Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1857-07-30
NEW SERIES, NO. s3.
TERMS $sI,50 strictly I'm advance.
AhlouuN, $500 at the years end.
Highland Shepherds and the Et-
tlick Shepherds Dog.

whom ne passed the greater part of his life,
form class unique in Scotland, and unparallel-
ed in the range of European society. They are
thin'y scattered over the country, and pass
their days in solitude and seclusion their cot
tages are often miles asunder, and during the
lnciemency OF Winter they may be debaued for
mouth soa s.lcs is1sqpss~ = fraassssss
snow thai chokes q, their pathway, while even
IN summer their time is spent in lonely watch
ines on the hills and their meetings are few,
save when on the morning of First-day they as
semole at the church in the valley. Their sense
OF religion is fervent and unfeigaed; the faith
'helr fathers bled for has been cherished in its
purity and its rites have acquired no gloss or
tinsel from the glittering but nnsubstantjal
adornments of society. They have little of the
polish, and none of the arts derivabe from an
intercourse with the world. Their interests,
their pursuits, and their feelings are the same
'hey are like one widely-scattered, but soul
united family, WHO participate in every emotion
and with whom every feeling is mutual they
are unmoved by the storms of mankind around
them politics and sec,arianism are TO them
tales OF distant country they have but one
monarch to serve, and the same tollng of the
village bell unites all in the worship of the pro-
tecting God. The rays of know ledge and edu-
cation which have glanced through these calm
retreats have taught them merely to investigate
the manners of more remote districts, not to
change their own. Their thirst for information
is proPor'lonate to the opportunity which their
habits afford them of gratifying it; and their
natural shrewdness has directed ther taste to the,
most pure and useful channels. 1t is seldom
that you can encounter shepherd upon the
hills that he is not busily occupied with book,
whilst his plaid thrown across his arm shelters
the beams OF the sun from the page which he
has lain down to ponder; and every idea he is
lmblblng takes tinge from the sublimity or
beauty of the scene by which he is surrounded.
From this daily and uninterrupted stream of
knowledge, these Scottish worthless derive an
acquaintance with literature and the world un-
paralleed in any equally humble class of men in
any country in Europe, and excelled by few
lsxsal p ne higher and wsladucased walks Of
fiiffe. 80
q 1he eele6fatAd post'SRspherd, James IIogg,
had dog named Sirrah 9 He was, ~ saws he,
: beyond all comparison the best dog ever
saw lie was of a surly. unsocial temper, dis
daining all Aattery, and refused to be carressed
but his attention to his master may never again
be equalled by any Of the canine race. The
J first time saw him, drouer was leading him
by rope; he was hungry and lean, and ia r
from being beautiful cur. The man had
bought him of boy for three shillings, some
where on the Border, and doubtless had fed him
very i'll on his journey l thought l discovered
a sort of sullen intelligence in his face, notwith
standing his detected and forlorn situation so
gave the drover guinea for him, and appro-
prlated him to myself He was scarcely then
year old, and knew so little of herdng that he
had never turned sheep in his life but as soon
as he discovered that it was his duty 10 do So.
and that it obliged me, can never forget with
, what anxiety and eagerness he learned his diff
ferent eVolutions. lie would try every day till
he found out what wanted him to do and
when once | made him understand direction,
he never forgot or mistook it again. Well as /
knew him, he often astonished me for when
hard pressed in accomplishing the task that he
was put to, he had expedients of the moment
that bespoke a great share of the reasoning
, faculty.
"About seven hundred lambs, which were
p once under his care at weaning time, broke up
at midnight and scampered off in three diyis-
' ions across the hills, in spite of all that the
: shepherd and lad could do to keep them to-
gether. Sirrah, cried the shepherd in great
affliction, Lay man, they re a AVA The night
j.. was so dark that he did not see Sirrah but the
faithful animal had heard his masters words
i words such as of all others were sure to set him
most on the alert snd without more ado he
i. silently set off in quest Of the recreant flock -
=, Meanwhe the sAAs'fsEa ssda Ailorooarp,sioo al,
lhot fail to do all that was iu their power to re
cover their lost charge; they spent the who'll
- night in securing the hills for miles around
o but of neither the lambs nor Sirrah could thel
II obtain the slightest trace. : 1t was the mos
= extraordinary circumstance, said the shepherd
that ever occurred in my life We had moth
i, ing for it (day having dawned), but to return
:, to our master and inform him that we had los
: his whole flock, and knew not what had becom
. Of one of them. On our way home, however
!; we discovered a body of lambs at the bottom Q
standing in front of them, looking all aroun
for some relief, but still standing true to hi
,o charge. The sun was then up; and when W
). first came in view of them we concluded that
was one of the divisions which Sirrah had bee
unable to manage until he came to that com
manding situation. But what was our astor
er jshment when we discovered that not one lam
IN of the whole flock was wanting How
TX had got all the divisions collected in the dark
beyond my comprehension. The charge wa
,. left entirely to himself, from midnight unit
the rising of the sun and if all the shepherd
of the forest had been there to have assste
:. him, they could not have effected it with great
or propriety. All that can further say is
that never felt SO grateful to any creature be
" low the sun es did to my honest Sirrah tina
morning. "--BritisA Friend.
- s--------4.S.s--
r In Russia when Cossack is at all extray
70 CANT, they say" he's eating his candle at bc
ds."