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When trying to put forth the books written by Hugh Dalziel, it can be
very confusing. Therefore, perhaps the following will help any
interested viewer.
Breaking and Training Dogs
Hugh Dalziel used the pseudonym name of "Corsincon." He
first co-authored Part II of Breaking and Training Dogs
with H. C. Dear (who used the pseudonym "Pathfinder") in 1875. The second edition seems to be
available under two dates. Some books have a publishing date of 1885
and are listed as a "Second Edition, Revised and Enlarged."
However, the same exact information appeared in a 1903 edition. The
latter edition included a discussion on "Sheepdogs as
Stock-Tenders." It is likely that the words below are exactly, or similar, to what he wrote in
the 1875 first edition.:
"There are many varieties of sheepdog, the most distinct and
widest difference being between the Scotch colley and the old
English sheepdog. These two differ very much in appearance. The
English sheepdog, which is found in the highest perfection in the
South and West, is a much shorter, thicker, and altogether
clumsier-made dog than the colley, and often shows the peculiarity
of being tailless, or almost so. The Scotch dog is of very elegant
shape, different greatly in quantity and colour of coat, from
short, to long and shaggy hair. Both varieties, however, possess the
same high intelligence and singular aptitude in the care and
management of sheep and cattle."
British Dogs (1879)
One of the earliest written use of the words
"Bearded Colley" in a book was presented by Hugh Dalziel, in
British Dogs: Their Varieties, History,
Characteristics, Breeding, Management, and Exhibition. London: The
Bazaar Office, 1879 (495 pages). Dalziel stated on the title page that he was "assisted by eminent fanciers,"
but the sections entitled "The Scotch Colley," "The Smooth-coated Colley,"
"The Bearded Colley," and "The English Sheepdog or Drover's Dog were all
authored by Dalziel (as it appeared in the book).
Dalziel described himself as a
canine critic for The Field, Kennel Editor of The Country, and a
judge in which capacities he had visited many of the great exhibitions
of the canine species in France, Germany and America, as well as all the
principal ones in the United Kingdom.
In the last paragraph of the book's preface, Dalziel wrote:
"The illustrations are from life, celebrated 'dogs of the Day'
having been selected, and the artists have, in most instances,
succeeded in giving very correct delineations, showing the
distinguishing characteristics of each breed."
A reprint of his 1879 book was likely reprinted some time after 1884
but before 1888. There was no publishing date, but ads in the back of
the book were dated to 1884. An image of the cover of this reprinted book appears
below.
In the reprinted book, on page 208, Dalziel wrote:
"Chapter III. — THE BEARDED COLLEY.
By Corsincon.
In the west of Scotland there is a rough-faced
and very shaggy-coated dog called the bearded colley, differing
mainly from the true colley in being rough-faced, rather heavier
built, altogether less elegant, and with a shaggier and harsher
coat.
I think they must be a cross with a rough
hound, otter hound, or deerhound—probably the former."
Note: Col. David Hancock's view was that any cross of a
Beardie with the deerhound likely occurred to make the
deerhound brainier and more responsive to training and not to alter the
Beardie in any way. Others have said the Deerhound and Greyhound were
bred into the Beardies to give the Beardies extra speed. This extra
speed was needed, according to such accounts, so that Beardies could
chase down their food supply.
Dalziel also included a few words on page 389 for the section
entitled "Chapter XXX. "Standard of Excellence. For Dogs Useful to
Man." In that chapter, he set out what points should be considered for the
Rough Coated Colley, the Smooth Colley, and the Bob Tailed Sheep Dog,
all being the same, except the Smooth Colley should have ten points
taken from the coat and given to symmetry instead. The "Bearded Colley"
was also listed, and Dalziel wrote:
"Rarely shown, and no scale of points
have been allotted."
Dalziel used the words "Rough Coated Colley" in the latter section of
the book as opposed to the words "Scotch Colley" used in the first
division of the book (this section was entitled "Dogs Useful to Man in
Other Work Than Field Sports"). He apparently was using the words
"Scotch Colley" to mean a synonym for the "Rough Coated Collie."
Included in the book (seen below) were illustrations for both the rough-coated and
smooth-coated collies.
Dalziel did not hesitate to criticize other writers for referring to
the Scotch Colley as a Highland collie:
"There has been an attempt made by recent writers to circumscribe
the national character of this dog by calling him the Highland
colley, as though he were peculiar to the north of Scotland."
A Monograph on the Collie
Dalziel also published a monograph entitled The Collie: Its
History, Points, and Breeding. London: L. Upcott Gill, 1888.
Third, fourth, and fifth editions were revised by J. Maxtee, in
1904, 1921 and 1923 respectively. In those editions, Maxtee renamed the
book to the title The Collie: As a Show Dog, Companion and Worker.
Copy of the cover for the fifth edition appears below:
In the fifth edition, page 10, the Bearded Collie was discussed, though it is
not known whether those same words were in the earlier third and fourth editions:
"It has been shown, therefore, that two varieties of Collie are
generally found. There is, however, a third, known as the Bearded
Collie, a sort of combination of Collie and Old English Sheepdog.
This last is essentially a worker, and mostly confined to districts
in Scotland having noted Sheep-markets—Perth, Stirling, and Falkirk.
A glance at the Plate will show at once the kind of dog that the
Bearded Collie is. So far, it has not become very popular as a
show-dog, though at some of the Northern exhibitions, a
classification is found for it. The late Mr. Panmure Gordon was an
enthusiastic admirer of this dog, and the illustration given was
made from a photograph of one of his dogs. The late Mr. Thomson Gray
also affected this variety. The Bearded Collie, unlike the Old
English Sheepdog, is allowed to retain the whole of the tail, which
is bushy and should be carried low. The ears droop, and hang close
to the head, instead of being semi-erect like the other collies. The
fore-legs are very muscular. Though not carrying the coat of the Old
English Sheepdog of the present day, the jacket is abundant and
hard, so far as the outside portion is concerned, while the
undercoat is soft and short. Altogether, the variety is alike
distinctive and well worthy of greater encouragement at the hands of
show committees and others."
Panmure Gordon's dog, Jock, was not in the 1888 edition of The
Collie. Jock was likely not yet born. Jock did appear in the 1904, and later,
editions authored by Maxtee. This same picture also appeared in a 1903 third
edition of British Dogs authorted by Drury and Others. It also
appeared in Count Henri Bylandt's 1904 edition of his book entitled
Les Races de Chiens. The image appears below.
British Dogs (3 Volume Edition)
Dalziel's book was later published
in three volumes but renamed to become British Dogs: The History,
Characteristics, Breeding, Management and Exhibition of the Various
Breeds of Dogs Established in Great Britain. London: L. Upcott Gill,
(a three volume set published from 1888 to
1897). Vol. I, 503 pp. (which covered breeds of dog); Vol. II, 526 pp.
(which also covered breeds of dog); and
Vol. III, 534 pp (covering practical kennel management).
In Volume II, page 44, note how the spelling of "colley"
now was being spelled as "collie." He wrote:
"The bearded Collie of the South of Scotland, which I at one time thought it probable
was a cross with the Deerhound or Otter-hound, may perhaps more probably
be the result of a union between Collie and English Sheepdog; he
certainly possesses features such a cross might account for."
In this three volume edition, at least four different images of the collie
were included. The images are labeled.
Thanks to Col. David Hancock, the noted dog historian, some of the confusion surrounding Dalziel's
British Dogs has been made much clearer. Panmure Gordon
wrote the section on collies for Dalziel (who was solely responsible for
up to and including Chapter XXI of Volume III); Thomson Gray, author of
Dogs of Scotland, also contributed to this volume. W. D. Drury edited
Volume III in 1896.
Drury (who served more as an editor than an author of original work)
separately wrote a third edition of the book entitled
British Dogs: Their Points, Selection, and Show Preparation,
London: L. Upcott Gill, 1903. He was assisted
by other writers. These collaborators were listed by
name, and Panmure Gordon was listed as a "Specialist" for the
Collies section (which likely contained the same wording as what was in
the Dalziel's second edition). Panmure's Beardie dog, Jock, appeared as
Fig. 41 on page 147.
The Bearded Collie was discussed on page 148 in Drury's edited book,
and the words seemed to be similar to what was written above in the
fifth edition of The Collie: As a Show Dog, Companion and Worker.
"As will be gathered from this, there are two varieties of Collie
as generally accepted—the Rough and the Smooth; but there is also a
third, the Bearded Collie (Fig. 41), which is often found in the
sheep-markets of Perth, Stirling, and Falkirk. This is a purely
working type of dog, and appears to be a combination of the Collie
proper and the Old English Sheepdog. Unlike the latter, however, it
is not bob-tailed."
There was also a companion book entitled
British Dogs, Volume II. Kennel Management, The Physiology of the
Dog; Breeding, Management and Training for the Show Bench, the Field, or
as Companions; with a Chapter on Diseases—their Causes and Treatment by Drury & Others.
London: L. Upcott Gill. It does not bear a date, but an advertisement in the back of that book stated:
"Practical Kennel Management. A complete Treatise on the Proper
Management of Dogs for the Show Bench, the Field, or as Companions;
with a Chapter on Diseases—their Causes and Treatment. A
Companion Volume to "British Dogs." By W. D. Drury, assisted by
well-known Specialists. Illustrated. "
It is possible that the book (copy of a cover is shown below) was
printed separately prior to 1903. Or perhaps it was a reprinted book
of the Volume III edited by Drury in 1896. Or perhaps it was published
to be a companion piece to Drury's 1903 edited book. Col. Hancock
has indicated that the publications may have been serialized by L. Upcott Gill, which would explain the numerous dates.
The frontispiece of the book shown above
included a colour image of a collie dog.
It was also included in Dalziel's 3-volume work.
The frontispiece of the book shown above included a colour
image of the same image included in Dalziel's 3-volume work.
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