Lord Byron dogs into the water, each with an arm in the ship Captain’s new scarlet waistcoat, to the annoyance of the Captain and the amusement of the crew. Byron had a great love of animals, most notably for a Newfoundland dog named Boatswain. When the animal contracted rabies, Byron nursed him, albeit unsuccessfully, without any thought or fear of becoming bitten and infected. Although deep in debt at the time, Byron commissioned an impressive marble funerary monument for Boatswain at Newstead Abbey, larger than his own, and the only building work which he ever carried out on his estate. In his
Newfoundland English and "me" were pronounced "me", "mine" was pronounced "meen". This older usage has carried over into present-day Newfoundland English. An example would be, "Where's me hat?" as opposed to "Where is my hat?" The use of "to" to denote location is common in Newfoundland English. Where's that to? ("Where's that?"). This is a carryover from West Country dialects and is still common in southwest England, particularly Bristol. There is also a dialect of French centred mainly on the Port au Port Peninsula on the west coast of the island which has affected the syntax of English in the area. One