62 Idle Days in Patagonia. 



not on account of the assistance they have been to 

 me, but because when I have wished to have a dog 

 at my side I have found them more suitable than 

 other kinds for companions. They are not stupid 

 nor restless, but ready to fall in with a quiet mood, 

 and never irritate by a perpetual impatient craving 

 for notice. A fussy, demonstrative dog, that can 

 never efface himself, I object to : he compels your 

 attention, and puts you in a subordinate place : you 

 are his attendant, not he yours. 



Major's appearance attracted me from the first, 

 and he, on his side, joyfully responded to my ad- 

 vances, and at once attached himself to me, following 

 me about the place as if he feared to lose sight of 

 me even for a minute. My host, however, hastened 

 to warn me not to take him with me when I went 

 out shooting, as he was old and blind, and subject, 

 moreover, to strange freaks, which made him worse 

 than useless. He had formerly been an excellent 

 retriever, he informed me, but even in his best days 

 not wholly to be trusted, and now he was nothing 

 but bad. 



I could scarcely credit the blindness, as he did 

 not show it in his brown intelligent and wistful 

 eyes, and always appeared keenly alive and interested 

 in everything going on about him ; but by experi- 

 menting I found that he could scarcely see further 

 than about six inches from his nose ; but his hearing 

 and scent were so good, and guided him so well, 

 that no person on a slight acquaintance would have 

 made the discovery of his defective sight. 



