New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-05-02
THREE NATIONS
LAY CLAIM TO
FRENCH BULLDOG
France, England and Spain
Credited with Having
Originated Breed.
KREHL BELIEVED
SPAIN "MADE" BREED
Opinion Disputed by Stubs,
Who Thinks Type Is Offshoot
of English Animal.

or English Animal.
Tho success of the French bulldo,
show recently held on the roof Of a.
Hotel Aston makes the article on this
particular breed in the last issue a
Field and Fancy" especially timely
The origin Of the French bull is Ia
theme treated. IL is pointed out that
the French authorities are unanimoua
in the opinion that the breed is strietly
French one, although they are villine
TO concede that during the last fifty
years dogs have been imported from
England and crossed with their Va
riety.
r. Krehl, we'll known among fanciers A
few years ago, that the French bulldog
originated in Spain, Is used in the ar.
ticle to introduce the discussion. Mr.
( Krehl advanced his theory as follows:
eve have no generic name for this
/ family, but in France they are called
dogues, whence we get our word dog;
but we have corrupted the meaning Of
il. The heads Of the group are the
Spanish bulldog, the dogue de Dor.
deaux, and the little toy oddities o.
Paris, bred and reared by Lutetiaa
bootmakers, and, lastly, the English
bulldog.
at Is clear to me, as an unpreiu-
diced cynologist, and entirely unsf-
fected by what previous authorities
have said on the subject, that the
original home Of the breed was Spain,
where the dog was made for its spe.
cial mission. The fair name OF Spain
always was and still is associated With
sport in which the bull plays the Iced.
ing role.
1.-THE Spaniard fashioned a dog 10
suit this sport, with a firm, strong
body, stout legs and a short neck Of
powerful muscle, big head and wide
mouth and prominent upturned jaw, so
that the dog could still breathe while
retaining his grip, and his weight
would tire out the bull, which was IN.
able to fling off the dog.
From Spain dogs Of this kind mi
grated to France. IL is only a short
excursion TO Bordeaux, where the SER
vices of the dogs were in demand as
fighting dogs and for dog and donkey
contests. Then they travelled UP 10
Paris, which has always had an eye for
the artistic, so they bantsmized the
breed to the modern toy bulldog.
1--WE English are unwilling 70 be
taught anything about animals, and
when | imported toy bulldogs from
Paris my countrymen glanced askancs
at them until | found the dwarfs an
English ancestor or two. As a matter
of fact. | think the French toys owe
little or nothing to English descent,
but l propitiated my critics. :
Well, to return, / an quite satisfied
that the bulldog owes its origin TO
Spain"
W. J. Stubs, in his "History Of the
French Bulldog" published in 1908,
takes issue with Mr. Krehl, maintain
ing that the breed had its origin in
England and is an offshoot of the
English bulldog; not, however. the
type seen on the bench to-day, but OF
the tulip-eared and short under-jawed
specimens which were common in Lon
don. Nottingham, Birmingham and
Sheffield in the early SOS.
Mr.. Stubs then tells how the same
sort of dog was exported TO France,
and he gives the names of three breed
ers who were leaders in this business.
he adds that there was a constant emf
grafton of lace workers from Noting
ham to the coast towns of Normandy,
where lace factories were springing
into existence, and that these emf
grants frequently took a bulldog with
them to the land of their adoption.
The article in question then takes up
the more modern aspects of the contro-
versy, using as a premise the state
ment that the official history Of the
French bulldog dates from July 10.
1902. Prior to this, for about ten
years, the French type was only i'm
H. ~
resuscitating the strain of bantam
bulldogs, which in course Of time bad
been permitted to dwindle in number
and was in danger Of becoming eI-
tinct.
The small English variety was then
called. somewhat enormously, toy
twenty pounds. Dogs Of this weight
ually the Kennel Club sensibly de-
cided to rename the small English va
riety miniature bulldogs" the weight
limit being twenty-five pounds.
IL is a noteworthy and important
fact that the French Bulldog Club OF
England gave classes on April 20, 1904,
for dogs and bitches under twenty
pounds weight, and sixteen dogs en-
Ntteu NSlA uOBs anu ten DltCuesJs ~
the French Bulldog Clubs own show
on March 80, 1906, six dogs and eight
bitches were shown in classes not over
sixteen pounds weight, and there were
ten dogs and fifteen bitches shown not
over twenty pounds weight.
Ii was this very question Of weight
which originally proved to be the part
ing Of the ways of the French bulldog
from the toy English varieties. Prior
TO 1902 some of the members Of the
Toy Bulldog Club were Of the opinion
that the weight limit should be raised
from twenty TO twenty-five pounds.
and Lady Lewis proposed that altera-
ton, owing to the fact that many dogs
then being shown under twenty pounds
had to be exhibited in a half-starved
condition or they would not come with
in the limit.
Lady Lewis's motion was. however.
lost. That her contention was correct
and that the alteration was necessary
is proved by the Toy Bulldog Clubs
subsequent action in the year 1905.
when the weight limit was raised to
twenty-five pounds.
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