26 



Chapters on Animals. 



thoroughbred. The caniche is silliy-haired and has often 

 patches of brown about the face, but the white hair is hke 

 snow, whereas the cliien-mouton approaches both in colour 

 and texture much more nearly to the sheep, and never has 



any patches of brown. 

 Only Blanche and 

 Lyda came to my 

 house ; the other dog 

 has begun to perform 

 in public, but is not 

 yet so accomplished as 

 these two. 



They behaved at 

 dinner exactly like 

 common dogs, but 

 when I offered Blanche 

 a piece of cheese and 

 asked if she knew the 

 word for that substance, her master answered that she 

 could spell it very correctly. I had invited a few friends 

 to meet these learned animals, and when they were assem- 

 bled in the drawing-room we made the little preparations 

 which M. du Rouil said would be most convenient. A large 

 octagonal library-table was put in the middle of the room 

 with a cloth of one colour and a lamp in the centre. Round 

 this table Madame du Rouil laid cards with all the letters 

 of the alphabet, printed in large capitals. There was also 

 a little hand-bell. At a sign from her master Blanche 

 jumped upon the table and sat in an attitude of expec- 

 tation. 



Then M. du Rouil turned to me and said, " I promised 

 you that the dog should spell frontage (cheese). Blanche, 



spell />VW(?Cr£'." 



Chien-mouton. 



