The Poodle. 175 



respects no animal could be better adapted for 

 the purposes of a companion, for he is sensible, 

 a good follower out of doors, seldom fights or 

 quarrels, moreover he is a perfect specimen of faith- 

 fulness. We have had our British mastiff guarding 

 the body of an English gentleman on the field of 

 Agincourt. During the Peninsular War, a French 

 poodle accompanied an officer with his regiment. 

 The battle of Castella was fought, the master fell 

 fatally wounded, the dog remained by the body. 

 The cross of the Legion of Honour glittering and 

 sparkling on the breast of the fallen officer attracted 

 the eyes of his enemies. As they stooped down 

 to cut the treasure from its ribbons,' the poodle 

 flew at the thieves, and did not cease his attack 

 until, pierced by cruel bayonets, he fell dead along- 

 side his dead master. Anecdotes of the constancy 

 of the poodle could be quoted to almost any 

 extent, and those of my readers who would have 

 some of them I must refer to works that deal 

 more with " dog stories " than can be done in 

 these pages. 



As already stated, it has for many years been 

 the custom to shave and clip the coats of some 

 poodles, but whether this was originally done to, 

 in a degree, destroy the strong smell their curly 

 coats, when neglected, possessed, or merely for 



