In the short-haired division we must con sider our old fireside friend first, and colora tion in this variety is much the same as in the long-hairs, though we do not often find smokes or so many silvers, and the blue-eyed whites have probably been bred from the long-haired cats. But as to color, color of eyes and clas sification, the rules specified for long-hairs fit the short-hairs except that the tabby cats are more distinctly marked and more brilliant, as the colors are not clouded or mixed by the length of the hair. White cats with blue eyes are generally deaf, but not always. The short haired cat is rather different in formation to the long-haired cat, the face is more angular, or rather the nose may come to a finer point, though its cheeks should be well developed. The eyes are differently placed yet should be full and large, the ears larger, closer together, more toward the top of the head, wider at the base and more pointed at the apex. The body should be moderately long, slender and ele gant. The great thing to avoid in all cats is coarseness, and size alone is not a recommenda tion.
Foreign Cats Siamese is a distinct variety which comes from the palace of the King of Siam or from a few families of nobles. These cats are conceded to be the most intelligent and companionable of all cats, but having been much inbred are not easily reared and do not increase very fast. The climate of California suits the Siamese cat, and the variety is found there in fair numbers and doing well. The points valued in this cat are a rather small and flat head, a small and elegant body of a light fawn or biscuit color, with chocolate colored legs, mask and tail. The more decided the contrast — that is, the lighter the body color and the darker the points— the better. The Siamese are much appreciated as show cats. Chocolate-colored cats of this variety are found and are valuable. The fur most ap proved is very fine and glossy, resembling beaver. The eyes are blue, the color as rich as possible.
The Manx cat makes a distinct species in our exhibitions, and is classed by itself. Be sides the absence of tail, which is the distin guishing feature of this cat, a different forma tion of body is required; namely, that the fore legs should be short and the rump rise as abruptly as possible, making the hind legs longer than the fore legs, so that the cat seems to jump forward like a rabbit, and is sometimes called a rabbit cat. The head should be neat,. round and rather small, and the cat itself small, short and compact. The Manx cat may be of any of the recognized colors. There is a dis tinction between this variety and our other domestic cats. Gambier Bolton who studied the question and traveled to collect specimens for the British Zoological Society coincides with the naturalist Kempfer, and recognizes a strong likeness in these cats to those of the islands in the East, the Malay Peninsula, Japan, China and lands contiguous. All the cats in those
parts, even the Siamese, seem to have peculiar formations of the tail, whether cut short, forked, kinked or otherwise. These cats are smaller; there are differences in the call or language, ways and character, that have been observed by these students. The origin of the Manx cat is now attributed to the arrival of these cats, on the Isle of Man from ships belonging to the Spanish Armada that were wrecked there. These cats were most probably previously brought from Japan or other parts of eastern Asia, for cats now brought from Japan are exactly like our Manx. A cat with his tail cut off, showing a stump, does not constitute a Manx cat for the student.
Other cats found in show-rooms are the Abyssinians, but they do not make much head way and have not yet arrived in America. The males are generally darker than the females, and the color of these cats should be a deep brown ticked with black, somewhat resem bling the back of a wild rabbit, with a distinct black band running down the back to the tip of the tail. The inner sides of the legs and belly are more of an orange tint than the body, and are marked in some cases with a few dark patches. The eyes are deep yellow, tinged with green; nose dark-red, edged with black; ears rather small, dark-brown, with black edges and tips; and the pads of the feet are black. At tempts have been made to copy this cat, and it has been attempted to exhibit, as such, slightly marked, ordinary short-haired cats, hut they are not the genuine breed. The absence of tabby-markings is the point most sought and prized, and if kept pure the characteristics of these cats are peculiar. The Abyssinian cat has never been very numerous at exhibitions, perhaps because it is a short-haired cat, though short-haired cats, when good exhibition speci mens, bring large prices. Cats marked with white have not found much favor in British exhibitions, but have always been popular at American shows, and Madame Ronner, the great French painter of cats, usually depicts her cats—that is, the dark ones— with some white patches. If cats are marked with white, they are preferred with four white paws and a white face; that is, the white starting in a sharp point between the eyes, spreading out onto the lips, making a triangle with the apex on the forehead, and continuing thence down the chest, but not spreading to the shoulders or going round the neck or over the back. Any marking, in an "any other that is regu lar and even, and forms anything like a regu lar pattern, should he recognized and encour aged by a judge; besides which, any effort made to bring out a new variety or color must be taken note of and encouraged. There is now a tendency to encourage Dutch marked cats, which means black patches on the cheeks, a white blaze up the face, joining a broad, white belt which goes completely round the cat half way between the ears and tail.