Chapter XVIII: Tortoiseshell-And-White Persians

These cats, both long- and short-haired, have always had a great
fascination for me. One of my first Persian pets was a
tortoiseshell-and-white, with a gorgeous coat, stand-out frill, and
wide-spreading tail. She was so stately and dignified that we called
her “The Lady Mayoress.” In those days cats were of no account, and
shows were non-existent. My pretty pet roamed at will and made her own
matrimonial arrangements: the kittens were consequently mostly
consigned to the bucket.

With my present knowledge of the feline race, I realise that “The Lady
Mayoress” was a grand specimen of what a tortoiseshell-and-white
should be. She was not a white-and-tortoiseshell, as so many now seen
in the show pen might be called. In these cases the white
predominates, and in reality the four colours should be about equally
distributed. The patches of black, red, and yellow should cover the
back, head, and tail, leaving the chest and paws and part of the hind
quarters white. There should be patches of the three colours on each
side of the face, with a white blaze up the nose.

“PEGGY PRIMROSE.” OWNED BY MISS TERRILL.

(_Photo: W. Baker, Birmingham._)
]

As in the tortoiseshells, so in this breed it is better for the
brighter colours rather than the black to predominate. I believe an
old-fashioned name for this breed was chintz cats. I think they might
also be called patchwork cats! There is a great deal in the manner in
which the colours are distributed on either side of the head, for
expression in a cat goes a long way, and if the patches are badly
placed and unevenly distributed the effect may be displeasing, and
perhaps grotesque.

Harrison Weir, in writing of this breed, says: “In a good
tortoiseshell-and-white there should be 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 space 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, 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 ‘tabbiness,’ either brown or grey, or an
approach to it, such being highly detrimental to its beauty.”

This is another of the breeds of long-haired cats that may be said to
have no history in the fancy, and I doubt if tortoiseshell-and-whites
will ever be taken up seriously. There will always remain the
difficulty of obtaining good mates for the queens, as males in this
variety are almost as rare as in the tortoiseshells. It would
seem that the corresponding males to tortoiseshells and
tortoiseshell-and-whites are orange and fawns. I do not remember ever
having seen or heard of a long-haired tortoiseshell-and-white tom cat;
and as regards notable females, these have never at any time been
numerous, and few really good specimens have been exhibited.

MISS YEOMAN’S TORTOISESHELL-AND-WHITE “MARY II.”

(_Photo: D. Pym, Streatham._)
]

The most perfect type was Lady Marcus Beresford’s “Cora,” an imported
cat of great size and beautiful shape. Her colouring and markings were
lovely, and her round snub face and short nose lent great charm to
this unique specimen. It was a grievous loss to her owner and the
fancy when poor “Cora” suddenly developed dropsy, and succumbed to
this rather unusual complaint amongst cats. Mrs. Davies possessed a
fine tortoiseshell-and-white named “Chumly,” and Mrs. Bampfylde’s
“Susan” was a good type. Many of the cats exhibited have either too
much or too little white, and often there is a grave suspicion of
tabby amongst the black and orange.

Coming down to the present-day cats, I may mention Mr. Furze’s “Beauty
of Birmingham” and “Peggy Primrose,” both of which he disposed of
after shows where they were exhibited. There is no doubt these cats
are very taking in the show pen, where darker feline beauties are at a
considerable disadvantage.

I have had a difficulty in obtaining any good photographs illustrative
of these cats, for, as with tortoiseshells, the colouring cannot be
successfully portrayed by any gradations in tone, so that the orange
and black both appear dark on a white ground, and thus the
individuality of the breed is lost. It is different in painting, when
it may be generally noticed that artists choose to depict these
broken-coloured cats in preference to the self-coloured ones. In
Madame Ronner’s lovely pictures, of which several adorn these pages,
it will be remarked that almost all the fascinating fluffy kittens are
patched in colour.

As I have remarked, one of the reasons why these cats have not been
seriously taken up by fanciers is the difficulty experienced in
selecting suitable mates that will be likely to perpetuate the breed.
In fact, this is not possible with any degree of certainty.
Tortoiseshell-and-whites may be crossed with black or orange cats, and
it is a toss-up what the progeny may be. Creams are sometimes bred by
mating with blues, but there is always the danger of white spots and
white toes. I once mated a pretty tortoiseshell-and-white with my
silver “Cambyses,” and the result was a good pale silver and an almost
unmarked cream. Considering all things, I cannot prophesy any future
for this breed in the fancy; in fact, I think there is every chance of
these really pretty pussies disappearing from our midst. At the
Westminster show of 1903 there was only one solitary entry in the
tortoiseshell-and-white class! This was Miss Yeoman’s “Mary II.,”
whose portrait appears on the foregoing page.

AT HOME.

(_From a Painting by Madame Ronner._)
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MISS SIMPSON’S BROWN TABBY “PERSIMMON.”
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