A dog is the most human of all animals and, therefore the best companion for a man. He is always courteous, and always ready for a game—full of humour, and very faithful and loving.
Of course a scout who lives in the country has much better chances of studying animals and birds than one who lives in a town.
Still if you live in London there are lots of different kinds of birds in the parks, ducks and waterfowl of every kind, pelicans, woodpigeons, woodpeckers, and most of the English birds; there is almost every animal under the sun to be seen alive in the Zoological Gardens, or stuffed and set up in the Natural History Museum at South Kensington—so that a Boy Scout in London ought to know as much about all animals as most people. And even in Leadenhall Market you can see a number of different kinds of live animals for sale, as well as in the many animal shops about London or any other big town.
In other towns it is perhaps a little more difficult, but most of them have their Natural History Museum where a fellow can learn the appearance and names of many animals; and you can do a lot of observing in the parks or by starting a feeding-box for birds at your own window. And, best of all, by going out into the country whenever you can get a few hours for it by train, or bicycle or on your own flat feet, and there to stalk such animals as rabbits, hares, water-rats, birds, fish, etc., and watch all they do, and get to know their different kinds and their names, and also what kind of tracks they make on the ground, their nests and eggs, and so on.
If you are lucky enough to own a camera you cannot possibly do better than start making a collection of photos of animals and birds taken from life. Such a collection is ten times more interesting than the ordinary boy's collection of stamps, or crests, or autographs, which any ass can accomplish by sitting at home and bothering other people to give.
And cameras can be got very cheaply now: it only means saving up money in a money-box for a short time.
The wild animals I shall talk of now are those which you find in Great Britain. Any scouts who live in the Colonies or elsewhere must make up their own lists for themselves.
As a scout you should study the habits of as many of these animals as you can:—
Red Deer
Hares