Another very important point is the graceful carriage of the tail.  When it is curled over the back it makes an otherwise handsome dog look mean, and a tail that curls at the end like a corkscrew is also very ugly.  In former times “faking” was not infrequently resorted to to correct a faulty tail carriage, but it is easily detected.  Great Danes sometimes injure the end of the tail by hitting it against a hard substance, and those with a good carriage of tail are most liable to this because in excitement they slash it about, whereas the faulty position of the tail, curled over the back, insures immunity from harm.

Until recently British Great Dane breeders and exhibitors have paid very little attention to colour, on the principle that, like a good horse, a good Great Dane cannot be a bad colour.  The English clubs, however, have now in this particular also adopted the German standard.  The orthodox colours are brindle, fawn, blue, black, and harlequin.  In the brindle dogs the ground colour should be any shade from light yellow to dark red-yellow on which the brindle appears in darker stripes.  The harlequins have on a pure white ground fairly large black patches, which must be of irregular shape, broken up as if they had been torn, and not have rounded outlines.  When brindle Great Danes are continuously bred together, it has been found that they get darker, and that the peculiar “striping” disappears, and in that case the introduction of a good fawn into the strain is advisable.  The constant mating of harlequins has the tendency to make the black patches disappear, and the union with a good black Great Dane will prevent the loss of colour.

The following is the official description issued by the Great Dane Club:—­

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GENERAL APPEARANCE—­The Great Dane is not so heavy or massive as the Mastiff, nor should he too nearly approach the Greyhound type.  Remarkable in size and very muscular, strongly though elegantly built; the head and neck should be carried high, and the tail in line with the back, or slightly upwards, but not curled over the hind-quarters.  Elegance of outline and grace of form are most essential to a Dane; size is absolutely necessary; but there must be that alertness of expression and briskness of movement without which the Dane character is lost.  He should have a look of dash and daring, of being ready to go anywhere and do anything.  TEMPERAMENT—­The Great Dane is good-tempered, affectionate, and faithful to his master, not demonstrative with strangers; intelligent, courageous, and always alert.  His value as a guard is unrivalled.  He is easily controlled when well trained, but he may grow savage if confined too much, kept on chain, or ill treated.  HEIGHT—­The minimum height of an adult dog should be 30 ins.; that of a bitch, 28 ins.  WEIGHT—­The minimum weight of an adult dog should be 120 lbs.; that of a bitch, 100 lbs.  The greater height and weight to be preferred, provided that quality and