THE NEAVFOUNDLAND. 133 



and as companions to their masters, the small breed beinn- also 

 crossed with the setter to make tlie retriever ; but in their native 

 country they are used to draw timber over the snow in the winter 

 months, being harnessed to carts and sledges made for the pur- 

 pose. In intelligence the three breeds are about equal, all being 

 celebrated for their faculty of learning to fetch and carry. This 

 is sometimes developed to such an extent that a well-trained dog 

 will go back for anything which his master has pointed out to 

 him, if it has been handled, when it is only necessary to order him 

 back to seek, and he will find it by the scent. 



Both breeds are good water dogs and bear immersion for a long 

 time, but the large variety having a more woolly coat is superior 

 in endurance of wet and cold. Hundreds of anecdotes are told of 

 extraordinary escapes from drowning by means of these dogs, their 

 tendency to fetch and carry being doubly useful here. Children 

 and light small women may be intrusted to them with safety in 

 the water, if they are not bewildered with fear, when they will 

 sometimes cling round the dog's neck, and frustrate all his efforts 

 to restore them to the land by swimming; generally, however in 

 cases of recovery, the person has fainted, and being then power- 

 less, is towed ashore readily enough. The speed with which the 

 Newfoundland swims is very great, his large legs and feet enabling 

 him to paddle himself with great force. From their great size and 

 strength they are able to beat off most dogs when they are attacked 

 and their thick coats prevent the teeth of their assailants from doing 

 much damage ; but in offensive measures they are of little use, being 

 rather unwieldy, and soon winded in a desperate struggle. Hence 

 they are not useful in hunting the large kinds of game, nor the 

 bear, wolf, or tiger. The nose is delicate enough to hunt any kind 

 of scent, but as they soon tire, they are not used in this way, and 

 it is solely as retrievers on land or water that they are useful to the 

 sportsman, being generally crossed with the setter for the former, 

 and the water spaniel for the latter element. 



The characteristic points of the Large Newfoundland are, great 

 size, often being from 25 to 30 inches high ; a form proportionally 

 stout and strong, but loosely put together, so that there is a general 



