THE NEWFOUNDLAND DOG. 179 
Landseer type is allotted a class to itself, but the authorities who 
live on the island declare that there is no native breed with a 
groundwork of white. I shall, therefore, follow suit, and describe 
each as a distinct strain; for there can be no dispute that a large 
number of dogs resembling the Newfoundland are of the Landseer 
colour. 
There is another point on which great diversity of opinion 
exists, namely, as to size. Most people in this country like a 
very large and majestic animal, if they go in for size at all, 
and accordingly prize a Newfoundland if 30 or 31 inches in 
height. But it is alleged that the true island breed is never 
more than 25 inches at the shoulder, and if so, they say a 30-inch 
dog is not pure-bred. From all that I have gathered, however, 
I can only conclude that the descendants of these 25-inch dogs 
grow in this country to the height of 30 or even 32 inches. I 
shall, therefore, take it for granted that the particular breed I 
am now describing must be black without any great quantity of 
white, and that he may be of any size not less than 25 inches in 
height. 
The Newfoundland is a remarkably sagacious dog, and hundreds 
of stories are told of his nobility of disposition, courage, and affec- 
tion forthe human race. In his native land he is chiefly employed 
as a beast of draught, but in England he is a companion only, and 
is seldom used for any other purpose. His natural love of water, 
and his great power of bearing immersion in it, render him an 
excellent water-dog ; but for wildfowl shooting and retrieving on 
land this variety is not so useful as the smaller or St. John’s 
Newfoundland, which is large enough without being cumbersome 
in a punt or dogcart. All have good noses, but not equal to that 
of the setter, and even the best retriever of pure Newfoundland 
breed I have ever seen trusted more to his brains than to his nose 
to find the game he was seeking. Still, a clever brain, even with 
a moderate nose, makes a better retriever than the best nose in 
the possession of a fool. 
The following are the points as laid down by the special club 
of the breed. They are, however, differently arranged, 
