160 ‘The Naturalist in Nicaragua 
and did not value those of any other colour so much. They 
would barter a gun or a large iron pot for a single dog, if it 
was of the right colour. 
The common dogs of Central America are a mongrel breed 
—not differing, I believe, from those of Europe. There are 
usually a number of curs about the Indian houses that run 
out barking at a stranger, but seldom bite. 
The hairless dogs, mentioned by Humboldt, as being 
abundant in Peru,! are not common in Central America, 
but there are a few to be met with. At Colon I saw several. 
They are of a shining dark colour, and are quite without 
hair, excepting a little on the face and on the tip of the tail. 
Both in Peru and Mexico this variety was found by the 
Spanish conquerors. It would be interesting to have these 
dogs compared with the hairless dogs of China, which 
Humboldt says have certainly been extremely common 
since very early times. Perhaps another link might be 
added to the broken chain of evidence that connects the 
peoples of the two countries. 
A large naked dog-like animal is figured by Clavigero as 
one of the indigenous animals of Mexico. It was called 
Xolottzcuintli by the Mexicans; and Humboldt considers 
it was distinct from the hairless dog, and was a large dog-like 
wolf. Its name does not support this view; Xolotizcuinils 
literally means “‘ a servant dog,” from “ Xoloil,” a slave or 
servant, and ztzcuinilt, a dog; and we find the word Xolod#l 
in Huexlotl, the Aztec name of the common turkey, which 
was domesticated by them, and largely used as food. I am 
led to believe from this that Xolotl was applied to any 
animal that lived in the house or was domesticated, and that 
the Xoloztzcuintli was merely a large variety of the hairless 
dog. Clavigero’s description of it would fit the hairless dog 
of the present day very well, excepting the size; he says 
it was four feet long, totally naked, excepting a few stiff 
hairs on its snout, and ash coloured, spotted with black and 
tawny. . 
Tschudi makes two races of indigenous dogs in tropical 
America. 1. The Canis caratbicus (Lesson), without hair, 
and which does not bark. 2. The Canis inge (Tschudi), the 
common hairy dog, which has pointed nose and ears, and 
1 Aspects of Nature, vol. i. p. 109. 
