564 THE AMERICAN BOOK OF THE DOG. 



plainly to the fact that the boy having broken through the 

 ice, the dog had gone to his aid, had caught him and tried 

 to pull him out; that the ice had broken and the dog had 

 fallen in. Then he had released his hold, climbed out on 

 the ice, seized his master and tried again to drag him out, 

 but again the ice had broken. These struggles had been 

 repeated again and again until the noble brute, exhausted 

 by his efforts, had sunk and died by the side of his young 

 friend. 



Mr. G-. W. Patterson, writing of a St. Bernard bitch 

 that he had formerly owned, says: 



My little girl was enjoying a slide last winter, back of my house, and 

 Sylvia was accompanying her down the hill by running alongside. When she 

 reached the bottom of the hill, the little girl held out the rope, saying: " Here, 

 Sylvia, you must draw me back up the hill ; " and although the dog had had 

 no training, and was only eight months old, she performed the task admirably, 

 if not as quickly as she did afterward. Carrie never took a slide after that 

 without having Sylvia with her to draw her up the hill. I never could tell 

 which enjoyed it most both growing strong under the influence of bracing 

 air and exercise. 



It has been claimed by some of the opponents of the St. 

 Bernard that he is dull of comprehension and difficult to 

 train. My experience and observation teach me that such 

 is by no means the case. I have known many St. Bernards 

 thafc have been trained to perform some truly wonderful 

 tricks, errands, and services, and that with as little time 

 and labor as would have been necessary to train the bright- 

 est Spaniel to do the same work. Col. C. A. Swineford, of 

 Baraboo, Wis., had a St. Bernard that would at his bid- 

 ding stand on his hind feet, place his fore feet on the office 

 railing, and walk from one end to the other of it in this 

 position. Then, at command, he would place his hind 

 feet on the railing, and with his fore feet on the floor, 

 repeat the operation. 



He would place his hind feet on a barrel, and standing 

 with his fore feet on the floor, roll it back and forth across 

 the floor. His master could send him with a note or pack- 

 age to any house or office where he had ever been, and the 

 dog would return promptly with the answer. A few hours 



