134 The Collie or Sheep Dog. 



up on 't fells, and ( Beaut' (his dog's name) has just gone 

 back to hev' a feed on it hersel', an' we'll not see her back 

 much afore night." This is how our faithful friends become 

 transformed into murderers, and here was a strange instance 

 of communication of ideas between two dumb creatures, for 

 when " Beaut" did come home at night it was to sleep off 

 the effects of a barbarous carouse, and, no doubt, the dogs 

 would return to their repast so long as the crows and 

 ravens left a particle of flesh upon the bones. 



One remarkable thing in the two varieties of collie, the 

 rough and the smooth coated, is that, unlike what occurs 

 with the two varieties of fox terriers and the rough and 

 smooth-coated St. Bernards, where both sorts may be pro- 

 duced from one litter, I have never known of perfectly 

 smooth and rough collie dogs from the same parents. The 

 huge St. Bernard is particularly liable to do this, and our 

 present champion (Sir Bedivere), who is long or rough- 

 coated, has a litter brother called Baron Wallasey, who 

 competes successfully in the smooth or short-haired division. 

 Many of our leading fox terriers, too, both smooth and 

 rough, are more than cousins by courtesy. 



I find little or no consanguinity between the two varieties 

 of collie. The two will, of course, breed together, but it 

 speaks well for the care taken in the production of both 

 that the strains have not been allowed to become inter- 

 mixed a course that would no doubt prove detrimental 

 to both. 



Allusion has been made in an earlier chapter to the alle- 

 gations that our modern sheep dogs, or some of them, were 

 originally crossed with the Gordon or black and tan setter. 

 My opinion is that no variety of dog in the British Isles 

 can boast of purer blood, or possibly blood so pure, as that 



