How the Movement Began 59 



proportion of three dogs to one man, to the active sectors. 

 His dogs were then taken away from him by certain men 

 detailed from the infantry battalions in the brigade, and 

 were led up to the front line. The keeper remained at 

 brigade headquarters, watching for the dogs' return, and 

 ready to deliver the messages they brought to the officer 

 commanding. Very careful regulations for the correct 

 management of the messenger dogs and their keepers were 

 drawn up and issued. This method of concentration and 

 supervision soon began to give excellent results. 



In the meantime the training work proceeded steadily 

 at the War Dog School at Shoeburyness, and class after 

 class of trained men and dogs were sent overseas, where 

 they were concentrated, in the first place, at the central 

 kennels before being distributed to the sectional kennels. 

 A new branch of activity had besides commenced at Shoe- 

 buryness. As the demand for fighting men became in- 

 creasingly insistent, large numbers who had been doing 

 guard duty all over Britain were withdrawn, and the 

 security of munition factories, magazines, and vulnerable 

 points of all kinds was an anxious one for the Government. 

 I was sent for and questioned as to whether the dogs could 

 be of service at this juncture, to act as guards and replace 

 man-power. I said most emphatically they could. From 

 my experience, however, in pre-war years, as applied to 

 civilian needs, I knew that, in order to be successful, careful 

 management of these guard dogs would be necessary, and 

 therefore I drew up a list of regulations which was issued to 

 each centre where these dogs were employed. Once this 

 branch was fairly started, applications began to pour in 

 from all parts of the country. 



At this time, also, a request for sentry dogs for use with 

 the troops at Salonika was referred to me. The desire was 



