hers of the breed brought from
Switzerland, formed the foundation of his magnificent kennel at West
Kirby, in Cheshire. Albert Smith, whom some few that are now alive
will remember as an amusing lecturer, brought a pair from the Hospice
when returning from a visit to the Continent and made them take a
part in his attractive entertainment; but the associations of the
St. Bernard with the noble deeds recorded in history were not then
so widely known, and these two dogs passed away without having created
any particular enthusiasm.

Later on, at a dog show at Cremorne held in 1863, two St. Bernards
were exhibited, each of whom rejoiced in the name of Monk, and were,
respectively, the property of the Rev. A. N. Bate and Mr. W. H. Stone.
These dogs were exhibited without pedigrees, but were said to have
been bred at the Hospice of St. Bernard. Three years later, at the
National Show at Birmingham, a separate class was provided for the
saintly breed, and Mr. Cumming Macdona was first and second with Tell
and Bernard. This led to an immediate popularity of the St. Bernard.
But Tell was the hero of the shows at which he appeared, and his owner
was recognised as being the introducer into this country of the
magnificent variety of the canine race that now holds such a prominent
position as a show dog.

The names of Tell and Bernard have been handed down to fame, the
former as the progenitor of a long line of rough-coated offspring;
the latter as one of the founders of the famous Shefford Kennel, kept
by Mr. Fred Gresham, who probably contributed more to the perfecting
of the St. Bernard than any other breeder. His Birnie, Monk, Abbess,
Grosvenor Hector, and Shah are names which appear in the pedigrees
of most of the best dogs of more recent times. When Mr. Gresham drew
his long record of success to a close there came a lull in the
popularity of the breed until Dr. Inman, in partnership with Mr. B.
Walmsley, established a kennel first at Barford, near Bath, and then
at The Priory, at Bowden, in Cheshire, where they succeeded in
breeding the finest kennel of St. Bernards that has ever been seen
in the world. Dr. Inman had for several years owned good dogs, and
set about the work on scientific principles. He, in conjunction with
Mr. Walmsley, purchased the smooth-coated Kenilworth from Mr. Loft,
bred that dog's produce with a brindle Mastiff of high repute, and
then crossed back to his St. Bernards with the most successful
results