96 NATURAL HISTORY IN ANECDOTE.

middle of a sentence concerning something else, ‘I’m think-
ing, sir, the cow is in the potatoes.’ Though he purposely
laid no stress on these words, and said them in a quiet,
unconcerned tone of voice, the dog, who appeared to be
asleep, immediately jumped up, and leaping through the
open window, scrambled up the turf roof of the house, from
which he could see the potato field. He then (not seeing
the cow there) ran and looked into the byre, where she was,
and finding that all was right, came back to the house.
After a short time the shepherd said the same words again,
and the dog repeated his look-out; but on the false alarm
being a third time given, the dog got up, and wagging his
tail, looked his master in the face with so comical an expres-
sion of interrogation, that we could not help laughing aloud
at him, on which, with a slight growl, he laid himself down
in his warm corner, with an offended air, as if determined
not to be made a fool of again.”

The well known story of Sir Walter Scott’s dog, supplied
by him to Captain Brown, is another illustration. “The
wisest dog I ever had,” said Sir Walter, “was what is called
the bull-dog terrier. I taught him to understand a great
many words, insomuch that I am positive that the commu-
nication betwixt the canine species and ourselves might be
greatly enlarged. Camp once bit the baker, who was bring-
ing bread to the family. I beat him, and explained the
enormity of his offence; after which, to the last moment of
his life, he neve: heard the least allusion to the story, in
whatever voice or tone it was mentioned, without getting up
and retiring into the darkest corner of the room, with great
appearance of distress. Then if you said, ‘the baker was
well paid,’ or, ‘the baker was not hurt after all,’ Camp came
forth from his hiding-place, capered, and barked, and rejoiced.
When he was unable, towards the end of his life, to attend
me when on horseback, he used to watch for my return,
and the servant would tell him ‘his master was coming down