LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
| Bandy | [Frontispiece] |
| The Child of the House | Facing page [4] |
| The Diplomatist | “ “ [ 32] |
| The Professor | “ “ [46] |
| The Soldier of Fortune | “ “ [70] |
| The Artistic Thief | “ “ [ 96] |
| Suspicion | “ “ [120] |
| Mr. Guest’s Hounds, 1900 | “ “ [ 134] |
| “Conscience Makes Cowards of us” | “ “ [ 150] |
| The Invalid and his New Friend | “ “ [ 166] |
| Bobbie | “ “ [ 180] |
| Billy | “ “ [ 188] |
| “Are they Coming?” | “ “ [ 198] |
| Bobbins | “ “ [ 204] |
| Boy | “ “ [ 208] |
| Bettina Corona | “ “ [ 212] |
| A Sunday Morning’s Work | “ “ [ 232] |
| Bosky | “ “ [ 244] |
| Jimmy | “ “ [ 248] |
INTRODUCTION
“THAT creature’s best that comes most near to man” may in truth be spoken of the dog. Nearest to man in the daily experiences of domestic life, he shares the joys and disappointments that are the lot of his owner. Under man’s influence the dog’s intelligence has been trained to meet the requirements of the environment that is now his. In what a wonderful way he responds to the demands of the civilised conditions of his life, those know who bring the light of their higher intelligence to bear on the study of his character. The more we study the dog, the better we shall understand his kinship to us in the realms of mental and moral feeling, and the more clearly we shall appreciate the barriers that cut him off from the experiences of our own higher life.
In the Life Histories of five dogs I have gathered facts that give the distinctive characteristics that marked each one off from his fellows. With these dogs I have had exceptional advantages of learning from their owners the special marks of character that distinguished them. The results of this study I have made the groundwork of my book. The anecdotes of many other dogs, that are given to illustrate more fully individual traits of character, have all been collected at first hand, and, so far as I know, have never before appeared in print.
The only exceptions are those I have taken from Miss Serrell’s book “With Hound and Terrier in the Field.” As editor of this book I am able to vouch for the truth of the many and charming stories that are scattered broadcast through it, and with the author’s permission I have given a few that bear on the subject of my own work. Two other stories, one of which is taken from the delightful study of the first Earl of Lytton, written by his daughter, Lady Betty Balfour, and a quotation from Mrs. Draycott’s interesting Sketches of Himalayan Folk Lore, are the only ones that have been already given to the public.