116 NATURAL HISTORY IN ANECDOTE.

again, perhaps, be equalled by any of the caninerace. Well
as I knew him, he often astonished me; for, when hard
pressed in accomplishing the task that he was put to, he haa
expedients of the moment that bespoke a great share of the
reasoning faculty.

“ About seven hundred lambs, which were once under my
care at weaning time, broke up at midnight, and scampered
off in three divisions across the hills, in spite of all that 1
and an assistant lad could do to keep them together. ‘Sir-
rah, my man!’ said I, in great affliction, ‘they are awa’.’ The
night was so dark that I could not see Sirrah, but the faith-
ful animal heard my words—words such as of all others were
sure to set him most on the alert; and without much ado he
silently set off in search of the recreant flock. Meanwhile I
and my companion did not fail to do all in our power to
recover our lost charge. We spent the whole night in scour-
ing the hills for miles around, but of neither the lambs nor
Sirrah could we obtain the slightest trace. It was the most
extraordinary circumstance that had occurred in my pastoral
life. We had nothing for it (day having dawned), but to re-
turn to our master, and inform him that we had lost his
whole flock of lambs, and knew not what had become of
them. On our way home, however, we discovered a body
of lambs at the bottom of a deep ravine, called the Flesh
Cleuch, and the indefatigable Sirrah standing in front of them,
looking all around for some relief, but still standing true to
his charge. The sun was then up; and when we first came
in view of them, we concluded that it was one of the divi-
sions which Sirrah had been unable to manage until he came
to that commanding situation. But what was our astonish-
ment, when we discovered by degrees that not one lamb of
the whole flock was wanting! How he had got all the divi-
sions collected in the dark, is beyond my comprehension.
The charge was left entirely to himself, from midnight until
the rising of the sun; and if all the shepherds in the forest