44 SEALS OF THE SHETLAND ISLANDS. 



times the intestines are distended with food or flatus — a 

 great quantity of blood may be suddenly discharged or very 

 little. All these circumstances, or some of them, make the 

 difference of sinking or swimming, and a very important 

 one it is to the hunter, who is standing on the rock shout- 

 ing at the full pitch of his voice to his boatmen or his dog 

 to speed to the spot before the fallen angel descends to the 

 coral depths : usually an active water-dog can reach the 

 seal before he sinks. We have not had the opportunity of 

 testing the merits in this hunt of the many kinds of dogs : 

 on the whole, I should prefer the Newfoundland, if of a 

 good race ; few dogs, however, have the requisite courage. 

 They are all keen enough, but are rather timorous in 

 promptly laying hold of the object ; if they approach it in 

 flank their fore paws are apt to strike the body projecting 

 under water before they can reach the small part of it, which 

 alone is above, and thus sink it ; the more experienced dogs 

 approach it near the head. A very fine animal of the rough 

 water-dog breed, with a little cross of the poodle, after in 

 vain trying to seize a floating seal I had shot, plunged un- 

 der water and laid hold of one of the paws, and thus brought 

 him to land. There is a breed of dogs indigenous to this 

 country, and common in Norway, Faroe, and Iceland, in 

 height fully equal to the largest spaniel ; short-haired, 

 muzzle not very elongated, and ears somewhat pendulous ; 

 which I think combines in the greatest perfection all the 

 best qualities which we seek for in the dog, either as a ge- 

 neral companion or as a useful auxiliary for all kinds of 

 sporting. The best seal dog I ever saw was one of these, 

 though not of the largest size ; this breed is unfortunately 

 now in this age of cross reform very rare in Shetland. I 

 may here remark in passing, that in our ardour for eliciting 

 some peculiar points in the dog, we do not keep sufficiently 



