Our Cats and All About Them Part 3

This was either a cross with the English wild cat, which sometimes has a mane, or it was an accidental variation of nature. I once bred a long-haired rabbit in a similar way, but at first I failed entirely to perpetuate the peculiarity. I think the above simply "a sport."

[Ill.u.s.tration: MISS MARY GRESHAM'S PERSIAN KITTEN, "LAMBKIN NO. 2."]

[Ill.u.s.tration: MISS MOORE'S "BOGEY."]

I have now concluded my remarks on the long-haired varieties of cats that I am at present acquainted with. They are an exceedingly interesting section; their habits, manners, forms, and colours form a by no means unprofitable study for those fond of animal life, as they, in my opinion, differ in many ways from those of their "short-haired"

brethren. I shall not cease, however, in my endeavours to find out if any other long-haired breeds exist, and I am, therefore, making inquiries in every direction in which I deem it likely I shall get an increase of information on the subject, but hitherto without any success. Therefore, I am led to suppose that the three I have enumerated are the only domesticated long-haired varieties. The nearest approach, I believe, to these in the wild state is that of the British wild cat, which has in some instances a mane and a bushy tail, slightly resembling that of the Russian long-hair, with much of the same facial expression, and rather pointed tufts at the apex of the ears. It is also large, like some of the "long-haired" cats that I have seen; in fact, it far more resembles these breeds than those of the short hair. I was much struck with the many points of similitude on seeing the British wild cat exhibited by the Duke of Sutherland at the first cat show at the Crystal Palace in July, 1871. I merely offer this as an idea for further consideration. At the same time, allow me to say that I have had no opportunity of studying the anatomy of the British wild cat, in contradistinction to that of the Russian, or others with long hair. I only wish to point out what I term a general resemblance, far in excess of those with short hair. I am fully aware how difficult it is to trace any origin of the domestic cat, or from what breeds; it is also said, that the British wild cat is not one of them, still I urge there exists the similarity I mention; whether it is so apparent to others I know not.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

[Ill.u.s.tration: MR. SMITH'S PRIZE HE-CAT.]

THE TORTOISESh.e.l.l CAT.

I now come to the section of the short-haired domestic cat, a variety possessing sub-varieties. Whether these all came from the same origin is doubtful, although in breeding many of the different colours will breed back to the striped or tabby colour, and, _per contra_, white whole-coloured cats are often got from striped or spotted parents, and _vice versa_. Those that have had any experience of breeding domesticated animals or birds, know perfectly well how difficult it is to keep certain peculiarities gained by years of perseverance of breeding for such points of variation, or what is termed excellence.

Place a few fancy pigeons, for instance, in the country and let them match how they like, and one would be quite surprised, unless he were a naturalist, to note the great changes that occur in a few years, and the unmistakable signs of reversion towards their ancestral stock--that of the Rock pigeon. But with the cat this is somewhat different, as little or no attempts have been made, as far as I know of, until cat shows were inst.i.tuted, to improve any particular breed either in form or colour.

Nor has it even yet, with the exception of the long-haired cats. Why this is so I am at a loss to understand, but the fact remains. Good well-developed cats of certain colours fetch large prices, and are, if I may use the term, perpetual prize-winners. I will take as an instance the tortoisesh.e.l.l tom, he, or male cat as one of the most scarce, and the red or yellow tabby she-cat as the next; and yet the possessor of either, with proper care and attention, I have little or no doubt, has it in his power to produce either variety _ad libitum_. It is now many years since I remember the first "tortoisesh.e.l.l tom-cat;" nor can I now at this distance of time quite call to mind whether or not it was not a tortoisesh.e.l.l-and-white, and not a tortoisesh.e.l.l pure and simple. It was exhibited in Piccadilly. If I remember rightly, I made a drawing of it, but as it is about forty years ago, of this I am not certain, although I have lately been told that I did, and that the price asked for the cat was 100 guineas.

[Ill.u.s.tration: EXAMPLE OF TORTOISESh.e.l.l CAT, VERY DARK VARIETY.]

This supposed scarcity was rudely put aside by the appearance, at the Crystal Palace Show of 1871, of no less than one tortoisesh.e.l.l he-cat (exhibited by Mr. Smith) and three tortoisesh.e.l.l-and-white he-cats, but it will be observed there was really but only one tortoisesh.e.l.l he-cat, the others having white. On referring to the catalogues of the succeeding shows, no other pure tortoisesh.e.l.l has been exhibited, and he ceased to appear after 1873; but tortoisesh.e.l.l-and-white have been shown from 1871, varying in number from five to three until 1885. One of these, a tortoisesh.e.l.l-and-white belonging to Mr. Hurry, gained no fewer than nine first prizes at the Crystal Palace, besides several firsts at other shows; this maintains my statement, that a really good scarce variety of cats is a valuable investment, Mr. Hurry's cat Totty keeping up his price of 100 till the end.

As may have been gathered from the foregoing remarks, the points of the tortoisesh.e.l.l he-cat are, black-red and yellow in patches, but no _white_. The colouring should be in broad, well-defined blotches and solid in colour, not mealy or tabby-like in the marking, but clear, sharp, and distinct, and the richer and deeper the colours the better.

When this is so the animal presents a very handsome appearance. The eyes should be orange, the tail long and thick towards the base, the form slim, graceful, and elegant, and not too short on the leg, to which this breed has a tendency. Coming then to the actual tortoisesh.e.l.l he, or male cat without white, I have never seen but one at the Shows, and that was exhibited by Mr. Smith. It does not appear that Mr. Smith bred any from it, nor do I know whether he took any precautions to do so; but if not, I am still of the opinion that more might have been produced. In Ca.s.sell's "Natural History," it is stated that the tortoisesh.e.l.l cat is quite common in Egypt and in the south of Europe. This I can readily believe, as I think that it comes from a different stock than the usual short-haired cat, the texture of the hair being different, the form of tail also. I should much like to know whether in that country, where the variety is so common, there exists any number of tortoisesh.e.l.l he-cats.

In England the he-kittens are almost invariably red-tabby or red-tabby-and-white; the red-tabby she-cats are almost as scarce as tortoisesh.e.l.l-and-white he-cats. Yet if red-tabby she-cats can be produced, I am of opinion that tortoisesh.e.l.l he-cats could also. I had one of the former, a great beauty, and hoped to perpetuate the breed, but it unfortunately fell a victim to wires set by poachers for game.

Again returning to the tortoisesh.e.l.l, I have noted that, in drawings made by the j.a.panese, the cats are always of this colour; that being so, it leads one to suppose that in that country tortoisesh.e.l.l he-cats must be plentiful. Though the drawings are strong evidence, they are not absolute proof. I have asked several travelling friends questions as regards the j.a.panese cats, but in no case have I found them to have taken sufficient notice for their testimony to be anything else than worthless. I shall be very thankful for any information on this subject, for to myself, and doubtless also to many others, it is exceedingly interesting. Any one wis.h.i.+ng to breed rich brown tabbies, should use a tortoisesh.e.l.l she-cat with a very brown and black-banded he-cat. They are not so good from the spotted tabby, often producing merely tortoisesh.e.l.l tabbies instead of brown tabbies, or true tortoisesh.e.l.ls.

My remarks as to the colouring of the tortoisesh.e.l.l he-cat are equally applicable to the she-cat, which should not have any white. Of the tortoisesh.e.l.l-and-white hereafter.

To breed tortoisesh.e.l.l he-cats, I should use males of a whole colour, such as either white, black, or blue; and on no account any tabby, no matter the colour. What is wanted is patches of colour, not tiny streaks or spots; and I feel certain that, for those who persevere, there will be successful results.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

[Ill.u.s.tration]

THE TORTOISESh.e.l.l-AND-WHITE CAT.

This is a more common mixture of colouring than the tortoisesh.e.l.l pure and simple without white, and seems to be widely spread over different parts of the world. It is the opinion of some that this colour and the pure tortoisesh.e.l.l is the original domestic cat, and that the other varieties of marking and colours are but deviations produced by crossing with wild varieties. My brother, John Jenner Weir, F.L.S., F.Z.S., holds somewhat to this opinion; but, to me, it is rather difficult to arrive at this conclusion. In fact, I can scarcely realise the ground on which the theory is based--at the same time, I do not mean to ignore it entirely. And yet, if this be so, from what starting-point was the original domestic cat derived, and by what means were the rich and varied markings obtained? I am fully aware that by selection cats with large patches of colour may be obtained; still, there remain the peculiar markings of the tortoisesh.e.l.l. Nor is this by any means an uncommon colour, not only in this country, but in many others, and there also appears to be a peculiar fixedness of this, especially in the female, but why it is not so in the male I am at a loss to understand, the males almost invariably coming either red-tabby or red-tabby-and-white. One would suppose that black or white would be equally likely; but, as far as my observations take me, this is not so, though I have seen both pure white, yellow, red, and black in litters of kittens, but this might be different were the he parent tortoisesh.e.l.l.

Some years ago I was out with a shooting party not far from Snowdon, in Wales, when turning past a large rock I came on a sheltered nook, and there in a nest made of dry gra.s.ses laid six tortoisesh.e.l.l-and-white kittens about eight to ten days old. I was much surprised at this, as I did not know of any house near, therefore these must have been the offspring of some cat or cats that were leading a roving or wild life, and yet it had no effect as to the deviation of the colour. I left them there, and without observing the s.e.x. I was afterwards sorry, as it is just possible, though scarcely probable, that one or more of the six, being all of the same colour, might have proved to be a male. As I left the neighbourhood a few days after I saw no more of them, nor have I since heard of any being there; so conclude they in some way were destroyed.

I have observed in the breed of tortoisesh.e.l.l or tortoise-sh.e.l.l-and-white that the hair is of a coa.r.s.er texture than the ordinary domestic cat, and that the tail is generally thicker, especially at the base, though some few are thin-tailed; yet I prefer the thick and tapering form. Some are very much so, and of a good length; the legs are generally somewhat short; I do not ever remember seeing a really long-legged tortoisesh.e.l.l, though when this is so if not too long it adds much to its grace of action. I give a drawing of what I consider to be a GOOD tortoisesh.e.l.l-and-white tom or he-cat. It will be observed that there is more white on the chest, belly, and hind legs than is allowable in the black-and-white cat. This I deem necessary for artistic beauty, when the colour is laid on in _patches_, although it should be even, clear, and distinct in its outline; the larger s.p.a.ce of white adds brilliancy to the red, yellow, and black colouring. The face is one of the parts which should have some uniformity of colour, and yet not so, but a mere _balancing_ of colour; that is to say, that there should be a _relief_ in black, with the yellow and red on each side, and so in the body and tail. The nose should be white, the eyes orange, and the whole colouring rich and varied without the least _Tabbyness_, either brown or gray or an approach to it, such being highly detrimental to its beauty.

I have received a welcome letter from Mr. Herbert Young, of James Street, Harrogate, informing me of the existence of what is said to be a tortoisesh.e.l.l tom or he-cat somewhere in Yorks.h.i.+re, and the price is fifty guineas; but he, unfortunately, has forgotten the exact address.

He also kindly favours me with the further information of a tortoisesh.e.l.l-and-white he-cat. He describes it as "splendid," and "extra good in colour," and it is at present in the vicinity of Harrogate. And still further, Mr. Herbert Young says, "I am breeding from a dark colour cat and two tortoisesh.e.l.l females," and he hopes, by careful selection, to succeed in "breeding the other colour out."

This, I deem, is by no means an unlikely thing to happen, and, by careful management, may not take very long to accomplish; but much depends on the ancestry, or rather the pedigree of both sides. I for one most heartily wish Mr. Herbert Young success, and it will be most gratifying should he arrive at the height of his expectations. Failing the producing of the desired colour in the he-cats by the legitimate method of tortoisesh.e.l.l with tortoisesh.e.l.l, I would advise the trial of some _whole_ colours, such as solid black and white. This _may_ prove a better way than the other, as we pigeon fanciers go an apparently roundabout way often to obtain what we want to attain in colour, and yet there is almost a certainty in the method.

As regards the tortoisesh.e.l.l cat, there is a distinct variety known to us cat fanciers as the tortoisesh.e.l.l-tabby. This must not be confounded with the true variety, as it consists only of a variegation in colour of the yellow, the red, and the dark tabby, and is more in lines than patches, or patches of lines or spots. These are by no means ugly, and a well-marked, richly-coloured specimen is really very handsome. They may also be intermixed with white, and should be marked the same as the true tortoisesh.e.l.l; but in compet.i.tion with the _real_ tortoisesh.e.l.l they would stand _no chance_ whatever, and ought in my opinion to be disqualified as being wrong cla.s.s, and be put in that for "any other colour."

[Ill.u.s.tration: MRS. VYVYAN'S ROYAL CAT OF SIAM.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: BROWN TABBY--BARS THE RIGHT WIDTH.]

THE BROWN TABBY CAT.

The tabby cat is doubtless one of, if not the most common of colours, and numbers many almost endless varieties of both tint and markings. Of these those with very broad bands of black, or narrow bands of black, on nearly a black ground, are usually called black tabby, and if the bands are divided into spots instead of being in continuous lines, then it is a spotted black tabby; but I purpose in this paper to deal mostly with the brown tabby--that is to say, a tabby, whose ground colour is of a very rich, orangey, dark brown ground, without any white, and that is evenly, proportionably, and not too broadly but elegantly marked on the face, head, breast, sides, back, belly, legs, and tail with bands of solid, deep, s.h.i.+ning black. The front part of the head or face and legs, breast, and belly should have a more rich red orange tint than the back, but which should be nearly if not equal in depth of colour, though somewhat browner; the markings should be graceful in curve, sharply, well, and clearly defined, with fine deep black edges, so that the brown and black are clear and distinct the one from the other, not blurred in any way. The banded tabby should not be spotted in any way, excepting those few that nearly always occur on the face and sometimes on the fore-legs. The clearer, redder, and brighter the brown the better. The nose should be deep red, bordered with black; the eyes an orange colour, slightly diffused with green; in form the head should not be large, nor too wide, being rather longer than broad, so as not to give too round or clumsy an appearance; ears not large nor small, but of moderate size, and of good form; legs medium length, rather long than short, so as not to lose grace of action; body long, narrow, and deep towards the fore part. Tail long, and gradually tapering towards the point; feet round, with black claws, and black pads; yellowish-white around the black lips and brown whiskers are allowable, but orange-tinted are far preferable, and pure white should disqualify. A cat of this description is now somewhat rare. What are generally shown as _brown_ tabbies are not sufficiently _orange-brown_, but mostly of a dark, brownish-gray. This is simply the ordinary tabby, and not the _brown_ tabby proper.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BROWN TABBY--MARKINGS MUCH TOO WIDE.]

As I stated in my notes on the Tortoisesh.e.l.l cat, the best parents to obtain a good brown tabby from is to have a strongly marked, not too broad-banded tabby he-cat and a tortoisesh.e.l.l she-cat with little black, or red tabby she-cat, the produce being, when tabby, generally of a rich brown, or sometimes what is termed black tabby, and also red tabby. The picture ill.u.s.trating these notes is from one so bred, and is a particularly handsome specimen. There were two he-cats in the litter, one the dark-brown tabby just mentioned, which I named Aaron, and the other, a very fine red tabby, Moses. This last was even a finer animal than Aaron, being very beautiful in colour and very large in size; but he, alas! like many others, was caught in wires set by poachers, and was found dead. His handsome brother still survives, though no longer my property. The banded red tabby should be marked precisely the same as the brown tabby, only the bands should be of deep red on an orange ground, the deeper in colour the better; almost a chocolate on orange is very fine. The nose deep pink, as also the pads of the feet. The ordinary dark tabby the same way as the brown, and so also the blue or silver, only the ground colour should be of a pale, soft, _blue_ colour--not the slightest tint of brown in it. The clearer, the _lighter_, and brighter the blue the better, bearing in mind always that the bands should be of a _jet black_, sharply and _very clearly defined_.

[Ill.u.s.tration: WELL-MARKED PRIZE SILVER TABBY.]

The word tabby was derived from a kind of taffeta, or ribbed silk, which when calendered or what is now termed "watered," is by that process covered with wavy lines. This stuff, in bygone times, was often called "tabby:" hence the cat with lines or markings on its fur was called a "tabby" cat. But it might also, one would suppose, with as much justice, be called a taffety cat, unless the calendering of "taffety" caused it to become "tabby." Certain it is that the word tabby only referred to the marking or stripes, not to the absolute colour, for in "Wit and Drollery" (1682), p. 343, is the following:--

"Her petticoat of satin, Her gown of crimson tabby."

Be that as it may, I think there is little doubt that the foregoing was the origin of the term. Yet it was also called the brinded cat, or the brindled cat, also tiger cat, with some the gray cat, graymalkin; but I was rather unprepared to learn that in Norfolk and Suffolk it is called a Cyprus cat. "Why Cyprus cat?" quoth I. "I do not know," said my informant. "All I know is, that such is the case."

So I referred to my Bailey's Dictionary of 1730, and there, "sure enough," was the elucidation; for I found that Cyprus was a kind of cloth made of silk and hair, showing wavy lines on it, and coming from Cyprus; therefore this somewhat strengthens the argument in favour of "taffeta," or "tabby," but it is still curious that the Norfolk and Suffolk people should have adopted a kind of cloth as that representing the markings and colour of the cat, and that of a different name from that in use for the cat--one or more counties calling it a "tabby cat,"

as regards colour, and the other naming the same as "Cyprus." I take this to be exceedingly interesting. How or when such naming took place I am at present unable to get the least clue, though I think from what I gather from one of the Crystal Palace Cat Show catalogues, that it must have been after 1597, as the excerpt shows that at that time the shape and colour was like a leopard's, which, of course, is spotted, and is always called the spotted leopard. (Since this I have learned that the domestic cat is said to have been brought from Cyprus by merchants, as also was the tortoisesh.e.l.l. Cyprus is a colour, a sort of reddish-yellow, something like citron; so a Cyprus cat may mean a red or yellow tabby.)

However, I find Holloway, in his "Dictionary of Provincialisms" (1839), gives the following:--

"Calimanco Cat, s. (_calimanco_, a _glossy stuff_), a tortoisesh.e.l.l cat, Norfolk."

Salmon, in "The Compleat English Physician," 1693, p. 326, writing of the cat, says: "It is a neat and cleanly creature, often licking itself to keep it fair and clean, and was.h.i.+ng its face with its fore feet; the best are such as of a fair and large kind and of an exquisite tabby color called _Cyprus_ cats."

[Ill.u.s.tration:]

[Ill.u.s.tration: SPOTTED TABBY CAT.]

I have thought it best to give two ill.u.s.trations of the peculiar markings of the _spotted_ tabby, or leopard cat of some, as showing its distinctness from the ordinary and banded Tabby, one of my reasons being that I have, when judging at cat shows, often found excellent specimens of both entered in the "wrong cla.s.s," thereby losing all chance of a prize, though, if rightly entered, either might very possibly have taken honours. I therefore wish to direct particular attention to the _spotted_ character of the markings of the variety called the "spotted tabby." It will be observed that there are no lines, but what are lines in other tabbies are broken up into a number of spots, and the more these spots prevail, to the exclusion of _lines_ or _bands_, the better the specimen is considered to be. The varieties of the ground colour or tint on which these markings or spots are placed const.i.tutes the name, such as black-spotted tabby, brown-spotted tabby, and so on, the red-spotted tabby or yellow-spotted tabby in _she_-cats being by far the most scarce. These should be marked with _spots_ instead of _bands_, on the same ground colour as the red or yellow-banded tabby cat. In the former the ground colour should be a rich red, with spots of a deep, almost chocolate colour, while that of the yellow tabby may be a deep yellow cream, with yellowish-brown spots.

Both are very scarce, and are extremely pretty. Any admixture of white is not allowable in the cla.s.s for yellow or red tabbies; such exhibit must be put into the cla.s.s (should there be one, which is usually the case at large shows) for red or yellow and _white_ tabbies. This exhibitors will do well to make a note of.