10 DECEMBER 1927, Page 18

A DOG'S VOCABULARY [To the Editor of the SPECTATOR.] Sni,—Sir

W. Beach Thomas ' in his article on "Country

. . . . .

Life " asks, " Does any dog understand as Many is half-a- dozen words if isolated from a particular inflection of voice ? " If I say to my dog,. a whippet—which is not amongst the most intelligent breeds—" We are going out," without any particular emphasis or inflection of the voice, his actions show- that he "fully understandS. I have made a practice of saying this to him two or three times a week- for the Past six months, and though the conditions do not •suggest the meaning; and we may not go for -five or ten Minutes after I have spoken the 'words, his appreciation of the meaning is

obvious. "

Does this help to answer Sir W. Belieh Thomas's question?