THE AIREDALE TERRIER 207 



new phases are noticed every day, has From the wildest of big game to the 



recommended the Airedale to several smallest of birds there is not a living 



of the armies in Europe who are now being that he cannot be taught to hunt, 



experimenting on them for messenger He will point and retrieve birds on flat, 



and war-dogs. Germany, being con- in mountain or in marsh ; will follow 



vinced of their worth, has already any trail on land or water, be it otter, 



adopted them for military service. mink, musk-rat, deer, caribou or 



As a water-dog the Airedale equals moose ; run rabbit, fox or wolf ; fight 



any breed in existence, and apart from anything from a hedgehog to a bear, 



the sporting "value which this gives to and, in other words, fill the place of 



it, it has in many instances been the every dog on earth, 



means of saving life. The following As I write I have before me four 



extract from an article in the Boston letters from owners of Airedales, one 



Herald, of September 6, 1905, speaks from Italy, one from England and two 



for itself : from the United States. All speak high- 



"From the beach could be seen four ly of the dog's sporting qualities, and 

 heads bobbing up and down a quarter show his versatility under most varying 

 of a mile from shore, while an excited conditions. The one from Italy, writ- 

 Airedale was ploughing its way toward ten by Giuseppe Airdoli, one of Rome's 

 them. leading gunners, says that the writer's 



" 'Betsy always swims out to meet "Flick/' an English Airedale, has been 



us,' said the captain- 'She's a great wa- tried on quail, snipe and woodcock, and 



ter dog. She has already saved two peo- found equal to the famous bracchi (It- 



ple from drowning, and as you may alian pointers) of the Airoldi kennels, 



have noticed this morning, she invari- The English letter is from a gentleman 



ably patrols the beach. Let a man sink farmer in Monmouth, George Smith, 



out of sight for a moment and she's by who hunts otter a great deal, and says 



him in a jiffy, ready for another rescue, he has found the Airedale quite as sat- 



Her intelligence is quite human." is factory as the very otter hound. Of 



Another clog, owned by a Cornish the two American letters, one is from 



lighthouse keeper, in England, is well a sheep rancher in Idaho, and says that 



known for his marvelous rescues. some Airedales kept on the ranch are 



In 1903 I had an experience myself, of great help in fighting the abounding 

 While crossing a swollen stream in the wolves, as well as in coralling the 

 Adirondacks over a log bridge one of sheep. The other is from a rice farmer 

 my deerhounds, a little bitch in whelp, in Southern Texas, who affirms that 

 lost her footing and precipitated into four Airedales trained by him will track 

 the torrent below. I had with me a deer and pig (havali), point snipe and 

 splendid five-year-old Airedale, and prairie chicken, retrieve faultlessly, and 

 turned to call him, but before I had with it all, guard the house against in- 

 time to, he made a dash for the bank, truders. 



sprang into the water and caught hold Dr. W. D- Hennen, who breeds Aire- 



of the hound. The intelligence and in- dales extensively, and now has some 



genuity displayed in bringing to shore splendid specimens out of champion 



the heavy burden over slippery rocks, stock, tells me that during the time his 



fallen trees and precipitous banks was dogs are at his country seat, at Noro- 



more than human. ton, Conn., hardly a day goes bv but 



A thousand episodes of this kind what they hunt the neighborhood and 



could be told. return with rabbits, woodchucks, squir- 



Going on to enumerate the attributes rels, musk-rats or minks, 



of our paragon we come to the Aire- Recent experiments have proved the 



dale's "raison d'etre'' viz.: his hunting Airedale a splendid pack-dog for the 



qualities. In this respect he is a wizard, frozen North. He is insensible to 



