Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1881-04-01
The Coming Dog.

I
The faithful chronicler of fleeting
styles would not be fulfilling the whole
duty of man. were he to fail to record
what is new aud fashionable in dogs.
For the dog, with many women, is an
indispensable adjunct of the toilet. In
the street car, on the promenade, in the
carriage, the poodle, or the tiny black
and tan, or some species of spaniel is as
certain to be on the arm of certain
species of woman as the chang" that
lowers over her forehead.
1t is, therefore, for the benefit of u
number of our readers, and the infor-
nation Of the rest, that We give the
latest dictum on the subject We shall
not set all our lady readers to breaking
the tenth commandment by dwelling on
the wonderful dogs which the Empress
of Japan sent as a present to the En-
press of Germany last Christmas. Long
haired and silky snow-white in color,
with few black spots, and coal-black
heads, these aristocrats of the boudoir
made the long journey from Yoddo to
Germany carefully packed in kennel
lined with luxurious silk cushions, and
attended by an official of high rank
They must be interesting little beasts.
Their eyes, which are extraordinarily
large and lustrous, have remarkable
habit of growing larger as the dogs
grow older, until they attain the size of
a two.shilling piece. What new zest
might he given to some lives by watch
ing the growing and greatening of those
canine orbs
Since their arrival in Germany these
Proteges of royalty have had greatness
thrust upon them. sporlin, the emf
nent animal painter, is painting their
portraits. They have been sent down,
kennel aud all, to meeting Of the Ber-
lin canine club " Hector" of which
Prince Charles is president, and their
lack of class affinity with any known
variety of European dog brought all the
experts to grief. They defy classified
ton, and they probably defy imitation,
though if the American woman were
to take her King Charles spaniel, cut
his ears shorter, sub his nose, and
make him wider between the eyes, she
would approximate the Japanese dog.
But it is more to the point to con-
slider that which is attainable, and to as
sist our lady friends in their spring pur-
chascs The Spitz dogs are fast disap-
pearing before the prejudice arising from
their supposed tendency to madness.
Probably they do not in the least de-
serve it; but much newspaper writing
has worked them woe, and the voice of
the people declares that the Spitz dogs
must 90. English mastilfs are growing
in favor aud by revulsion of popular
taste, the nervous, quivering bits of dog
flesh, known as black and tans, are GO
ing out. The st. Bernard is taking the
town by storm. Worth anywhere from
fifty to thousand dollars, they lie on
art-embroidered rugs in Fifth avenue
parlors The King Charles Spaniel is
trife passee. Like professional beauty,
its monotonous sweetness gives way to
to more individual, though perhaps,
homelier types. It is the Scotch collie,
after all, that is the coming dog 1t is
so good-natured. so honest and so true.
And if it lie not the very glass Of fash
ion and the mould of canine form, cx-
perience has long since shown that the
creatures, brute and otherwise, which
wear best. are those which are not too
bright aud good for human natures
daily food. - Washington Post.