pets of our hearths and homes. Poor Puss has been so maligned, so persecuted, that it is only when opportunities like this occur for seeing the wondrous beauties of her race that she is ever likely to get the justice she deserves. Cats are called cruel, stupid, intractable, treacherous, and because they are so common they are often despised. What Whittington's cat was to the rat-and-mouse-haunted monarch so "Poor Puss" is becoming to all who have the eyes to see her extraordinary beauties, and who take tie care to foster and develop her thousand pretty little ways. Everybody, old and young, loves kittens, and is amused at their grace, agility, and fun; and to the thoughtful mind, the graver, sedater demeanour of the older cats is a source of wonder and interest, too.

From the earliest ages cats have had honours and care, and among the Egyptians their wonderful beauty made them specially admired. Mummies of kittens and cats who frolicked at the courts of the Pharaohs, and caught mice for the Shepherd Kings, have come down to our own days. In Greece, in Rome, in the Middle Ages, they were highly esteemed, and poets praised them, and painters limned their faces, and they became domestic pets wherever they were known. Who has not read the many stories of cat-life, from "Puss in Boots" down to Dr. Johnson's beloved "Hodge," and who has not felt a soothing influence in the pleasant purr of serene contentment of the sleek and comely creature now found on every hearth ?

At Broad Street Corner Mr. Chaplin has erected a handsome room, prettily decorated with crimson cloth end banners, by Messrs. Legg and Co., who have added a clever "illumination" of "Master Tom," a sign of the good creatures to be seen inside. The fine wire cages are capitally arranged, with crimson ottomans for the cats to repose upon in full view of all visitors, and a little bit of back garden behind, in the sand of which they can scratch in peace. A saucer of milk, and an infinite supply of "lights," provide for the creature comforts, and all the animals seem as happy and contented as "pets" away from home can be. As the ball is large and lofty, as excellent ventilation is arranged, the inevitable odours of a show of animals are almost entirely lost, and the Cat Show must prove one of the most attractive exhibitions ever opened in our town. Among more than three hundred cats, it is impossible to do justice to even a tithe of the number, for nearly every one has some point of novelty or merit well worth a note. Cats of all sorts and sizes, of all colours and ages, of all tastes and tempers, of all expressions and voices, are collected in this extraordinary show.

All the finest cats ever previously shown seem to have come here with their " honours" upon them, and many a domestic hearth is desolate while its "pride" is present at the Show, and winning or hoping for a prize. Tortoiseshell and tabby, long hair and short hair, blue or silver, spotted or tawny, red and black, white and brown, are present in greet profusion. Kittens with their mothers, with all their infantile frolics, and elder kittens "weaned" and wondering at the great new world into which they have suddenly been brought; kittens with great baby faces and lustrous eyes, and velvet paws, and tiny teeth, full of, life and fun, are clustered in the cages all around. Anxious motherly cats look wildly out over a crowd of kittens to see that no harm comes, and grave old seniors, in solitary state, blink and purr and. stretch their long claws or sleep rolled up in peace. Solemn Old Toms slink back in their cages and glare at the impertinent spectator, while others of more social habits glide against the wires or put forth a paw in the hope of getting the familiar recognition and caress of "home." Those who are inexperienced enough to think all cats are alike should go and see the wonderful varieties of this present show. Not only are there no two cats alike when closely looked at, but no two pairs of eyes have exactly the same expression ; and it is wonderful to see the infinitely varied effects of these hundreds of deep and dark and flashing eyes. As to colour also there is almost endless difference, and the "markings" are infinitely varied also, some of the most extraordinary kind. The kittens alone are well worth going to see, and in one cage, at any rate, there is the "cat among the pigeons" literally, for a pretty little kitten, black and white, playful yet plaintive, wholly unconscious that he is with his "natural enemies," and ought to demolish them forthwith, is peaceful and pleasant with a white rabbit and two pigeons in his cage; and another older cat, who has had more experience, prophesies of the feline grace of tire future, and recalls the happy families of the past, by being trusted in the cage with costly pigeons, with whom he lives in peace.

Cats of all sorts, and sizes, and weights have been collected in this remarkable show, and some of the choice animals weigh over fifteen pounds each, and are splendid examples not only of size, but colour amid style. The prize list below awards the honours, and we have no room for the special comments which so many of the animals deserve. One of the most pleasing portions of the show is the "Working Man's Class," a series of prizes admirably calculated to secure a kinder treatment than poor puss sometimes gets in the houses of the poor. The first prize is given to a line black-and-white fellow, 1 and a half year old, exhibited by Mr. Gl. Fryer, and the prize is well won, although Poor Tom has had the misfortune to get his great "'whiskers" burned away. Another first prize in the same class was given to a much-scarred veteran, whose ears bear marks of many a well-won fight. So close has been thee competition, and sol fine the animals, that the anomaly of two "first prizes” occurs, Mr. Chaplin having given a second because the judges pronounced two to be equally good.

The judges, Mr. Harrison Weir and Mr. Tegtmeier, of London, deserve all praise for the skill arid taste and care given to tire awarding of the prizes and commendations, and must have regretted that they had no means of recognising the scores of fine animals who have been sent for exhibition this year, and who have made the show the most complete and attractive of any of its class in any part of England.

PRIZE LIST.
Class 1.-Short-haired Tortoiseshell He Cats.-No entries.
Class 2.-Tortoiseshell-and-white He Cats.- 1st Mr. John Hurry, 2nd Mr. John Lloyd, 3rd Mr. James Beecroft, Highly Commended Mr. J. Jay.
Class 3.- Short-haired Tortoiseshell and Tabby He Cats. - no entries.
Class 4. Short-haired Brown Tabby He Cats. - 1st Mrs Dryhurst, . 2nd Mr J. W. Bartlett, 3rd Mr E. Stone; highly commended Mrs Cordwell, Mr J. Harris; commended Mrs. Davies, Miss F. Savage, Master W. Mason.
Class 5.- Short-haired Blue or Silver Tabby He Cat.- 1st Mr Graham Ellis, 2nd Mrs S. Priestly, 3rd Mr. Pethard.
Class 6.- Short-haired Red Tabby He Cats.-1st Mrs Nichols, 2nd Mrs.Searman, 3rd Miss M.A. Bull, highly commended Mr T. Weightman and Mr Schweiss.
Class 7.- Short-haired Red Tabby and White He Cats. -1st Mr Shweiss, 2nd Mrs. G. Morris.
Class 8.- Short-haired Spotted Tabby He Cats. - 1st Miss E. A. Harrison, 2nd Mr. John Heiges, 3rd Mr T. J. Foster, highly commended Mr Wm. Burdett and Mr Schweiss, commended Mr T. Weightman.
Class 9.- Short-haired Black-and-white He Cats - 1st Mrs Worrad, 2nd Mrs Calladine, 3rd Master W. W. Walker, highly commended Mr G. Bartleet.
Class 10.- Short-haired Black He Cats – 1st Mr James Mann, 2nd Miss A. L. Inshaw, 3rd Mr. George Lester, highly cormmended Mr H.H. Wright, Mrs Issett.
Class 11. Short-haired White He Cats. – 1st Miss L. K. Shaw, 2nd Miss Johnstone, 3rd Mr C. Descry, highly commended Mr N. Lawes, commended Miss. A. Adamns, Mr H. W. Duke.
Class 12.-Short-haired Unusual Colour He Cats. - 1st Mr J. SIater, 2nd Mr T. Lawrence, 3rd Mr A. Browne, commended Mr John Wilkins.
Class 13.-Any Other Variety of Colour or Singular Form of Species—Manx etc, short-haired He Cats - 1st Miss Frantz, 2nd Mrs Smith, 3rd Mr J. Childs.
Class 14. -Tortoiseshell Short-haired She Cats -1st Mrs Mary Fellows, 2nd Mrs George, 3rd Mr Schweiss, highly commended Mr. W. M. Phipson, Mr G. E. Meredith, Miss E. Upton, Mr H. Lees, Mr J. Powell, and Mr Glasse.
Class 15 - Tortoiseshell and White She Cats - 1st Miss Alice Qnuinney and Mr .J. Thompson (equal), 2nd Mr H. Stofton,3rd Mr Holloway, highly commended Mrs L. Stone, Mr T Bevan, Mrs Thomas, Mr William Carless, Mrs C.J. Bibby, commended Mr Matthew Clarke, Mr E. Broomhall, Mrs. Field.
Class 16 -Short-haired Tortoiseshell and Tabby She Cats – 1st Mr Schweiss, 2nd Mr J. Chatterley.
Class 17-Short-haired Brown Tabby She Cats. - 1st Mr C. Breedon.
Class 18 -Short-haired Blue or Silver Tabby She Cats. -1st Mr G. S. Gem. Second and third prizes withheld.
Class 19.-Short-haired Red Tabby She Cats - 1st Mrs Nicholls.
Class 20.-Short-haired Red Tabby and White She Cats. -1st Mr G. Pitt, 2nd Mr W. Birch.
Class 21-Short-haired Spotted Tabby She Cats.- 1st Mr J. D. Tusten, 2nd Mrs. Lancaster, 3rd Mr William Taylor, highly commended Mr T. Weightman.
Class 22.-Short-haired Black and White She Cats.- 1st Mr A.W. Longmore.
Class 23-Short-haired Black She Cats.-1st Mr Woolley, 2nd Miss Lucy Richards, 3rd Mr Schweiss, highly commended Mrs Pearce, Mr E, Baxter, Mr. Schweiss.
Class 24.-Short-haired White She Cats.-1st (and special extra prize, silver cup, value 24 guineas, presented by Mr .J.. Gray, for the best short-haired cat in the show) Mrs Evans, 2nd Mr Schweiss, 3rd Mr Robert Beart, commended Mr W. Mitten, Mr Schweiss.
Class 35.-Short-haired Unusual Colour She Cats.-1st Mr S. Lawrence, 2nd Mr D. Moore, 3rd Mr W. Woolley, highly commended Mr J. Ballad, Mr Wm. Pearson, jun.
Class 26. -Any other variety or Abnormal Formation Short-haired She Cats.-1st Mr E. Carplenter, 2nd Miss Sprague and Mrs M. A. Edmonds, highly commended .Mr W. Sandoe, Mr. W. H. Tomlinson, Miss E. Beard, and Mr E. C. Bourne.
Class 27.-For Two Best-marked Short-haired Kittens, any variety, under six months old. - 1st Mr W. Birch, 2nd Miss Sprague, commended Mr W. H. Tomlinson and Mrs Hinks.
Class 28.-Long-haired pure White He Cats.- 1st Mr Cleverley, 2nd Mr T. A. Pocock, 3rd Mr A. Adderley.
Class 29.- Long-haired Black He Cats.-1st Mr T Weightman.
Class 30.-Long-haired Tabby He Cats.- 1st Mr H. C. Organ, 2nd Mr Schofield Elam.
Class 31.--Long-haired Unusual Colour He Cats.- 1st Mr Joseph Beeston, 2nd Mrs Hinks, 3rd Mr T. Hughes Jun.
Class 32.-Long-haired Pure White She Cats.- 1st Mr M. Maynard, 2nd Miss S. A. Pocock.
Class 33.-Long-haired Black She Cats.- 1st Mr T. Weightman, 2nd Mr J. Wilmott.
Class 34.- Long-haired Tabby She Cats.- 1st Mr Jos. Bristow.
Class 35.- Long-haired Red Tabby She Cats.- 1st Mrs H. C. Organ.
Class 36.- Long-haired Unusual Colour She Cats.- 1st Mrs. Hichman, 2nd Mrs Wincott.
Class 37.- For the two best long-haired Kittens, under six months old.-1st Mrs J. Wilmott, 2nd Mrs. W. Scott.
Class 38.- For the heaviest Short-haired Cat, Black, Black- and-white.- 1st Mr C. A. Shorthouse, 2nd Mr C. Lloyd, 3rd Mr Henry Anthony, highly commended Mr W. Gregory.
Class 39.- For the heaviest Short-haired Cat, White. -1st Mrs T. W. Minton, 2nd Mrs Barber.
Class 40.-For the heaviest Short-haired Cat, Tabby, any colour.- 1st. Mr Edward Baxter, 2nd Mr Oliver Nicholls, 3rd Mr T. Weightman: highly commended, Mrs M. A. Jones, commended Mrs H. C. Organ.
Class 41.-For the heaviest Short-haired Cat, Unusual Colour- 1st Mrs Scarman, 2nd Mr D. Moore.
Class 42.- For the heaviest Long-haired Cat, Black, Back-and-white.- 1st Mr T. Weightman.
Class 43.-For the heaviest Long-haired Cat, White.- 1st Mrs Hinks, 2nd Mr F. J. Goodall, 3rd Mrs Oakley.
Class 44.- For the heaviest Long-haired Cat, Tabby.- 1st Mr Weightman, 2nd Miss G. Sprague, 3rd Mr. G. Bennett.
CLASS 45.-For the heaviest Long-haired Cat, Unusual Colour.- 1st Mr A. Adderley.
Class 46.- For any Wild or Hybrid between Wild and Domestic, or any other Cat.-Cats entered in wrong class,

WORKING MEN'S CLASSES.
Class 47.-Black-and-white He Cats.-Prize of one guinea Mr C. Fryer, highly commended Mrs W. Horton, junr.
Class.-For the best Tabby-end-white He Cat.- Prize of one guinea Mr A. Potter, highly commended Mrs Ellis, Mrs Saxty, Mr T. Bodington, commended Miss E. Chatwin, Mr H. Green.
Class 49.- For the best White She Cats.- Prize of one guinea Mr J. Cotterill, commended Mr W. Wakelin and Mr R. Smith.
Class 50. - For the best Short-haired Black Cats.- Prize Mr E. Witheridge, commended Master F. George, Mr R. Bray.
Class 51.-For the best Litter of Short-haired Kittens -Prize Mr M. Clarke.

CATS OF NO SEX.
Class 52.-For the heaviest Short-haired Cat, Tabby, any colour.- 1st Mr Corns, 2nd Mr H. Lee, 3rd Mr J. V. Bonell, commended Mr James Edwards, Mr H. Jacques.
Class 53.- Heaviest Long-haired Cats.- 1st Mr J. Curtis.

THE CAT SHOW. Birmingham Daily Post, 1st December 1874
The Cat Show proved and attraction during the whole of yesterday, when the price of admission was reduced to 1s. The increased size of the building prevented the crowding which was so great a complaint last year, when the structure in which the exhibition took place was inconveniently small. Notwithstanding the improved ventilation, and the use of disinfectants, it has been found impossible to obviate the unpleasant smell arising from so large a concourse of the feline species, but this little inconvenience was patiently borne by the visitors yesterday, and they appeared generally well pleased with the exhibition. About a dozen cats were sold during the day, at from £1 to £2 each. Three beautiful Angola kittens were purchased by a lady for £1 each, and a short-haired tabby (No. 6), which was highly commended by the judges, fetched £2. The receipts yesterday amounted to £224 63, compared with £196 last year. The number of persons admitted was 4,486.

BIRMINGHAM "GRAND NATIONAL CAT SHOW," 1874. Alston Herald and East Cumberland Advertiser, 2nd January 1875
A friend of mine persuaded me to go to Birmingham and see the cat show. 500 cats “all in a row." Before entering upon the cats let me say a few words about "Brummagam." They go in for big things there. Big cattle shows, dog and cat shows, big meetings of a political character, in fact a "Brummagam" man is proud of his town, considers it the first city of the kingdom, that it takes the lead in almost all the great questions of the day [. . .] But what has all this to do with a cat show? Just this much, to show that the people are "open" to any speculation which they think will pay. The promoters made £200 last year at "Tom" cats after paying all expenses. This year they may not do quite so much. There were “Toms" from London, "Toms" from Scotland, and "Queens" from the four corners of the kingdom. There was a prize for short and long-haired tortoiseshell he and she cats, and shorthaired, brown, "tabby" he cats, blue and silver tabbys" he's and she's, and spotted, and black-and-white kittens, and to wind up with there were prizes for "Cats of no sex." I never saw such a collection of cats before, and I fancied that there was a "mousey" sort of a smell, which was anything but agreeable. Then the prices named for some of these "Toms and Queens,” was something astonishing. Two gentlemen put £1,000 opposite their four-and-three-quarter year old, and "Brick;" another wants £50 for his "tabby." Many of the spinsters wouldn’t sell their "darling pets," and some others whose names were honoured by the prefix Mrs, but who, I gravely suspect, are without the solace of "pets after their kind," and as a last resource feeling the absolute necessity of buying something to set their affections upon, take under their protecting wing specimens of the feline race. Altogether I was not at all prepossessed in favour of cat shows. There did not seem anything more than the mere novelty of the thing, and to me the odour emanating from such a collection of cats penned up like poultry for days together in a close room, more than overcome the pleasure of the novelty.–Yours truly, Wandering Correspondent, Deepfields, December 22, 1874.

1874 HUDDERSFIELD CAT SHOW

EXHIBITION OF DOGS, POULTRY AND RABBITS IN HUDDERSFIELD Huddersfield Daily Chronicle, 30th December 1874
The first annual display of dogs, poultry, rabbits, &c., of the newly-formed Huddersfield Society commenced yesterday, in the Armoury [. . . ] Nearly 30 cats were exhibited.
CATS. Open to the United Kingdom.
Tortoiseshell, or Tortoiseshell and White. – 1st, Ben Charlesworth, Lowgate, Longwood; 2nd, Miss K. Clarke, Huddersfield; 3rd. William Greenwood, Chapel Hill.
Persian or Angora. – 1st, William Sims, Moldgreen; 2nd, Mrs. Morrison, New-street; 3rd, Miss Armitage, Milnesbridge House.
Cat, any other Variety. – 1st, Miss Learoyd, Dalton Grange; 2nd, J. Craven Sykes, bath-buildings; commended, John Hellawell, Buxon-road.

HUDDERSFIELD DOG, POULTRY, PIGEON, RAT, AND CAT SHOW The Sun, 31st December 1874
The Huddersfield Dog, Poultry, Pigeon, Rat, and Cat Show, opened on Tuesday in the Armoury, is the finest show that has been held in the North of England. It has been well attended.

1874 OTHER REGIONAL CAT SHOWS

ALHAMBRA PALACE. Belfast Telegraph, 28th January 1874
Alhambra Palace. Notice. —Long looked for come at last. On Wednesday, February 4th, for the Benefit of Mr. and Mrs. Pietro Carle, Clown and Harlequin, a la Watteau (under distinguished patronage of General Hope and Colonel Expectation). On that night, Grand Cat Show. Admission 6d, 9d, and 1s.

WHITWORTH VALE DOG [AND CAT] SHOW Rochdale Observer, 7th February 1874
Cat shows have lately become a great feature – and a very interesting one – of this class of exhibition, and the promoters of the “Whitworth Vale Annual Dog Show” included in their venture a class for the feline species [. . .] Class 16 and last, was devoted to cats. The exhibit altogether was not a first class one. The pets were not suitable for viewing, as cats cannot be examined like dogs. They should have been wire “bee-hive” pens, so that the animals could be viewed all round, as Master Tom and Miss Puss have a very marked objection to being handled. The first prize cat was a handsomely marked “tiger.” The second prize cat was larger, but had too much white upon it.
Cats: 1st, 10s, Mr Amos Stott, Longfield House, Whitworth’ 2nd, 5s, Whitworth Vale Coach Company; highly commended, Mr. Squire Buckley, Ending, near Whitworth.

CAT SHOW. Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette, 16th April 1874
It is in contemplation to hold a cat-show in the Drill-hall, Bristol during the week of the West of England show, in the ensuing summer.

PADDOCK HORSE, PIG, POULTRY, PIGEON, RABBIT, DOG, AND CAT SHOW Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 27th June 1874
Paddock Horse, Pig, Poultry, Pigeon, Rabbit, Dog, and Cat Show, will be held on Saturday, August 8th, 1874.

POULTRY, PIGEON, RABBIT, AND CAT SHOW. Sheffield Independent, 20th July 1874
A show of poultry, pigeons, rabbits, and cats took place on Saturday, at Bramall lane. We are unable to present our readers with a report, in consequence of our reporter having been refused admission at the gates.

BIRSTAL FLORAL, AGRICULTURAL, AND DOG [AND CAT] SHOW Huddersfield Daily Chronicle, 4th August 1874
The annual show (promoted by the Birstal Floral, Horticultural, and Agricultural Society) of horses, horned cattle, pigs, poultry, pigeons, cats, rabbits, and plants, flowers, fruit, and vegetables was held on Saturday last, in the Rydings Park, Birstal [. . .] Very few cats were exhibite; and Emma Chapman, Birstal, obtained first prize for cats and kittens, any variety; Mrs. Horton also wining a prize with her tortoise shell cat.
CATS. Cat and kittens, any variety, 1st, Emma Chapman, Birstal; 2nd, Arthur Oldroyd, Gomersal.
Black cat, 1st, James Booth, Birstal.
Tortoise shell cat, 1st, Mrs. Horton, Birstal.

HOLMFIRTH PIG, POULTRY, DOG, CAT, HORTICULTURAL, AND FLORAL SOCIETY Huddersfield Daily Chronicle, 8th August 1874
The Annual Exhibition of the above Society will be held in the Cricket Field, on Saturday, August 22md, 1874.

CHAPEL-EN-LE-FRITH AGRICULTURAL, POULTRY, DOG AND CAT SHOW. Derbyshire Times and Chesterfield Herald, 26th September 1874
The third show in connection with Chapel-en-le-Frith Agricultural Society, was held in a field near the town, kindly lent for the occasion [. . .] On the right hand in entering the show ground were the luncheon tents, while farther on, down the right hand side of the field was the show of cats and dogs, which was a special feature of the show and attracted great attention. [. . . Prizes] Cats.—1st, J Slack-Jowet (male). 1st P Walton (female)

THE APPROACHING GRAND POULTRY AND CAT SHOW. Kent & Sussex Courier, 27th November 1874
We have just received schedule of the Poultry, Pigeon, Rabbit, Cat, and Cage Bird Show, and a glance at its contents shows how carefully it has been compiled. [. . .] Our favourite domestic animal, the cat, is also well treated, and a gold thimble is offered as a first prize, and a Lady's Companion for second, to the ladies of Tunbridge Wells exclusively. Our native pussies will therefore be in immense force. Query—are there not many single ladies in our town who would like to win the second prize, provided that- - - but we won't suggest!

CAT SHOW, ALBERT HALL, PLYMOUTH Western Daily Mercury, 21st December 1874
On which occasion there will be Black Cats, White Cats, GreyCats, Tabby Cats, Black and White Cats, and variety of other Cats. Prize for the largest and heaviest cat, handsome Silver Collar, the name of the owner will be engraved on it. For the Second, 5s. For the Third, 2s. 6d. No Entrance Fee. Parties who intend entering are requested to send in their names and the Colours of their Cats to Mr. F. DeGray at the Albert Hall, on or before One o’clock on Tuesday, in order that they may be properly catalogued. Each owner must provide a collar and cord, or chain to exhibit it by. No shams, all Legitimate Prizes. Do not forget Tuesday Night, the Cat Show, 300 Cats expected.