Il6 NATURAL HISTORY IN ANECDOTE. 



again, perhaps, be equalled by any of the canine race. Well 

 as I knew him, he often astonished me; for, when hard 

 pressed in accomplishing the task that he was put to, he had 

 expedients of the moment that bespoke a great share of the 

 reasoning faculty. 



" About seven hundred lambs, which were once under my 

 care at weaning time, broke up at midnight, and scampered 

 off in three divisions across the hills, in spite of all that I 

 and an assistant lad could do to keep them together. 'Sir- 

 rah, my man!' said I, in great affliction, 'they are awa'.' The 

 night was so dark that I could not see Sirrah, but the faith- 

 ful animal heard my words words such as of all others were 

 sure to set him most on the alert; and without much ado he 

 silently set off in search of the recreant flock. Meanwhile I 

 and my companion did not fail to do all in our power to 

 recover our lost charge. We spent the whole night in scour- 

 ing the hills for miles around, but of neither the lambs nor 

 Sirrah could we obtain the slightest trace. It was the most 

 extraordinary circumstance that had occurred in my pastoral 

 life. We had nothing for it (day having dawned), but to re- 

 turn to our master, and inform him that we had lost his 

 whole flock of lambs, and knew not what had become of 

 them. On our way home, however, we discovered a body 

 of lambs at the bottom of a deep ravine, called the Flesh 

 Cleuch, and the indefatigable Sirrah standing in front of them, 

 looking all around for some relief, but still standing true to 

 his charge. The sun was then up; and when we first came 

 in view of them, we concluded that it was one of the divi- 

 sions which Sirrah had been unable to manage until he came 

 to that commanding situation. But what was our astonish- 

 ment, when we discovered by degrees that not one lamb of 

 the whole flock was wanting ! How he had got all the divi- 

 sions collected in the dark, is beyond my comprehension. 

 The charge was left entirely to himself, from midnight until 

 the rising of the sun; and if all the shepherds in the forest 



