CHAPTER XXIII 



Anecdotes About Dogs (Continued) 



In Mr. St. John's " Highland Sports," there is the 

 following characteristic anecdote of a shepherd's dog: 

 " A shepherd, a neighbour of mine, to prove the quick- 

 ness of his dog, who was lying before the fire in the 

 farmhouse kitchen where we were talking, one day, 

 said to me in the middle of a conversation about quite 

 a different matter, ' I'm thinking, sir, the cow's got 

 into the potatoes,' though he purposely laid no stress 

 on these words, and said them in a quiet, unconcerned 

 tone of voice, the dog, who appeared to be asleep, im- 

 mediately jumped up, leaped through the open window 

 and scrambled up the turf roof of the house, from 

 which he could see the potato field. Not seeing her 

 there, he then ran into the farm yard, and finding her 

 there, all right, came back to the house. After a time 

 the shepherd said the same words again, and the dog 

 repeated his look out, but on the false alarm being 

 given a third time, the dog got up and wagging his 

 tail, looked his master full in the face with such a 

 comical expression of inquiry, that we could not refrain 

 from laughing heartily, on which with a slight growl 

 he laid himself down again to sleep in his accustomed 



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