Canine Guests. 29 



you, tme Francaise (a French lady), give to each of the 

 Prussians ? " 



Lyda very decidedly replied to this with a cipher. 



" But now suppose that you divided your lumps of sugar 

 with me, how many would you give me .' " Lyda took up 

 the figure 5, and presented it to her master. 



This was pretty enough, but for reasons of my own I 

 was much more interested in something that happened im- 

 mediately afterwards. 



M. du Rouil quitted the room, the door was closed after 

 him, and he called out, " Which is the least valuable figure .?" 



Lyda brought me the cipher. 



Then her master said, " Which is the most valuable fig- 

 ure.'" the dog brought me the 9. 



After this I asked for different figures, which the dog 

 gave me without a single mistake. 



It was Blanche's turn next, but this time instead of be- 

 ing surrounded with the letters of the alphabet she was 

 surrounded with playing-cards. M. du Rouil had another 

 pack in his hand, and told us to choose a card. " Blanche, 

 what card has been chosen } " The dog always took up 

 the right card in her teeth. Then she played a game with 

 a young lady, and lost it, after which she rushed from her 

 seat into the corner with an air of the deepest humiliation. 



A very surprising thing followed the game of cards. 

 M. du Rouil begged me to go into another room and leave 

 a light on the floor with a pack of cards arranged all round 

 it and close the doors as nearly as possible without shutting 

 them. This being done, he begged any one present to 

 whisper in the . dog's ear the name of a card to be fetched 

 by her from the other room. A lady whispered the " knave 

 of hearts," if I remember rightly, but in so low a voice as 

 to be inaudible even by the dog, which made a mistake, 



