THE WATER SPANIEL. 271 
I followed as fast as I could; but Paris, which was the Doe’s name, was too quick for 
me, and before I could well get round the bush, which was about ten yards from the brink 
of the ravine, had come to a stand, his ears pricked, his tail wagging like lehtning, and 
his whole frame in a seeming state of ecstasy. I expected that he had got a hare under the 
bank, and, as the situation was in favour of a shot, I ran towards him with more speed than 
T should have done had I known that instead of a hare I should find, as I did, a tiger 
sitting on its rump, and staring Paris in the face. They were not above two yards asunder. 
As soon as the Dog found me at his side, he barked, and giving a spring down, dashed 
at the tiger. What happened for some moments I really cannot say; the surprise and 
danger which suddenly affected me banished at once that presence of mind which many 
boast to possess on all emergencies. I frankly confess that my senses were clouded, and 
that the tiger might have ‘devoured me without my knowing a word of the matter. 
However, as soon as my fright had subsided, I began, like a person waking froma dream, 
to look about, and saw the tiger cantering away at about a hundred and fifty yards’ 
distance, with his tail erect, and followed by Paris, who kept barking; but when the 
tiger arrived at a thick cover, he disappeared. 
Thad begun in my mind to compose a requiem for my poor Dog, as I saw him 
chasing the tiger, which I expected every moment would turn about and let Paris know 
that he had caught a Tartar. Though P Paris had certainly brought me to the gate of 
destruction, yet he as certainly saved me. I felt myself indebted to him for preservation, 
and consequently was not a little pleased to see him return safe.” 
This is not a solitary example of the achievement of so daring a feat. Another 
officer, belonging to the Bengal Artillery, was shooting near a jungle, and was attended 
by five or six Spaniels, for the purpose of putting up the bustards, floricans, peafowl, and 
other birds, when a tiger suddenly showed itself from a spot where it had lain concealed. 
Instead of retreating from the terrible animal, the Spaniels dashed bolally at the brindled 
foe, and although several of them were laid prostrate by the tiger's paw, the survivors 
remained staunch, and attracted the creature’s attention so completely that their master 
was enabled to kill it without difficulty. 
The report that the Dhole will attack the tiger is thus corroborated. 
From its singular affection for the water, this Dog is termed the WATER SPANIEL, as a 
distinction from the Field Spaniel. In all weathers, and in all seasons, the Water 
Spaniel is ever ready to plunge into the loved element, and to luxuriate therein in sheer 
wantonness of enjoyment. It is an admirable diver, and a swift swimmer, in which arts 
it is assisted by the great comparative breadth of its paws. It is therefore largely used 
by sportsmen for the purpose of fetching out of the water the game which they have 
shot, or of swimming to the opposite bank of the river, or to an occasional island, and 
starting therefrom the various birds that love such moist localities. 
Much of its endurance in the water is owing to the abundance of natural oil with 
which its coat is supplied, and which prevents it from becoming really wet. A real Water 
Spaniel gives himself a good shake as soon as he leaves the: river, and is dry in a very 
short eine! This oil, although useful to the Dog, gives forth an odour very unpleasant to 
human nostrils, and therefore debars the Water Spaniel from enjoying the fireside society 
of its human friends. 
Some people fancy that the Water Spaniel possesses webbed feet, and that its aquatic 
prowess is due to this formation. Such, however, is not the case. All dogs have their 
toes connected with each other by a strong membrane, and when the foot is wide 
and the membrane rather loosely hung, as is the case with the Water Spaniel, a large 
surface is presented to the water. 
The Water Spaniel is of moderate size, measuring about twenty-two inches in height 
at the shoulders, and proportionately stout in make. The ears are long, measuring from 
point to point rather more than the animal’s height. 
The Kinc CHARLES SPANIEL derives its name from the “airy monarch,” Charles IL, 
who took great delight in these little creatures, and petted them in a manner that verged 
on absurdity. 
