OLDTOWN, ME.—His name is Scip, and he is one of the most wonderful dogs in Maine. A veritable four-legged detective is Scip.
Scip lives in Oldtown when at home, and is an undersized cur, with bright eyes and sharp ears, of badly mixed lineage—just a common dog as far as breeding goes. He is owned by one of the State game wardens, whose duty it is to examine certain trains coming down from the game region. Every piece of game must be checked up, and suspicious packages examined.
The Maine law positively prohibits the taking out of the State of game-birds in any way whatever.
As the people alight from the train, few notice a little dog dodging about among them, sniffing at this hand-bag and that bundle.
Soon his master hears a little bark. He knows what that means, and, dropping everything, finds Scip dodging and nosing about the heels of a passenger. The warden closes in on the "game" pointed by Scip, quietly invites the suspect into the baggage room, and questions him about the game which he has concealed about his person or effects. The dog has never been known to fail in "pointing" game. He may have possibly missed some, but when he has made up his doggish mind that there is a violation of the law he has always been correct so far.
But inspecting the hand baggage is not all of the little detective's work by any means. After the passengers are all out he hops into the baggage and express car and applies his sharp little nose to everything in sight.
While making his usual inspection of the express car the other day, he came across a barrel, to all intents and purposes, containing fish. It certainly had fish in it. Scip sniffed at it, went on, and then came back and sniffed again. Round and round the barrel he went, whining and dancing as if it were full of rats.
With a faith in the little animal, born of long experience, the officer investigated the barrel and found in the center of a liberal lining of fresh shore cod, several dozen of plump partridges.
Fish shipments from a certain Washington County station have suddenly ceased.—Boston Record.