Evening star., 1939-04-09
Breed Origins
GOB Back to
Romans
Boston Terriers and
Chesapeake Bays
Are American
Bv Gabrielle E. F0rbush.

Are all possible breeds of dogs
invented-if that word may be used
about a subject in which Dame
Nature often takes hand-or
have We reached the limit Of mans
ingenuity in adapting the traits of
a particular animal to msrJ:l verse
uses? 1t is source OF cC lstant
wonder that its scope can include
the Great Dane and the Pekingese,
the Russian wolfhound and the
Mexican hairless, but no one who
knows dogs would be so rash as
to assert that the end has been
reached. At any time a new breed
might be developed, perfected and
recognized by the American Kennel
Club, the final word in legitimate
dogdom.
Two thousand years ago Roman
sportsmen drew up six classiflca-
tions for the many breeds that
even then existed. Today the
American Kennel Club has six
major classi1cations, under which
all breeds come. Between the two
NclS yCdl VI oAio, 40
In some human affairs, near-chaos.
Among those who set up their
own definitions during the Middle
Ages was woman dog fancier.
Dame Juliana Berens, an English
woman, in 1479 classified the dogs
of England. listing among them
mastiffs. greyhounds and small
Iadyes Poppies." In the final group
she was more modern than classic,
for the toy group is one of the
A. K. C.s, whereas the Romans
did not list it, although tiny pet
dogs were much fancied by aristo-
Gratis of the days of the emperors.
Roman Grouping.
The Romans grouped together
house dogs, shepherd dogs. sporting
dogs. war dogs, dogs which run by
scent and dogs which run by sight.
The A. K c. lists the sporting
dogs, hounds Gncluding both scent
and sight dogs, working dogs (shep-
herds and those that the martial
Romans called war dogs. terriers,
toys and transporting. 1t is in
terriers and toys that the modern
fancier has most advanced, such
breeds as wire-haired fox terriers,
Kerry blues. sheeplike Bedlingtons
and Scottish terriers in one group,
and Pekingese, Pomeranians and
Chihuahuas in the other, being OF
fairly recent popularity.
In the case of the PekeS. OF
course, few breeds, if any, are more
ancient. and only the Maltese ter
rier can compete in the length of
time over which accurate records
of parentage and birth were kept.
Probably no dogs known to history
have longer, more elaborately re-
corded pedigrees than the coura-
geous little sleeve-dogs of old China
But so jealousy were they guarded,
so entirely restricted to the palace
and the court, that it was not until
two were smuggled out during Queen
Victoria's reign that the Occident
became acquainted with these ORR
entail aristocratS.
Rise of the Peke.
The rise OF the peKe Spelled the
downfall of the pug.
A yellowing letter. written in 1882
BY a young Washington matron
whose fair for clothes and amusing
parties set many a local fashion
begins, Darling Lizzie-the pug
came yesterday. He is little an
gel!' Presumably all her friends
thus notified, rushed to visit the
new arrival at the attractive house
on Massachusetts, avenue, where
darling Fluffy" was already writ
W Ing stories which also set vogue
stories to which she signed hel
more formal name of Frances Hodg-
son Burnett. For many years the
pug has been as out of date as
Little Lord Fauntleroy, but with
inc bringing up to date of that clas-
BIC py the cinema, and with the
revival OF other fashions OF the
epoch' fhere are signs of a return
10 popularity of these much-neg-
tec1eo but really very sturdy little
fellows.
Inc puedogs Of our grandmother's
uav often We're it is true, fat, asth-
nnduc, pampered and disagreeable
buV standards of dog care were as
peil'gh1ed as standards of child care
me pug OF today thrives on sensible
, olet and exercises as our children
90 on orange juice and plenty OF
sunshine.
Washlhgtonlans have always
eenseo the vogue for a new breed
YET nave been loyal to those which