182 THE MOOR AND THE LOCH. 



There are many authenticated accounts of dogs making much 

 more distant journeys than this ; but the point to be noticed 

 is, his remaining three days, though perfectly at large, and 

 then taking his departure. A keen-tempered dog would have 

 started the next day, at latest, or, by having his attention en- 

 grossed with other things, have remained quietly where he 

 was. Even in the former case, he would not have gained half 

 so much credit for sagacity, as every one must have perceived 

 that the patient retriever waited to see whether or not his 

 master would return. Few would give themselves the trouble 

 to remark that his education and apathetic temper favoured 

 him in this particular, and that equal instinct might have 

 been shown in the more hasty resolves and quicker move- 

 ments of another. It is thus that keen dogs always appear 

 deficient in sense, because they are hurried away by their 

 temper from one thing to another ; and their feats are seldom 

 such as to arrest the attention or excite the wonder of the 

 general observer. The instances I have given are merely 

 mentioned as explanatory of my theory viz., that we are apt 

 to overvalue one dog for sagacity, while we overlook its more 

 unpretending neighbour, because, from shyness, surliness, eager- 

 ness of temper, or want of practice, all its powers of instinct 

 and memory are employed in a different and less obvious way; 

 for there is no doubt, if a dog is eager, shy, or sulky, it may 

 have superior instinct, and yet show less than another of a 

 more phlegmatic, sociable, or easy disposition. This accounts 

 for the difficulty of procuring a good retriever from a cross 

 between the water-dog and terrier, so valuable if the medium 

 between them is preserved; because when the dog partakes 

 too much of the nature of the terrier his quick temper unfits 

 him for the purpose, 1 and when too little, he is generally 



1 A dog of a very cool temper will retrieve wild-fowl better in loch-shooting 

 than another with quicker movements and perhaps a finer nose. Many of the 

 cripples in this shooting take refuge in weeds and bushes, and the keen-tempered 

 dog is apt to overrun them, thus losing time ; whereas the other slowly tracks 

 them one by one to their hiding-place. It must be recollected that I do not speak 



