Page:The power of the dog.djvu/117

 nature, as the defenders fled. When the British soldiers entered the Palace much booty had already been removed, but several of the Emperor's favourite dogs remained behind, two of which passed into the possession of Lord John Hay. Two more became the property of an officer, who subsequently presented them to the then Duchess of Richmond, and General Dunn picked up another, which he had the pleasure of giving to Queen Victoria. So the story usually ends in most of the literature upon the subject, but, reading through some old volumes of "Country Life," dated 1899, I find that there were others, of which sight had been lost. Admiral Oliver Jones, then a Captain, who was present on the occasion, has stated that there were six, the mother and five puppies, one of which he had. A month or two later Mr. H. Townshend wrote to say that two officers of the 99th Foot also got a couple, from whom puppies were born in Canton. Mr. Townshend brought home one which lived for seventeen years, and was one of the most perfect animals in intelligence and habits that he had ever met.

The last remark probably explains the spell which these little creatures seem to cast over their owners. Superficially, one might think that the English toy spaniels should never be supplanted by the Chinese, and as far as mere beauty is concerned one would assign the palm to the lovely Japanese, but the Chinaman has come and conquered. He must be endowed with some intrinsic merits which are not apparent to the casual observer, one of which